Strawberries, this small red and sweet fruit that we find in abundance in the fields in summer and which are full of benefits for our health, can easily be grown in the backyard. Whether in a pot on the terrace or in the ground in the vegetable garden, you just need to give it the best care to obtain an abundant harvest of small fruits. Discover the tips you need to know to grow strawberries in abundance at home:
Choosing the right plants and the right time to plant them
Everbearing strawberries (neutral days) — Ideal time for planting: Spring
Although fruit production is greater at the start of the season, everbearing strawberries produce fruit continuously – from June to the first frost.
- Seascape – Very popular, hardy and very productive variety. Bright red strawberry, very fat, firm and juicy with a sweet taste. Requires winter protection for a second year of production. Harvest from mid-July until October.
- Mara des Bois – Small strawberry of medium firmness and light red color. Juicy flesh with a wild strawberry taste. Easy to grow, multiple award-winning variety. Harvest from June.
- Delizz – Compact plants are perfect for putting in pots, hanging baskets or in the garden. Produces beautiful, large, bright red, very sweet fruits with a slight taste of wild berries. Harvest from mid-July until October.
- Keoki – This beautiful white-fleshed strawberry produces fruit continuously until fall. Sweet and tropical flavor reminiscent of pineapple. As this strawberry plant is not self-fertile, plant it near another strawberry plant to encourage pollination.
Non-everbearing strawberries (short days) — Ideal time for planting: August
Non-blooming strawberries thus have time to take root before the arrival of the cold season. Massive fruit production will begin the following spring and last for a period of 1 to 3 weeks before fruiting stops completely.
- Early (June) – Galletta – Hardy and very productive plant with an erect habit and resistant to common foliar and root diseases. Fruits of very good size, deep red and shiny. Requires a different variety nearby to fruit.
- Mid-season (Mid-June to July) – Jewel – One of the most popular varieties. Large foliage with an erect habit. Produces strawberries of light red color and impressive size. As juicy as it is firm, it keeps longer than other varieties.
- Late (mid-July to end of July) – St-Laurent – Hardy and very productive plant with a spreading habit and resistant to common foliar diseases. Large, firm, light red fruits. Pleasant flavor with a light scent of wild fruits. Excellent conservation. Best production with 2 different cultivars.
Plant your strawberries properly
They are grown in full sun or, if necessary, in partial shade (a little shade when it is very hot is appreciated) in well-drained, rich and slightly acidic soil . Potting is your best ally.
Whether in a hanging planter or in the ground, plant your strawberries so that the collar of the plant is level with the ground. If the crown is buried, the plant risks rotting; if it clearly extends above the ground, it may dry out.
Finally, it is recommended to spread straw mulch around the plants to combat weeds, conserve soil moisture and keep the fruits clean . Finally, you should ideally cover your plants with a net to prevent birds from eating your fruit.
Maintaining your strawberries
To increase flowering and fruiting, you will need a fertilizer rich in potassium, such as and a little
Strawberries grow well in moist soil. Be aware that a lack of water could reduce fruit production, or even reduce its taste. It is therefore better to avoid letting the soil dry out between two waterings. But be careful, excess water could also be damaging to your plants to the point of rotting the roots. The best is therefore to opt for frequent and sparse watering, early in the morning, avoiding wetting the foliage.
And the runners in all that!
Do you notice long stems stretching from your plant and crawling along the ground to take root a little further into the vegetable garden? These stems are in fact new plants called stolons. This is how strawberries reproduce. Two options are then available to you:
- Prune them to stimulate fruit production and avoid exhaustion of your main plant.
- Transplant them to obtain new plants. If your strawberries grow in the ground, let them take root. When new leaves appear and the plants are well established, cut the stem that connects them to the main plant. You can then extract your new plants to replant them in the desired location.
- Harvest and store your fruit
Depending on the variety of strawberries chosen, the harvest can be done throughout the season. The best thing is to wait until the fruit is fully ripe – when it turns color all the way to the base – before picking them. Once picked, strawberries no longer ripen. Strawberries are eaten fresh but will keep for two or three days in the refrigerator. To make the most of their taste, take them out an hour before eating them. Please note that it is best to wash them just before eating them since humidity causes them to rot.
You can also store them in the freezer. Start by rinsing and hulling them, then spread them in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze them. Once frozen, place your strawberries in an airtight bag or container and return them to the freezer for up to 6 months.
Don’t throw away the tails!
Did you know that strawberry stems are perfectly edible and can be used, among other things, to flavor lemonade. To do this, you must macerate 4 cups of strawberry stems in 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar for 2 days in the refrigerator. Filter, and add this juice to any beverage!
- Prune plants in fall
The ideal time to prune your strawberries is in August. Once the harvest is complete, trim the dead leaves using pruning shears and top with compost. The topping method involves removing the first 10 cm (4 in) and replacing it with new soil – in this case compost.
When the plants go dormant (usually around mid-November), it will be important to protect your plant with a fairly thick layer of straw mulch so that they can better withstand winter conditions. In spring, as soon as young pale yellow leaves appear under the mulch (around the end of April), remove the mulch to clear the plants and encourage the growth of young shoots.
