|
Growing Strawberries
Home Grown Strawberries luv2garden.com
|
|||
|
Fertilizer for Strawberry plants
Disease Common to Strawberry plants
|
|
||
Some gardeners find that raised beds are easier to maintain and promote more vigorous plant growth. Walking in a garden causes soil compaction, which can cause problems with drainage
and oxygen availability to the roots. It's also more difficult to weed when soil is compacted.
With a raised bed, you can plant, weed and harvest without ever walking on the soil. You can also avoid drainage problems by planting in raised beds. The soil also warms up faster in the spring than in a traditional garden. The growing season can also be started earlier.
-
Amazon
-Raised Garden Beds.
-
How to Build a Raised Garden Bed -Hometips.com
Firm the surrounding soil and water thoroughly.
Prune damaged roots
Trim excessively long roots to aprox. 5 inches
Regularly hoe between rows and individual plants.
Remove runners and old leaves.
Most strawberries produce offsets at the end of runners. If you want
more plants, just let them grow. If you have enough strawberry plants,
pinching off the runners will give you larger plants with small yields
of big berries.
Remove the flower stalks of June-bearing strawberry plants as they appear throughout the first growing season. More production can be expected if the plants are allowed to attain large size before fruiting. Remove the blossoms of day-neutral types of plants as they appear until about the middle of June in the first year of planting only.. Then allow flowers to set fruit for the duration of the season.
June-bearing strawberries that have been renovated
after this year's harvest should be watered weekly during dry
weather. Watering aids the recovery of the renovated planting and
helps ensure optimal production next season. (The flower buds on
June- bearing strawberries develop in late summer and fall. These
flower buds will bloom the following spring.) If the strawberry
planting is not properly watered, dry weather in late summer and
fall could drastically reduce flower bud formation and next year's
crop.
Everbearing and day-neutral strawberries must be watered during dry
periods to maintain good fruit production.
Always soak the soil thoroughly when
watering. this helps to promote good root development, but not
excessively ..so as to avoid rot. Inexpensive
Water timer systems
Fertilizer recommendations for Strawberries
The recommendations below
are generalized and should be adjusted to the fertility,
nutrient holding ability of your soil, and your observations
of the plant growth. An application of
Miracle-Gro 
June bearing
The soil should have been fertilized before planting as
recommended ..if not, apply 1/3 cup 13-13-13 per 25 feet of
row two weeks after planting. Repeat in late August
1/3 cup 13-13-13 per 25 feet of row at renovation (after
harvest) and again in late August
Ever bearing
2 weeks after planting apply 1/3 cup 13-13-13 per 25 feet of
row if soil was not fertilized before planting. Repeat twice
in the growing season.
Fertilize with 1/3 to 1/2 cup 13-13-13 per 25 feet of row
three times per year. In containers, it may be easier to use
a weekly soluble fertilizer or a slow release fertilizer
according to label directions.
See Also Soil pH, and adjust accordingly
Best Varieties of Strawberries for Home Growers
The following are my personal favorites, you of course may prefer to scan any of the many online nurseries and seed catalogs.
|
Developed by University of California these year round berries cascade forth in masses of snow white flowers and sweet berries all year long. The more you pick, the more grow to take their place. Easy to grow - practically a care-free Indoor Strawberry Garden |
|
June Bearing |
Ever Bearing & Day Neutral |
|
|
June Bearing Strawberries produce one crop per
year in late spring or early summer. It's best used for
preserving. June-bearing
strawberries are most productive when grown in 2-foot-wide
matted rows. Some June-bearing strawberries are extremely
vigorous, producing runners beyond the 2-foot-wide matted
row. These runners should be placed back within the 2-foot
row or trimmed back to prevent the field from becoming a
solid matted jungle.
|
Everbearing Strawberries
tends to peak in
early summer and continue on through the fall. This is the type
to plant if you want fresh berries all season long. They
are highly productive and have very flavorful berries.
Day-neutral plants have three peaks of production each year.
Early Summer, Mid Summer and Early Autumn. There are limited
varieties. |
|
|
Allstar - Junebearer
|
Everbearing Picnic Strawberry
Medium-sized fruits on bushy, compact plants
with few short runners. For baskets, tubs, ground cover or
edging. Grows as Annual or Perennial.
|
|
|
Earliglow Strawberry
|
Alpine Strawberry
sweet and tangy with a wild aroma. It will
fruit right through the summer and early autumn and can be
producing strawberries about ten weeks from an early sowing.
|
|
|
Park's June-Bearing Strawberry Collection
|
Ozark - Everbearer
|
|
| Seed & Nursery Catalogs | ||
Renovation is an important part of strawberry care. In order to insure substantial and quality berry production, June-bearing strawberries grown in the matted row system should be renovated every year right after harvest.
A strawberry patch will continue to be productive
for three to four years as long as the planting is maintained. The
first step in the renovation process is to mow the old foliage with
a mower, cutting off the leaves about one inch above the crowns.
Rake and remove the leaves, if not diseased, compost them or
dig them into the soil. Fertilize, Remove all weeds. Thin the plants
in the narrowed row to 4 to 6 inches between plants.
Winter Protection
To protect strawberries against winter
injury, a layer of mulch is recommended. If plants are unprotected,
low winter temperatures may kill the fruit buds and damage the roots
and crowns. Alternate freezing and thawing conditions in the spring
cause heaving of the plants. Mulch should be applied before the
temperature drops below 20oF (-6oC). Once the temperature drops
below 15oF (-10oC), damage to the plants begins. However, if the
mulch is applied too early before the plant growth stops the crowns
may rot.
Clean hay or straw make the best mulching material.
Do not use tree leaves, as they mat down and smother the plants. A 3
to 4-inch layer of mulch is sufficient.
Leave winter mulch in
place until plants show signs of growth in the spring. No harm will
result even if many of the plants show one or two small yellow new
center leaves. Delayed mulch removal prevents most heaving and may
also delay early blooming which may be damaged by spring frosts.
Remove just enough of the mulch so that the plants can come through.
Pests Common to Strawberry Plants
-
Aphids cause strawberry yield losses due to honeydew production. Honeydew deposits on fruit cause sooty molds to develop. White skins shed by aphid nymphs stick to the berry which renders the fruit unpalatable.
-
Insecticidal soap is recommended for use by organic gardeners.
-
Diazinon - by non 0organic Gardeners
-
Lady Bugs are a voracious predator of Aphids
-
-
Birds Birds love berries, enough said !
-
Corn Earworm causes damage to strawberries by burrowing into the berry. Only larvae of the first generation attacks winter strawberries. Entrance holes made by early larvae aren't visible, and the fruit must be cut to determine their presence. Larvae typically feed in the air pocket at the strawberries center. Mature strawberries containing larger larvae appear seedy and develop a shrunken surface with brown patches
-
Bacillus Thuringiensis
is recommended for use by organic gardeners.
-
Sprays/Pesticides must be applied in the pre-bloom stage to prevent injury. Pesticides such as Rotenone that are more effective in cool than warm weather will work more efficiently earlier in the season.
-
-
Strawberry Root Weevil feeds on the roots of strawberry plants and can completely devour small rootlets and destroy the bark and cortex of larger roots. Soon after feeding begins, plants wilt
-
Diatomaceous Earth is highly effective against the soft bodied Grub stage.
-
Beneficial Nematodes will help contain weevils and other beetles
-
-
Spider Mites retard the growth of strawberry plants which can result In plant death. Most severe losses have resulted from outbreaks starting in late fall or winter. In the spring, mites increase rapidly and do the greatest damage during or after the blooming period.
-
See Pest Control for more extensive data
See Also : University of Kentucky Entomology -STRAWBERRY PESTS
Common Diseases and Pathogens affecting Strawberries
Most Strawberry problems are fungal in nature, and caused by soil born pathogens, a sufficient ground cover of straw or well rotted mulch will help to minimize many diseases as the spores will bounce and spread further off soil and water than they will off straw.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
,
which contains Potassium Bicarbonate is useful for this
purpose. For large fields try
See Pest Control for more extensive data
|
|
|
|
