BIG PROFITS FROM LITTLE PLANTS
Jenkins tells John Zoeller's success raising and marketing strawberries as a sideline. Two thousand dollars per acre with only average production, and double the money for exceptional results, that's what strawberries can do as cash crop.
by Charles F. Jenkins
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Two thousand dollars per acre with only average production,
and double the money for exceptional results . . . that's
what strawberries can do for you. What better helper could
you find to pay off the mortgage on the old homestead?
Of course—as my neighbor John Zoeller would be quick
to tell you—a modest amount of work (mostly
supervisory) goes into this fine cash crop. But that fact
doesn't keep the young New Riegel, Ohio grower from looking
forward to his next year of raising and marketing berries
as a sideline.
Back two springs ago—when he found that his regular
40-hour job left him with plenty of evening working time
after the switch to daylight saving—John decided he
could stand more action, and started looking into the
glowing reports he'd heard about the strawberry business.
The big, luscious specimens pictured in nursery catalogs
were as hypnotic as the shining disc swinging from a
mesmerist's bony fingers, and the growing instructions
almost implied that anyone could produce a bountiful crop
by waving a magic wand.
However, Zoeller—born and bred on a farm—wasn't
easily fooled. He knew that only weeds are that simple to
raise. To learn the sweet and sour sides of strawberry
culture, he visited an established commercial grower . . .
and was startled to find that the records he examined there
made the catalog claims look almost modest!
Once he knew the idea was sound, John's next question was,
"Where do I plant my cash crop?" There was no space around
the house he rented, so Zoeller propositioned his
father—a successful nearby farmer with plenty of
acreage—for a sliver from one of his fields.
Wilfred Zoeller enthusiastically endorsed his son's idea.
He even suggested that more land be devoted to the
undertaking so that John's two teenage sisters could share
in the project. After talking it over, the family agreed
that two or three acres between the farmhouse and the
highway—where customers could park safely along the
lane leading to the Zoeller house—looked like a good
location. They decided to set out two and a half acres of
strawberries immediately (so they'd have fruit to sell the
following spring).
Since the budding strawberry tycoon hadn't had his
inspiration until mid-May—six weeks past the crop's
recommended planting time for John's area—time was
short. Two decisions had to be made quickly: what variety
of plants to buy, and where to purchase them.
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