Strawberry plants

[miana]

Hi im very new to growing my own fruit and veg so i really dont have a clue where to start!

I have seeds ready for a few different vegetables. which im hoping to start in the next week.

I was just wondering though, i bought 3 strawberry plants the other day which are currently on my window sill, is it ok to put them straight outside into a pot now? and how far apart should they be planted?

Thanks

[Matt_B]

Hi Miana

I've just bought a strawberry pot (for a tenner - 15% ;-) which holds 7 plants close to each other, so i'd say you can plant them next door to one another

As for leaving them outside? i'm not sure and was going to ask the same question, we have a greenhouse that I could put the pot in each night.

Reading the instructions on mine they sound quite a bomb proof so i'm guessing they will be fine outside this time of year

Heres a couple of pics





Hopefully thats some help

[dotcommon]

they are fine to go out now. make sure you have plenty of room between them as plants can get qite big and the fruits need plenty of ventilation not to rot. this is particular importance with juicy, soft varieties such as the perpertual aromel. i lost a whole crop one wet summer when i planted them too closely. ideally they should be 18 inches apart

[jlottie]

Thats a great looking strawberry planter Matt

I usually plant mine out at around 12" apart in the soil, they are quite heavy feeders so its a good idea to add some slow release food like growmore or blood, fish and bone meal to your compost. I suppose a 5 litre pot would give each plant plenty of space or you could plant the 3 of them in a larger container. You can buy strawberry mats to put around your plants that will help keep the fruit clean but its a lot cheaper to use straw or even shredded paper as a mulch. The birds and slugs love the fruit so think about protecting with netting later on and putting out some slug traps.

It all sounds like a lot of work for a few strawberries, but the taste of home grown fruit it worth it

[Garfiun]

Originally Posted by Matt_B

Hi Miana

I've just bought a strawberry pot (for a tenner - 15% ;-) which holds 7 plants close to each other, so i'd say you can plant them next door to one another

As for leaving them outside? i'm not sure and was going to ask the same question, we have a greenhouse that I could put the pot in each night.

Reading the instructions on mine they sound quite a bomb proof so i'm guessing they will be fine outside this time of year

Heres a couple of pics





Hopefully thats some help

This is the same planter i bought the other day and it looks nice in the garden. Its out in the garden now and the strawberrys are looking good but need somewhere permenant to put it at the moment its just sitting on a wall and a brick.

[Craig Wilson]

I've got that planter as well. Bought it last year from Homebase.

[Powerscape]

I needed space for strawberrys one year and did not want to take up the valuable space in my small veg beds so I drove two poles in the end of the bed and left them about chest hight, then nailed a large flat bit of wood on the top a little wider and longer than a grow bag.....yes you guessed it I then placed a grow bag on top and planted 5 strawberrys in it.#

Covered the plants with fleece to prevent the birds attacking them.

Make sure you put holes at the bottom of the growbag with a fork else they will get waterlogged and will die (1st years mistake)

2nd year new grow bag and new plants, lovely fruits.

3rd year around 15 new plants which have all been taken from cuttings of the year 2 plants which produced loads of runners.

I now have sinks and pots full of the lovely fruits and have them planted close and far apart, just feed and tend them they will grow well, but please study taking cuttings as this is fruit for free then :-)

[Gemüse]

I have 2 of these planters also!

Planted the stawbs a week ago and they've been outside ever since. I'm so far, quite pleased at their progress and already have a sprinkling of flowers and as a guess 40/50% the size they were a week ago - which I assume is normal, given the decent weather?

My query [sorry for the semi-hijack] is: how much watering do they need? I've read contradicting information!? Presently, I'm ensuring that plenty of damp soil is the way forward, without soaking them.

[wafflycat]

My strawbs, which I got as young plants last year, I put into hanging baskets. They've overwintered in those - and survived all the winter weather threw at them. I've trimmed all the grot foliage, topped up the compost and started feeding them up. They are watered daily and given a weekly feed. They are looking rather good, so I hope to get some good berries (not a lot last year) and I plan to pot on some runners.

[Matt_B]

Just looking at the pictures I posted easlier in this thread

My plants are a bit different now





The first strawberry to turn red was a few days ago, we was going to wait another day before we picked it, woke up the next morning and a bird got there before us So hopefully now we have netted them we will get to taste the ones turning now

Matt

[DavidT]

Looking good Matt.

[Matt_B]

Originally Posted by DavidT

Looking good Matt.

Thank You David

I can finally confirm that they taste good as well

[Gemüse]

Originally Posted by Matt_B

Just looking at the pictures I posted easlier in this thread

My plants are a bit different now





The first strawberry to turn red was a few days ago, we was going to wait another day before we picked it, woke up the next morning and a bird got there before us So hopefully now we have netted them we will get to taste the ones turning now

Matt

They look excellent Matt!

I wish mine were faring as well. Nowhere near the quantity or size of yours, and I also lost my first couple to the birds!!!!

My problem is that I cannot get netting anywhere! I need to order some online as I've spent an entire morning driving half way over the country to buy netting, which no-one has.

[mei]

i got some netting from the pound shop just to let you know if u have one near you.

[Lady of Shallots]

Matt those strawberries look very yummy! I've just bought my first strawberry plant - got quite a lot of fruit on it already, cheating a bit but I started out late! My question, sorry to butt in, but will they do ok in a mini greenhouse? I just thought that way they're getting lots of sun, are out of birds' reach and off the ground. And the slugs might not get at them either!

[Gemüse]

Originally Posted by mei

i got some netting from the pound shop just to let you know if u have one near you.

Thank you.

I got some from my nearest 'Dobbies' [25 miles away] for £4.99.

My more local garden centres didn't have it. That being the only garden centre, as the others have closed down.

So I built a little frame [from wood - B&Q £4.97] to attached the net.

I even managed to eat my first strawberry. And very nice it was too.

Like my spuds, I've been counting how much these strawbs have cost.

2 planters [I opted for the fancy ones as well] - £20
Soil - £4
Plants - £8
Net - £5
Wood - £5
TOTAL £42

Look like I'll get a reasonable quantity of strawbs, possible 50?

Or, in other words: 84p a strawberry. That sounds like good value. Not.

Hopefully, they'll pay themselves back over the next few years.

Oh well, never mind.

[Matt_B]

Ended up getting 63 strawberries in the first year

Going to keep an eye on a Ian digs post about what to do now

Matt