The Practical Garden-Book / Containing the Simplest Directions for the Growing of the Commonest Things about the House and Garden

by Charles Elias Hunn; L. H. Bailey

The old way of growing a crop was to set the plants 10 to 12 inches apart, in rows 3 feet apart, and allow them to run and root at will, the results being a mass of small, crowded plants, each striving to obtain plant-food and none of them succeeding in getting enough. The last, or outside runners, having but the tips of their roots in the ground, are moved by the wind, heaved by the frost, or have the exposed roots dried out by the wind and sun.

Ground rich in potash produces the firmest and best flavored berries. Excessive use of stable manure, usually rich in nitrogen, should be avoided, as tending to make too rank growth of foliage and berries of a soft texture.

Pot-grown Strawberry

Except in the case of a skillful grower in a favored locality, the fall setting of plants is not to be recommended. The preparation of the soil and care of the plants more than overbalance the partial crop obtained the following spring.

In the single-plant or hill system the plants should be set 12 inches apart, in rows 3 feet apart. In the narrow matted row system the plants should be set 18 inches apart, in rows 3½ feet apart. The first method requires about 14,000 plants per acre, the second about 8,000 plants.

The winter treatment of a Strawberry bed should consist in covering the plants, when the ground is frozen, in November or December, with straw or hay. Salt marsh hay, if obtainable, is the best, as no weed seeds are introduced. Cover the soil and the plants to the depth of 3 to 6 inches. As soon as growth begins in spring, rake the mulch off, allowing it to lie between the rows; or, if the soil is hard or weedy, it may be taken off the patch entirely, the ground tilled, and then replaced for the purpose of holding moisture and keeping the berries clean.

Usually, Strawberries may be fruited twice or three times; but on rich soil, with extra good care, the first crop may be very heavy, and the patch may be plowed up thereafter. Some varieties do not produce pollen, and not more than two rows of these should be planted without a row of a pollen-bearing kind.

The rust and mildew may be held in check by Bordeaux mixture. It is usually sufficient to spray after the blooming season (or at any time the first year the plants are set), in order to secure healthy foliage for the next year.