It’s strawberry season! In our video and this article, we’ll explain the two types of strawberries, how to plant them and what you can do to make sure your plants are happy, healthy and producing great fruit.
June-Bearing Strawberries
The June-bearing varieties produce their entire crop in June and early July. June-bearers have somewhat larger berries and yield more quarts per year than everbearing varieties.
First Season: Remove all blossoms to encourage strong growth. Plant in rows, spacing plants about 6 to 8 inches apart. Once the row is 18-24 inches, remove extra runner plants. Weed often and use insect and disease prevention sprays.
Producing Years: After the first year, continue to weed, pest control and harvest annually. Fertilize following harvests with Earl May All Purpose Plant Food, but avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers in spring as they cause excessive growth, softer fruit and disease-prone plants. Control weeds and cultivate the plants by hand weeding throughout each season.
Everbearing Strawberries
These varieties produce a crop twice a year. Once in June and Earl July and then again from late Summer until frost. Day-neutral types produce more consistently during the summer with fewer dormant periods.
First Season: Remove all blossoms until the 1st of July. The first berries ripen in August and continue until frost. For the first 2-4 weeks remove all runner plants and control weeds. Then apply a summer mulch around each plant and between rows (sawdust or clean straw works well). Sprays to prevent disease and insects, and mulch again for winter.
Second Season: The following spring, as soon as plants show signs of growth remove the winter mulch. Add the Summer mulch and continue to control weeds, pests and runners through the season.
Planting & Care Tips
Site and Soil Preparation
Choose a sunny spot, with good drainage and air circulation to cut down on disease. Avoid planting near trees or shrubs that compete for nutrients and moisture or where tomatoes, potatoes or peppers were planted previously as they host diseases that attack strawberry crops.
Strawberries like to grow in sandy or loam soil that drains well and is rich in organic matter. Preparing beds in the fall allows earlier spring planting. The top 6 inches of soil should be mixed with a good garden fertilizer.
Planting
Plant your strawberries as early as possible, late March to early April being Ideal.
June-bearing plants should be spaced 18 to 24 inches apart in rows spaced 3 to 4 feet apart. This allows room for the runners to develop and form a matted row
Everbearing varieties can be planted using the 3 row hill system. Beds consisting of three rows, 1 foot apart, with plants spaced 1 foot apart. Leaving 2 feet between beds if needed.
Bareroot: Separate and remove older leaves before cutting the rots to 4 inches in length. Soak the roots in a bucket of water an hour before planting.
Potted: When removing the plant from packing be careful of the crown and roots. Gently separate roots if they’ve grown together. The crown of the plane should be at the soil surface. Make sure to plant in your garden at the same depth as it was grown in the pack.
Pour 1 cup of a starter fertilizer solution around each plant once firmed into the soil. We recommend Earl May Plant Starter.
For good production, strawberries need about 1-inch of water per week. Whenever possible, water early enough in the day to keep the foliage dry at night to cut down on disease problems.
Strawberry Bed Maintenance
After the first crop is harvested, remove leaves 1-inch above the crowns and debris from the bed with a week. Using a triller or spade, narrow the rows to 6-8 inches. Then remove any weak plants, leaving only the healthiest runners. By mid October aim for 5 to 7 plants per square foot and continue to remove excess or weak runners to limit overcrowding and fruit rot. Apply fertilizer and keep the bed moist.
It’s time to replant when the number or size of berries decrease usually after 3 productions. However, well maintained plants can keep producing for 6-7 years
Disease and Insect Maintenance
Proper management helps reduce loss and damage due to disease or insects. We recommend applying sprays, like an Orchard Spray, as it combines insect and disease control very effectively.
Start spraying strawberries when new growth appears. The second spray should be applied after the plants bloom. Apply cover sprays every 10 to 14 days. Do not use this within 14 days of harvest. After completing renovation, another cover spray should be applied.
Winter Protection
Winter temperatures may kill buds and damage roots. Mulch should be applied before the temperature drops below 20 F and left in place until signs of growth in the spring. If placed too early or removed too late growth will stop or the crowns will rot.
Products you might need
Black Gold® Organic Raised Bed Mix, 1.5 cu ft
This mix is ready-to-use for vegetables, herds, flowers in outdoor raised besd for large pots and containers. Provides superior moisture retention with excellent drainage. Natural and organic, OMRI Listed.
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