Strawberry

Strawberry growers think about time differently than most gardeners do. A June-bearing plant set out in spring won't deliver its best harvest until the following year — and a gardener who removes the flowers in the first season (which is the right thing to do) has to trust that the investment will pay off in year two. Most first-year disappointments with strawberries come from not understanding which type you planted, or from letting the plant fruit too early instead of directing that first-year energy into root and crown development.

The three main types differ in how and when they fruit. June-bearers produce one concentrated crop in late spring and early summer, fruit on last season's growth, and are the highest-yielding type per berry — also the best for freezing and preserves. Day-neutral varieties like Albion and Seascape produce fruit all season regardless of day length, with moderate yields continuously from late spring through fall. Everbearers like Ozark Beauty produce two crops — one in summer, one in fall — and are more winter-hardy than most day-neutrals. Knowing which type you planted changes how you manage it.

Bare-root crowns are the standard way to plant strawberries. Set them about 2 weeks before your last frost — early enough that they establish roots in cool soil before summer. Plant with the crown (the thick, knobby center) sitting at the soil surface: too deep and it rots; too shallow and it dries out. Space June-bearers 18 inches apart in rows 3 feet apart. Day-neutrals and everbearers can go closer. With June-bearers, pinch off all flowers in the first year — every one. The plant will put that energy into runners and crown development and reward you with a much larger crop the following season.

Runners are the horizontal stems that spread out from the mother plant and root wherever they touch soil. With June-bearers, letting a controlled number of runners root creates daughter plants that can replace the original mother plants as the bed renews. Most production systems let two or three runners per plant establish in the first year, then remove the rest. After three years, most of the original plants are spent — the bed should be renovated or replanted. Day-neutrals and everbearers produce fewer runners and are often treated as annual plantings in warmer climates.

Botrytis gray mold is the most common and damaging disease in a strawberry bed. It appears as a gray, fuzzy coating on berries and is triggered by cool, wet conditions during and after harvest. Mulching with straw — which gives the berry its name — keeps the fruit off wet soil and helps. Remove any gray-molded fruit immediately. Verticillium wilt, which causes the plant to wilt and collapse despite adequate water, is soil-borne and can persist for years; never plant strawberries where tomatoes, potatoes, or eggplant grew recently.

In cold climates, overwintering is straightforward: after the first hard frost (around 25°F or colder) kills the foliage, mulch the bed with 3 to 4 inches of straw. This protects the crown from freeze-thaw cycling, which can heave plants out of the ground. Pull the mulch back in spring when new growth appears. In zones 5 and colder, this step can mean the difference between a bed that returns vigorously and one that has to be replaced.