STRAWBERRY (AS. streawberie, str(3ate herigc, strawberry; perhaps so called either be cause the long stems resemble straws, or because of an old custom of stringing the berries on straws). Certain perennial herbs of the natural order Rosacece, widely distributed mostly in tem perate regions throughout the world. The culti vated forms are all derived by the hybridization and crossing of three principal species. Fragaria resca, Frogaria Virginiana, and Fragaria Chi loensis, particularly the last named. The plants are low growing. have trifoliate leaves, white flowers either pistillate o• polygamous, and nume rous aehenes on usually red, sometimes yellowish white fleshy receptacles which constitute the edible part. The plants are hardy and may be grown in almost any region in America from Florida to Alaska. The varieties grown almost universally in America have a short season of fruitfulness, but several of the European varie ties bear more or less continuously throughout the summer and early autumn.
Since young plants are most productive, the strawberry plantations are usually allowed to fruit only once, sometimes twice. The plants obtained from rooted runners are set in the field in spring or in late summer, and are allowed to form matted rows from their runners or are grown in so-called hills, in which ease the runners are cut MT, and the plants made to form stools. The former method is by far the most popular, but finer and larger individual fruits, though in smaller number, are obtained by the latter meth od. The land may lie any rich soil suitable for corn or potatoes, and should have been in culti vation for at least one year, preferably two or three, previous to the planting of the strawber ries, in order to he free from the larvre of certain insects that feed on the roots especially of grasses. The plants are usually set about IS inches asunder, in rows three feet apart, and given clean culture throughout the season. When the ground has frozen hard straw, marsh hay, or similar substance free from weeds is spread upon the plants as a winter mulch. This is
raked between the rows when growth starts in the spring and allowed to remain to protect the berries from dirt during rains. Usually.in the spring of the second year complete fertilizers are applied, but no cultivation is given. After the crop is gathered, the plants are plowed under and the land used for some crop such as cabbage, which will mature before frost. Land cropped with strawberries should be planted to other crops for two o• three years before strawberries are again planted.
Since the introduction Of refrigerator trans portation the strawberry industry has vastly in creased. Large areas in the Gulf States are de voted to the crop, shipments are made to the North in early spring, and as they cease areas farther to the north supply the demand until midsummer, when the market is furnished from northern localities. The whole industry has been developed since the introduction, in 1834, of the Hovey strawberry, a variety which originated in ?Iassachusetts. Since that date thousands of varieties have been introduced, tested, and even if they were popular for a short time have been supplanted by superior ones. Strawberries are cultivated to a small extent under glass to sup ply a demand for forced fruits in sonic cities.
The principal disease to which the strawberry plant is subject is the blight or rust fragariw). which appears on the leaves as small purple spots which increase in size and become brown with purple margins. Serious losses may follow severe attacks. Since the disease is car ried over winter in the old leases, all such should be collected and burned and the young foliage protected by two or three sprayings of Bordeaux mixture o• other fungicide (q.v.). A mil dew (Sphcrrothera eastagnei) sometimes appears on the leaves as a delicate cobweb which causes the erumpling of the. eaves.
It seldom causes much injury and is read ily controlled as above indicated. Consult: Fuller, The Strawberry Culturist (New York, 1897) ; Terry and Root, A B of Strawberry Culture (Medina, Ohio, 1902). STRAWBERRY BUSH. Sec SPINDLE TREE.