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Strawberry Plants - What to do
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Message 1.Â
Posted by Blodyn86 (U14809448) on Wednesday, 9th March 2011
Hi,
I would like some advice on some Strawberry plants I have had out all winter in a pot. They don't look that good at the moment and we had severe frost and snow in December and January, but I'm wondering whether they'll come to anything when the weather improves. Do I need to transfer them to fresh compost and do I need to trim the plants back? Any advice would be much appreciated as I am a complete novice to gardening.
Thanks -
Message 2
Posted by Rainjustlearning (U12861332) on Wednesday, 9th March 2011
My strawberries were in a pot in tempreatures of -11c and have suvived, I re potted them last week and removed all the dead foliage and there's signs of new growth even now after just a week, I guess it depends where you are I'm in the North East.
Rain -
Message 3
Posted by Blodyn86 (U14809448) on Wednesday, 9th March 2011
Thanks. It was slightly colder here in Mid Wales - was -17c one morning! I will try re-potting them and hopefully I will see some signs of life. Do you know if I can take some cuttings from them and try and replant them in smaller pots or is it better just to leave it as it is for now?
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Message 4
Posted by Vixxihibiscus (U13865184) on Thursday, 10th March 2011
Ah they're tough as old boots! Mine are out all the time in the Highlands of Scotland and I've never even lost one. You'll struggle to kill strawberries!
Remove the old dead foliage, top dress with new compost but don't dig up the roots. They'll be good as new in a month or so.
Pop a few in the greenhouse for earlier crops too :o) -
Message 5
Posted by spirit78 (U10872643) on Thursday, 10th March 2011
As others have said, strawberries are tough plants. If I remember correctly, the commercial growers store them bare root in freezers until they can be sent out to customers. All the small runners I rooted last year have survived in individual small pots and the mother plants have survived in the hanging basket. I potted them up about a month ago and they’re all growing well.
If there is no room in the pot to root the runners in summer, then you can either put pots of compost next to it or what I do with the hang baskets is fill 6cm pots and then thread some thin garden wire up through two holes in the bottom. Place the runner on top and carefully twist the two ends of the wire to hold it in place. Then I place the pots in the centre of the basket under the leaves of the mother plants, so they don’t dry out too quickly. Once they’ve rooted I cut them off and pot up -
Message 6
Posted by Blodyn86 (U14809448) on Thursday, 10th March 2011
Thank you to everyone for your advice. I will tidy up my plants over the weekend and hope that they perk up soon!
I only had about a bowl full of strawberries last year from a hanging basket and an oblong pot - does anyone have any tips to maximise my crop? I am also thinking about buying some additional plants to increase the amounts, I have read that "Elvira" and "Hapil" varieties are high-yielding plants, but does anyone know if they taste any good? I would like a strawberry that actually tastes like a strawberry and not tastless and watery like the ones from the supermarkets tend to be!
Thanks -
Message 7
Posted by Rainjustlearning (U12861332) on Thursday, 10th March 2011
I can vouch for "Elsanta" I grew them last year and they are delicious, no doubt other posters will like different ones but they are my personal favorite.
It's so nice in the Summer when you go out into the garden and they are just sitting there nice and ripe and mouthwatering just a quick twist of the fruit and it's in the mouth, how much fresher can you get.
Rain -
Message 8
Posted by Blodyn86 (U14809448) on Thursday, 10th March 2011
Well I have heard that it is a good all rounder so I will give it a try. I have been looking up the various varietes tonight and there also seems to be a lot of love for the wild strawberry varieties, although I gather they are a lot smaller.
Yes your right, there is nothing better. I just hope that we get some sunshine this summer, we deserve it after the winter we've had I think!
Blodyn86 -
Message 9
Posted by chippyphil (U14676447) on Saturday, 12th March 2011
hi, good avice given, what you want are 3 types. summer mid and late. or a perpetual variety that fruits all season. i brought 3 plants last season and these were doubles. 2 in 1 pot so when buying search them out. i now have over 50 young plants. some under glass and some in the open ground.never lost one to the cold and all showing good growth. ideally 25 per person. good luck.
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Message 10
Posted by koala_girl (U12702629) on Saturday, 12th March 2011
Mine stay in their pots outside all winter too. When they start producing flowers I feed mine with tomorite. BTW, Robert Dyas were selling tomorite 20% when I was in town this morning.
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Message 11
Posted by Vixxihibiscus (U13865184) on Saturday, 12th March 2011
I'm with Rain, Elsanta all the way for me.
I have those, Cambridge Favourites and various alpines and I adore Elsanta. They're commercial favourites for a reason! -
Message 12
Posted by Vixxihibiscus (U13865184) on Saturday, 12th March 2011
Incidentally if you leave any strawberry on the plant till it's almost dropping off on it's own it'll taste glorious, the problem with supermarket strawberries is they're picked before their peak of ripeness so they keep longer. Green bananas anyone???? They're then refrigerated!
Nothing beats sun warmed strawberries all deep red, perfectly ripe and served with cream. Just heaven!!!
Sun warmed peaches are a close second though!!!!! :o) -
Message 13
Posted by Rainjustlearning (U12861332) on Sunday, 13th March 2011
On the Banana thing, I always buy green unripe ones, I keep them in the fridge that way they ripen slowly, I don't like ripe ones anyway.
This year I have 4 new fruit trees in the garden a conference pear, braeburn apple, ? cherry and damson plum so with my strawberries and gooseberries and black berries I shall have a wonderful supply of fruit albeit for a short time but at least I wont need to but them for a while.
Rain -
Message 14
Posted by floraltips (U14757778) on Sunday, 13th March 2011
I love getting a recommendation on this board and I saw Elsanta in my local Lidl today.
Pack of 10 bare rooted ones for £1.99.
I humm'd and haaa'd about buying them and didn't.
Guess where I'm going tomorrow... -
Message 15
Posted by Papa Nopsis (U14479902) on Tuesday, 15th March 2011
Do I need to transfer them to fresh compost and do I need to trim the plants back?Â
I found that the answer to strawberry groiwng was to let th runners run ie not cut them back at all.
that way the bed changed position over about five years, without much help from me!
The one secret about STRAW-berries is that is what they need to grow really big. somewhere really comfortable to get bigger and bigger and juicier and juicier.
Straw is an ideal bed for these berries!
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