The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-11-21
FARM NOTES..

uoW " pfeDdFe fdnQ lot tue sio"'h VI
strawberries, and what kind of fertilizers
to use on same. Please answer in the
Farmer and Mechanic" 1t would take
quite an essay to tell you all about the
culture Of strawberries, and / will be
obliged to be brief in my reply. You do
not say whether you intend to plant
merely for home use or for market.
There will be very little difference. how
ever, except in the area cultivated. III
for market, you will want to cultivate
only the early varieties, since there
would be no profit in shipping the later
ones that would come in competition with
the great Norfolk crop. You are not in
the best location for the market culture
of strawberries, for the situation of the
land has a great deal to do with the sue
cess of the crop. The strawberry is very
fond of water and on a very dry soil it
cannot do as we'll as on a moist one.
Still | do not mean that it needs a wet
or badly drained soil, for this would be
worse than dry one. But it does best
on land that is level and moist and where
the water table. is not many feet down
in the soil. The black lands OF eastern
North Carolina are ideal strawberry
lands. In your section the best land for
the strawberry are the creek ana river
bottom lands. The only drawback there
is the liabilit yof such locations to frosts
in the spring. Then the soil must be
fertile and if not naturally so it must be
improved If deficient in humus or de-
caying organic matter it will not De so
good as land that has plenty OF humus
in it, and on land deficient in this there
should be crops grown like clover or peas
to restore this organic matter before
planting Strawberries in it. High and
dry soil as We have said is not SO good
for the strawberry as level and CON-
parkatively low lapd. | once grew straw
berries on rich upland loan that was
highly improved and would make seven
tyfive bushels of corn per acre. But
never could get over $500 to 1000 quarts
per acre. On low and level lands not far
away, which would not make more than
one third the crop of corn mine would
they grew 5000 to $1,000 quarts, simply
because in that soil the strawberry roots
could always find moisture. On a moist
soil too you can apply commercial fer
tilizers more heavily than on dry soil
If you are going to use commercial fer
IlIlIeIS you VIII HScu " thNib vain %
lavish hand. About 1000 pounds per acre
fthe following mixture will make a
good fertilizer for strawberries. Acid
phosphate 900 pounds. cotton seed meal
600 pounds, nitratt of soda 100 pounds,
and muriate of potash 400 pounds TO
make a ton. Lay off burrows four feet
apart and apply the fertilizer and then
bed on it; Flatten down the beds and
set the plants foot apart. If you set
the plants in August you can get fairly
good crop the next spring and full
crop the following spring. Then pillow
them under Plant a new bed every year
and have one Just coming on and one to
be plowed down after the fruit is off. 1t
is far better to plant a new patch every
year than to / ry to keep an old bed,
clean Keep the middles we'll worked
the first season and let the runners mat
along the rows. Repeat the fertiliza-
ton in the fall or summer after the first
fruit is gathered. Avoid stable manure.
From Alamance county: ''Will it do
to mix ashes with acid phosphate for
wheat on read land? If so in what pro-
portion? / have been saving the ashes
from my fireplace ever since last fall.
crop? l tried them alone on wheat last
fall, all the drill would SOW, but | did
not think they paid as they should"
Ashes have more lime in them than any
thing else, and lime has tendency to
render the phosphoric acid in the acid
phosphate less soluble, or as the chem
lists say to revert it. Hence l would not
advise the mixing The red land as
rule does not particularly need potash
for a wheat crop. The ashes would pay
better on peas than anywhere else. They
will also be valuable on corn or especial
ly on sweet potatoes. Part of my patch
of sweet potatoes this year was man
ured with ashes and the rest with COM
mercial fertilizer, having small per-
centage of potash. The soil is grey sandy
and needs potash. Wher, the ashes vent
there was double the crop on the rest of
the land. If you have good market for
sweet potatoes the ashes will probably
pay better on them than anywhere else.
They should be used at rate of ton per
acre.
We are now busy with our fall garden
and getting the winter garden started. /
always enjoy my garden more in fa!I
anu WiHtesI tudu any OLu0l ti1iNs eNo u
is never too hot to work. The fall has
been very favorable. Today, October
2Sth, we still have a great abundance OF
snap beans and the vines have not yet
been touched by frost. We are also
gathering summer squashes at the same
time with the winter ones and pump
kins. Garden peas are now in fine shape.
These do not make as heavy crop at
this season of the year as in the spring,
but they are very acceptable Turnips of
course we have in great abundance. The
favorable weather has brought on the
spinach faster than / ever sw it. We do
not usually get much of this until cold
weather, but it is now in great abund
ance for the table. Last year owing to
the drought our frame lettuce was late
and we did not cut any till near anuary.
Today our first planting is headed before
the glass has been used over it, We now
have the Big Boston lettuce heads foot
across and have succession crops coming
on. Then we have the Wonderful lettuce
set on the south side of we'll MANFRED
ridges. and mulched with stable manure
to prevent too hard freezing. This let
tuce we expect to head in April, and to
ge theads that will weigh four to five
pounds. 1t is not a good lettuce for the
frames, and in them we use the Big Bos-
fop Wo ole Tor no ne