If you love strawberries as much as I do, you're going to want to start growing them yourself. Strawberries are actually one of the easiest fruits to grow and great news, they'll be sweeter if you grow them at home!
Once a strawberry is picked, the sugars will turn to starch, taking away some of the sweetness. When you grow them at home, your strawberries will actually end up being sweeter than if you bought them from the store... how great is that?
There are three types of strawberries to choose from if you've decided to start growing your own:
(1) June-bearing strawberries: these strawberries are ready for harvest all at once and only once per season. All of you're plants will be ready to harvest within a three week window in June, even earlier if its warmer.
(2) Ever-bearing strawberries: these strawberries produce a large harvest in the spring, lightly in the summer and once again in later summer and early fall.
(3) Day-neutral strawberries: these strawberries will keep producing until your first frost, if you're a strawberry lover like me... this plant will become your favourite!
Now that you've decided on which strawberry plant to grow, there are a few things to keep in mind to keep your plants happy and healthy:
Strawberries need full sun: meaning they need at least 6-10 hours of direct sun daily,
they prefer loamy soil, but they aren't fussy and will tolerate other types, make sure the soil is well-drained, I'd recommend planting in raised beds,
the soil pH should be between 5.5 and 7 for great tasting strawberries,
when weeding make sure you're being gentle, strawberries are sensitive to their roots being disrupted,
you can use mulch to reduce watering and also help prevent weeds,
your strawberry plants will usually be ready for harvest 4-6 weeks after they've bloomed, and lastly,
you'll know the berries are ready to be picked once they've turned red and plump, pick every 3-5 days to keep the plant healthy!
Strawberries can be planted as soon as the ground can be worked in spring, this is usually right after the last frost date. Strawberries are perennials which means if you plant them once they'll keep coming back but we do recommend that you plant each year so you get a better quality berry.
Now that you have all the basics, what're you waiting for? Share you're progress pictures with us! We'd love to watch your strawberry plants grow! Don't forget to subscribe for the latest posts about plants!
Happy Planting!
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