Strawberry mat and a jam of the wrong sort. The Strawberry fancier
does not wish to keep a plantation any great length of time, and he must
plant annually to taste the new sorts. This to many people is one of the
chief delights of the garden, and it certainly has its attractions.

==Forced Strawberries.==--The high price realised on the market for the
earliest supply of forced Strawberries is a sufficient proof that
society is prepared to pay handsomely for this refreshing luxury. As the
season advances and competition becomes keen the figure rapidly
declines, but 'Strawberries at a guinea an ounce' has more than once
appeared as a sensational head-line in the daily press.

The fruiting of Strawberries in pots is part of the annual routine of
nearly all large establishments, but even with the most perfect
appliances it must be admitted that to produce berries which win
appreciation for their size, colour, and flavour demands both skill and
patience, especially patience.

Strong well-rooted plants are essential to success, and no trouble
should be spared to secure them from robust free-fruiting stocks. The
earliest runners must either be layered on square pieces of mellow turf
or over thumb pots filled with a good rich compost. When the runners are
fairly rooted in the layers of turf or the thumb pots they should be
transferred to pots of the fruiting size. No. 32 is generally used for
the purpose. After the pots have been crocked some growers add a layer
of half-inch bones, which aid the plants and insure free drainage. The
most satisfactory soil is a rich fibrous loam, with the addition of
one-fourth of well-rotted manure and a small proportion of sand, and the
compost must be well firmed into the pots with the ramming stick.

The best place to keep the plants is an open airy situation, easily
accessible, where the pots can stand on a bed of ashes. On the approach
of frost they can be transferred to a cold frame, keeping them close to
the glass, or they may be plunged in ashes in some sheltered position.

When the time arrives for forcing, it is usual to commence by plunging
the pots in a bed of warm leaves or in a mild half-spent hot-bed.
Immediately the plants show sign of blooming they must be shifted to
warmer quarters. A shelf at the back of an early vinery or Peach-house,
quite near the glass, is a suitable position. The temperature at
starting should be 55 deg. Fahr., rising gradually to 60 deg. by the time