Planting Strawberries...
Photo from Brook Lawn Farm Market
Well with all the other fruits I planted already this spring, of course I had to make sure we had some strawberries too! So thanks to my favorite seed company, Johnny Select Seed, I ordered my June bearing Earliglow Strawberry plants and waited for them to ship. Nice thing about Johnny's and many other seed companies, they mail your bare root plants to you when it is ok to plant in your area. So when I received them in the mail yesterday I knew it was time to get my butt in gear and make a new strawberry patch.
I decided that I didn't want to take up a full raised bed for strawberries but I needed to find a place that I could plant 25 new plants and give them enough room to grow! So I took a look at my elemental garden and saw that I had lots of space in the South (fire) garden. Strawberries are red and kind of heart shaped which could signify love and love can be hot! So why not! Strawberries in the fire garden... I like it!
Now one of the most important things I have found with planting strawberries is to make sure you start them off right. And that means to make sure the soil you are planting them in is full of nutrients, well draining, and in a sunny spot for at least 6 hours a day. This garden was perfect all I had to do was add a bit of composted manure to it which I mixed in well by turning the garden over using my garden fork. Once that was done I roughly measured and made holes about a foot apart. Some people plant 18 inches apart but I opted for 12 inches as I want to be able to limit the number of runners the plants produce to keep the mother plant strong.
Now one of the most important things I have found with planting strawberries is to make sure you start them off right. And that means to make sure the soil you are planting them in is full of nutrients, well draining, and in a sunny spot for at least 6 hours a day. This garden was perfect all I had to do was add a bit of composted manure to it which I mixed in well by turning the garden over using my garden fork. Once that was done I roughly measured and made holes about a foot apart. Some people plant 18 inches apart but I opted for 12 inches as I want to be able to limit the number of runners the plants produce to keep the mother plant strong.
When you receive the bare root plants in the mail they come wrapped in wet paper in a plastic bag so you need to plant them as soon as possible. Prior to actually planting them you should place them in water for at least an hour. This helps them rehydrate and gives them a better start in the ground. My plants were actually in the water for quite a few hours as I had a few rain storms come through and to be honest it took some time to finally decide where I was going to plant. When you are ready to finally plant take a root stock out and really examine it. The below diagram is fantastic as it shows the root system, the crown and the top of the plant clearly. It is important to make sure when you place the roots in the holes that they go straight down, you compact the soil as firmly as possible around the root system and you only cover the crown to its middle - making sure all roots are covered. It isn't rocket science but if they are too high the roots dry out and the plant dies. If the crown is too low, then the crown rots and the plant dies. My advice is to take your time so you know you are doing it right.
One trick I learned by planting them is to place the roots in straight down then begin to pack the soil around the roots. I then pressed the soil down around the crown sinking the plant into the hole. By gently grasping the top of plant I lifted the crown up until I reached its proper height then packed the soil around the plant firmly. All this does is straightens the roots a bit more in the hole and compacts the soil as much as possible around the plant. Firmer is better for strawberries or so I have read.
Being that this is the first year for the plants, it is better to not let them fruit this year and to pinch off the flowers instead. What this does is makes the plant send all its growing power to the roots to make a healthier mother plant. The plant will send off runners during the summer and it is up to you if you allow them to grow into new plants or not. I have read some people cut them off and just focus on the mother plant and other people allow a few to grow from each plant but limiting it to just a few runners. I will see how it goes for my plants before I make any final decision.
Right now I planted 16 plants in the Fire garden so I still had another 9 to find a home for. This is when I decided to use one of the raised beds, planting just towards the front so I can use the back 1/3 of the bed for something else as a companion planting. I have researched this and find that Bush Beans are fantastic to plant with Strawberries as they provide nitrogen which the strawberries need for the best yields of berries. I also found out not to plant any plant from the Cabbage family with strawberries this includes broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, kale, kohlrabi, or collard greens. The strawberries will make these plants literally sick! For more information on companion gardening with strawberries see this link: Strawberry.org
So at this point all 25 plants are in the ground and watered. Now it is up to them to set the new leaves and start growing into beautiful plants! I will update this blog with some more photos as soon as the plants start growing! Happy Planting!
Right now I planted 16 plants in the Fire garden so I still had another 9 to find a home for. This is when I decided to use one of the raised beds, planting just towards the front so I can use the back 1/3 of the bed for something else as a companion planting. I have researched this and find that Bush Beans are fantastic to plant with Strawberries as they provide nitrogen which the strawberries need for the best yields of berries. I also found out not to plant any plant from the Cabbage family with strawberries this includes broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, kale, kohlrabi, or collard greens. The strawberries will make these plants literally sick! For more information on companion gardening with strawberries see this link: Strawberry.org
So at this point all 25 plants are in the ground and watered. Now it is up to them to set the new leaves and start growing into beautiful plants! I will update this blog with some more photos as soon as the plants start growing! Happy Planting!