Grow the best strawberries

Strawberries are fairly self-sufficient, but giving them a little TLC will really help to give you a better, juicier crop. Whether you already have a strawberry patch on the go or if you’re keen to get started, here are some useful tips to help you get a good harvest.

Planting Strawberries

Plant them in a sunny, sheltered spot that is out of the wind. Strawberries thrive in fertile soil, so dig in plenty of compost before planting if you are growing them in the ground. If you’re growing them in pots or hanging baskets, use a good quality organic compost.

Sprinkle in a handful of wormcast fertiliser when you plant them – this will slowly release nutrients through the season and will really help to keep them well nourished.

Watering & Feeding Strawberries

Keep them well watered – but make sure they have good drainage too so that the roots are not sitting in soggy soil. Give them a one-off liquid feed (or worm cast tea) once they start to flower. This’ll top up the nutrients up in the soil which will really benefit the plants.

General Care for Strawberry Plants

Strawberries need warmth to ripen well – if it is a cool summer, consider covering them with a cloche (or cloche tunnel) after the flowers turn to berries (i.e after they’ve been pollinated.)

Once fruits start to appear, it’s sensible to pop a netting over them (choose a net that allows bees and pollinators to get in) to keep birds from stealing the berries as they ripen. If squirrels are a problem, you may be wise to put up a wire mesh net.

Popping some straw around plants is a good idea if you are growing them in the ground (as opposed to pots/baskets) as this will help to keep the fruits from sitting on soggy ground.

Harvesting

Strawberry plants should produce fruits in the first year and it is fine to harvest these. As a general rule, you can expect to get three good years out of your strawberry plants. At the end of the season, each plant will put out runners which will become baby plants that you can grow on. If you do this, then these baby plants will then grow for another three years so you can keep letting your strawberries reproduce to extend their lifespan. If not, (for example if you are growing in pots) then you will need to replace your plants every three years.



Strawberry Plants to Grow

Our Strawberry Plants come in biodegradable pots, ready to be planted out on arrival!