Strawberry Growing Guide

Fragaria ananassa

Crop Rotation Group

Miscellaneous ●

Soil

Well-drained fertile soil enriched with compost, slightly acidic preferred.

Position

Sunny for best ripening, although will grow in partial shade.

Frost tolerant

Winter hardy, though plants go dormant from late autumn to early spring.

Feeding

In autumn and again in early spring, mulch established plants with rich compost. Allow plants to rest in midsummer.

Spacing

Single Plants: 50cm (1' 7") each way (minimum)
Rows: 45cm (1' 5") with 60cm (1' 11") row gap (minimum)

Sow and Plant

Strawberries can be grown from seed, usually during spring or autumn or crowns can be purchased ready to plant. Planting in autumn to gives them more time to establish their root system.
Our Garden Planner can produce a personalised calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area.

Notes

Can be used as a ground cover beneath grapes or apple trees, or managed as a perpetual bed. In late summer, remove weeds and withered leaves, and thin runners to no more than 3 per plant. Lift and transplant extra runners.

Harvesting

Gather ripe fruits in the morning, when they are cool, and refrigerate immediately. Wash in cool water just before eating.

Troubleshooting

Slugs can be deterred with straw mulch or traps. Use jamjars or netting to protect ripening berries from birds. In Australia fruit fly are a pest of strawberries. Place any infested fruit, or fruits that have fallen to the ground, in a sealed plastic bag in the sun for at least 7 days to kill the eggs and larvae. Do not compost infested fruits as this will lead to the fruit flies completing their life cycle and the problem recurring.