how to grow strawberries ?
It’s spring and that means it’s almost time to start growing strawberries. In this article, you will learn how to grow strawberries in your home garden.
Strawberries are one of the first fruits to be grown in a home garden. You can harvest them in June, long before most other berries are available. Their small size and early harvest make them perfect for the home gardener with little space.
Here is what you need to know how to grow strawberries.
How to Grow Strawberries in the Home Garden
Like other berries, strawberries are a fruit. They are also semi-tropical plants and need warmer temperatures to flower and fruit. They flower only once during the season and that is when you will see the characteristic flowers that look like the flowers of roses.
The flower eventually turns into a hollow, yellow fruit called an achene. When you eat a strawberry, you are eating the ac hell. The achenes are small, only about an inch in diameter, and are white, dry, and fleshless. When you pick a strawberry, you are actually picking the entire achene.
To eat the sweet, juicy fruits we all recognize as strawberries, you have to help the fruit grow within its achene shell. The seeds inside the achenes initially require some heat and light to develop into fruits. The day length and Cooled Light Integral (CLI) of the plant determines the quality of the berries.
The achenes are fertile almost immediately after they are formed but their viability drops quickly. The flowers only last for one day and then they wilt.
To get high-quality berries you need to make sure the flowers are pollinated before they wilt. Most plants release pollen in the morning. You have the best chance of successful pollination if you pollinate during the morning when the pollen is still fresh on the stam petals.
Once you have pollinated the flowers, you want to keep the plants warm enough to induce fruit development but not so warm that the achenes start to desiccate (dry out). The young fruits are very delicate and need some extra heat in the cold of winter. For these reasons, backyard gardeners who grow strawberries in the open are advised to plant their plants in a protected spot.
How to Grow Strawberries in Container
Strawberries are a great choice for container gardening. You can place a pot on a windowsill or even a rooftop. Make sure the soil in your container is fertile and does not retain moisture for too long. Water your plants regularly and avoid wet roots.
As with planting in a garden bed, you need to prepare your container soil for growing strawberries. Our Garden TillerTool Quick Tips can help you prepare soil for planting in a container. In summary:
Use a mix of compost, potting soil, perlite or stone grit (crushed granite) and humus
Rough up the soil’s surface by tilling it with a hoe or garden claw
Water your plants regularly March-October (the growing season for strawberries)
Optionally, you can use a garden spray to keep your plants protected from pests and diseases
How to Grow Strawberries in Raised Bed
If you have limited space for gardening in a city or town, consider raising your beds. You can raise the bed on blocks or build it up with a mound made of compost and soil. Make sure the raised bed is at least 6 feet (1.8 meters) away from any building sides or structures that emit cool air at night.
When you raise the bed, you will increase the amount of sunlight that strikes it by about 10 percent. To ensure the plants get the cool temperatures they need at night, keep the raised bed at least 60 inches (152 centimeters) away from the obstructing cold- zone source.
Here are some Quick Tips to prepare your raised bed for planting strawberries:
Clear the bed of rocks, roots and other debris by tilling it with a garden claw or hoe
Add any needed fertilizer
Rough up the soil’s surface by tilling it with a hoe or garden claw
Water your plants regularly March-October (the growing season for strawberries)
Optionally, you can use a garden spray to keep your plants protected from pests and diseases
How to Grow Strawberries in Raised Bed Trellis
A raised bed strawberry trellis can be made of:
PVC pipe and hardware cloth (also known as chicken wire)
Two-by-four wooden posts and crosspieces made of wood or PVC pipe
Divide the bed into rows that are 3 to 4 feet (0.9 to 1.2 meters) apart; place the posts at the center of each row
Attach the vine on each plant to either the front or back post using twine
As the plant grows, weave the vine around each of the posts
Strawberries need only 6 hours of sunlight each day
How to Plant Strawberries
Plant strawberries after danger of frost has passed and the soil is warm, preferably in early spring
Work your soil to a depth of 12 to 18 inches (30 to 45 centimeters)
incorporate 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of compost or well-aged manure into the upper 6 inches (15 centimeters) of soil
Rough up your soil’s surface by dragging a chain through it; this will help water enter the soil more easily
If you live in a region with heavy rainfall, such as Oregon, install a drainage system to keep your plants from getting waterlogged
How to Grow Strawberries in Straw Containers
You can grow strawberries just about anywhere using plastic straws and these simple steps:
Choose sturdy, rigid-walled straws, such as QuikStraws (available from LeoLaLee and other garden supply companies)
Cut the straw into three equal lengths; this will be the strawberry bed
Divide each length into seven equal segments; this will be the strawberry holes
Tap a pencil into the middle segment; use the pencil to gauge the depth of the strawberry root when planting
Push the roots into the bottom segment until they reach the depth you’ve marked-you should not plant beyond bottom third of the straw
Water your strawberries thoroughly
When the strawberries start to grow, push out one segment at a time to allow fruiting stalks to grow along the sides of the straw
As the strawberries ripen, cut each stalk and allow berries to hang in the straws and overripe berries will reach down to replace those that have been picked. Enjoy!
How to Grow Strawberries in Containers
You can grow strawberries in containers such as buckets, barrels, tubs, or even old clothes dry ers on small levels of foundations or on your apartment balcony. Just remember to choose a pot that can hold at least 15 to 20 pounds (6.8 to 9.1 kilograms) of strawberries!
Strawberry plants like this one above can also be trailing; this means they can be cultivated in boxes or even along benches and walls
Decide where you want to grow your strawberries and clean the area with water and a scrubbing brush
Add a 10-inch (25 centimeters) layer of well-aged compost or manure; if you have poor soil, add some topsoil as well
Stem cuttings of strawberry plants can be planted immediately or stored in a cool place until you are ready to plant them (check the manufacturer’s instructions)
Once you have planted the cuttings, water thoroughly
Water whenever the soil feels dry up to a depth of 6 inches (15 centimeters).
