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How to grow strawberries
Things to know for how to grow Strawberries
Strawberries do best when they receive six to eight hours of sunlight a day. They require a well-drained sandy soil that is high in nutrients. Strawberries are very sensitive to standing water and irregular watering, and like a rich mixture of compost and manure. Be careful to plant them in an area where there is no competition from tree roots, grass, or other heavy feeders. As strawberries are particularly sensitive to mildew and rot, they are best planted in areas where the soil has been sterilized.
Strawberry plants should be spaced 18 inches apart. If making a large planting, space rows four feet apart to accommodate developing runners. Allowing your strawberries plenty of room will cut down on loss due to disease.
Keep the Soil Cool
Strawberries produce the best crop when the soil is kept cool by mulching. Mulching between rows discourages weeds, keeps the soil temperature down, and will keep fruit from lying on the ground, an invitation to rot. When mulching, avoid black plastic, as it will increase the soil temperature.
Steps for how to grow strawberries
1.Choose your containers
The first thing you need to know about how to grow strawberries is that the soil has to be able to drain. So, you can use any type of container like hanging baskets, flower pots, barrels or tubs as long as they have a hole in the bottom that will enable the container to drain. You will need something like a saucer to catch the drainage, but the container can’t sit in the saucer. It has to be raised a bit above the saucer so the container doesn’t sit in water. A pedestal can be used to raise the container up from the saucer.
A second consideration in how to grow strawberries in a container has to do with sunlight. If your container can’t be permanently placed in a location where it gets sunlight for six to eight hours a day, then you will need to use plant lights, or you will need to be able to move the container to ensure that it gets enough sun. So, if you plan on moving your containers during the day to expose them to sunlight, make sure your containers aren’t too heavy to lift and move easily since this is important in learning how to grow strawberries
2.Choose your strawberry plants
Basically there are two types of strawberry plants, seasonal producers and everbearing plants. The everbearing plants produce good fruit for freezing or canning. For fresh berries, the seasonal producing plants are best but they generally only produce once in the season. So, you may want to plant more than one type of strawberry plant so that you can have berries year round. Online nurseries usually have quite a variety of strawberry plants and can tell you which ones are best in regard to how to grow strawberries in your area.
3.Prepare the soil
In learning how to grow strawberries you will find that strawberries grow best in loamy, well-drained soil that contains organic matter. Working 5-10-5 fertilizer or 21-0-0 ammonium sulfate into the soil prior to planting the strawberries works well. Follow the instructions on the fertilizer package.
4.Plant the strawberries in the containers
Fill the containers with soil and plant the strawberry plants ensuring that the roots of each plant are well covered. In general, each plant should be placed 2 feet apart. So, unless you are using large containers, you may want to plant only one strawberry plant per container, this is important in learning how to grow strawberries.
How to grow strawberries >
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