The Savannah morning news., 1904-09-13
Strawberries-The Intensive Plan
of Culture.

StraWberr1es-The Intensive Plan
of Culture. Il
Inquirer-We have several times de
scrfbed the best plan of growing ber-
ries. 1t is certainly the Intensive
plan and is very appropriate to all
home gardens, and especially where
there are any facilities for watering.
The beds are made to 4 feet wide
and each bed is surrounded by or s
inch plank set on edge and firmly stalk
ed down. 1t is better to have several
short beds than just one long one I'M
less one can control plenty of water the
length of the long bed. When the beds
are made short, say 20 or 30 feet, there
should be a ditch Is inches or more
deep dug out between each bed. The
width of this ditch or pathway should
be Is to "a inches. The beds being in
good order approaching the fruiting
season about month before blooming
time if the bitches could be filled with
water it would insure the plants not
suffering from drought at the critical
period, just as they come into bearing.
The secret of great success with
strawberries is to have plenty of water
for the plants and to have a good kind
of berry-a vigorous. healthy grower
that will respond to good treatment.
These walks or bitches between the
beds should be made the receptacle for
the straw, vines and old stalks that ac-
cumulate in the garden until they be-
come lightly filled up.
Even if there Is no artificial water
to be made use of it is possible that
the heavy rains of early spring will
supply the beds and bitches with an
accumulation of water that, with the
aid of little mulching, will sustain
the plants during the bearing season.
In the South May is a dry month
at least three out of five years, and
that is the month for Strawberries to
bear in Middle and Northern Georgia
Much dry weather in April and May
will cause the crop to be a failure
oftentimes, when ii it could have been
tided over a couple of weeks or so the
result would have been success.
No fresh or rank manure of any kind
should be used on the beds IT is not
desirable even to use cotton seed meal
unless it is applied when the beds are
first laid out and made up. Pure
be the chief fertilizer used on straw
berry beds. This raw bone can supply
almost the entire amount of phosphoric
acid and nitrogen needed for perfect
growth. In its decay ii yields these
elements gradually and with no danger
from heating the roots of the grow
ing plant. The bone dust should be of
a kind where the bone particles range
from dust almost up to the size of a
pea seed or larger
First-class raw bone contains as
much as % per cent. phosphoric and
4 per cent. or more Of nitrogen In soil
fairly good to start with there will not
be need for using much of anything else
besides the bone. If the soil lacks
potash hardwood ashes can be used TO
supply II or some potash salt can be
used
high grade superphosphate along
with small amount Of nitrate OF soda
as top dressing just as the growing
season begins will not be out OF place.
But never use stable manure on
Strawberries II at all possible TO avoid
II. In that case II should be turned
and turned and comDosted until its
rankness is destroyed and the weed
seeds IN II likewise. II such IN possible.
In setting the plants 10 begin the bed
there should be 3 rows 10 each bed
setting a plant every 70 or ib inches IN
the row. After the first plants bear
one on two fun crops new plants will
be- trained To- between the old ones and
then stiil later new rows VIII be- start