Strawberry plants

Mary370

I've been given 3 strawberry plants, in flower.  What/how do I grow them.  I have never tried strawberries.

wild edges

They're not hugely fussy. They like warmth, they don't like being too dry or too wet and they need good fertile soil. Organic tomato feed works well for them. Keep the fruit from touching damp soil or it will rot. Cut off any dead or dying leaves so keep air flow good around the base and the fruit.

I grow mine in 12" pots so I can move them into the greenhouse or under cloches if the weather is bad in the spring and it helps keep them away from slugs and mice. They've been out so far this year though and are doing well. I plant 2 or 3 plants per pot. Special strawberry planters work well but generally need more water than standard pots. You can use hanging baskets or wall planters too.

Later in the year they will send out runners. Leave them connected to the main plant but pot them into small pots until they have rooted then cut them free. Let them build up a good root system then pot them up to wherever you're going to grow them. After a couple of years you will have too many plants. They grow well tucked in corners of raised beds or underplanting other potted plants though.

Mary370

Thank you wild edge...........I knew they sent out runners, I thought that was where the fruit grew, and therefore took 2 years to grow strawberries.....the very reason I never tried to grow them.  Now to find somewhere to grow them.