The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1905-02-25

any advantage in that mode of culture.
These advocates start out with the
fact, well known among the strawber-
ries culturist, that the greatest need
of growing berries is plenty of moisture,
and then claim by invoking another
well known principle, that the frequent
stirring of the soil produces moisture.
While do not deny the truth of these
assertions, experience has taught me
that the frequent stirring of the soil
is not the only or best way to supply
growing crop of strawberries with mois-
ture. / contend that good mulch will
answer the purpose just as well as the
stirring of the soil, because after all it
is the mulch that fills the bill Then
what difference does it make whether
that mulch be pulverized earth, straw,
leaves or any other material? There
fore, as far as moisture is concerned,
my plan is equally as good as the stirring
of the soil. On the other hand it saves
a great deal of labor and prevents the
roots of the plants from being disturbed
or injured just at time when they
need all the strength they can get to de-
velop the maturing crop. But the adj
vocate will say, "Well, what are you
going to do with the grass and weeds?
''In answer will say, experience has also
taught me that very little grass and but
few weeds will find their way through
a heavy mulch of straw. In fact, half
hours work about every ten days will
be sufficient to keep a plot of ground,
such as | have described, entirely free
of these pests
Again l. have found that if a dry
spell occurs the latter part of April or
the first of May, as is frequently the
case, you can water the land if mulched
to much greater advantage. The mulch
will keep the ground from baking and
prevent evaporation This being the
case, the plants will receive the full
benefit of the artificial shower and the
berries will grow accordingly; other
wise drought at this time will not only
materially affect the yield, but cause
the fruit to be inferior in quality
Strawberries in the neighborhood of
Towson, Baltimore, County, begin to
ripen from the 18th to the 25th of
May, in accordance with an early or
late season, and if you have set out the
varieties suggested, and have fortified
and cultivated in the manner described,
you ought to have berries every day
from four or FIVE weeks My record
for 1903 shows | gathered three quarts
of berries on the goth day of May and
had four quarts for tea on the 4th
of July. A plot cultivated in the
manner set forth will yield about pint
to the plant, producing, in round num-
bers, two hundred and forty quarts, suf-
hcient to supply a family of ten with
fresh, clean berries every day, and at
every meal in the day during the season,
and to have some to spare for the neigh
bors. When the season is over you
should either cut the foliage, let it dry
for few days, then burn the bed over;
or with spade or plow turn down the
soil and mulch between the plants I
generally follow the latter plan, broad
casting about fifty lbs of bone meal
and fifty of German KANT, planting be-
tween the rows about two feet in the
row sugar corn. | now cultivate after
every shower, repeating every FIVE or
six days during the summer and fall,
cutting away the fodder as fast as the
roasting ears are pulled, taking special
care not to allow more than two or
three runners to set from each plant
Now at the same time have in process
of preparation another plot of ground
which has been planted with potatoes,
peas or some other early vegetables and
on which late crop of sugar corn is
growing. | take sixty plants of each of
the varieties heretofore named, provided
do not want a change of varieties, using
a large trowel or small shovel to make
the transfer, disturbing as little as pos
sible the earth about the roots of the
plants, and set them in the new plot,
following the plan already described |
still continue the cultivation of the first
plot until the first real hard freeze, COW
ering again with heavy mulch of straw
manure. treating the bed in the spring
as in the year previous. This, the sec
ond season, the bed is in its prime, and
you ought to gather fully twice as many
berries as you did the preceding year.
After fruiting you should either burn or
turn under as formerly recommended,
pursuing the same method of cultivation
as the year before.
| now have third plot of ground
prepared in the same manner as the first
and second. to which is applied the same
method of cultivation Now this the
third year and you will observe some
little falling off in the yield and size of
the berries on the first plot. By follow
ing this plan you will have three beds,
one just coming in, one in its prime,
and one showing evidence of decay.
1t is well known fact among straw
berry growers that strawberry plant
does not bear many berries after the
third year and that the berries produced
are small and trihing. The reason for
this is readily seen upon an examina-
ton of the plant. On inspection you
will find all the lower roots of the plant
dead, and thus all the nourishment the
plant gets is drawn from the few live
roots sprouting out from under the
crown, near the surface of the earth.
1t impresses you at once that these small
roots are absolutely powerless to pump
into the plant the necessary ingredients
to bring its fruit to perfection, and
hence the deterioration
But if you do not desire change of
location or varieties you can pillow or
spade between the rows, leaving a mar
row strip of plants sufficient for propa-
CATION Plant sugar corn as before in
the newly prepared ground and carefully
train the runners from the old plants
to the centre of the corn row, allowing
them to set not more than three or four
plants between each hill of corn, as near
as the eye can judge, from eight to ten
inches apart. When the corn has been
harvested, and the fodder removed, you
can turn down the narrow strip of old
plants, leaving you for the season to
come in the first plot brand new set
of plants, full of life and vigor. Indeed,
in this way I have continued a bed of
berries in the same plot for eight or
ten years without noticing very much
reduction in the yield of fruit.
l know that great many strawberry
growers recommend the spring as the
best season to set plants, upon the plea
that the plants will do better, and crop
full one the following year While I
do not deny these assertions, | contend
that when your space is limited you
can get better all around results and
more satisfaction by raising an extra
crop of vegetable; that is to say the
vegetable and berries from August or
September plants together will be of
much greater value than that of the
spring set plants; again, have always
found it more convenient. In the spring
everything is on the rush and you hard
ly know what to do first In August
or September you. have more time and
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