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What do strawberries grow best with?
View full size Vern Nelson/Special to The Oregonian Strawberries tuck nicely between greens and onions. Remember, don’t bury the strawberry plant’s crown. If you are short of space or have an addiction to homegrown strawberries, read on. But, you say, I have no room for strawberries.
- With a little planning you can fit some strawberries into your garden.
- The secret is to interplant them.
- PLANNING: Strawberries need full sun and good drainage.
- If you already have raised beds for vegetables you are almost done.
- Dig in 2-3 inches of compost to enrich the bed and help it to retain moisture.
Tuck strawberries in among vegetables. COMPANIONS: Strawberries grow happily with beans, borage, chives, lettuce, onions, peas, radishes and spinach. View full size Vern Nelson/Special to The Oregonian Edge planting of strawberries (with onions and greens). Plant strawberries with runners 24 inches on center; strawberries without runners, 12-15 inches on center. BENEFITS: Interplanting vegetables with strawberries helps to hide the berries from hungry birds and other pests, who will have to work a bit harder to steal your crop.
- A variety of crops can also produce a mix of fragrances that can mask the scent of strawberries or confuse would-be thieves.
- Mixed vegetables can attract beneficial insects, and diverse groups of vegetables can also provide cover for the eggs and maturing young of beneficials.
- PLANTING: Choose virus-free strawberries that come from a nursery.
Planting strawberries from a friend’s garden can be risky because they may harbor diseases or pests. Plant berry plants on 24-inch centers to allow room for runners, or 12-15 inches apart with no room for runners. Allow 3-4 feet between rows of berries. View full size Vern Nelson/Special to The Oregonian Center planting of strawberries (with onions and greens). Plant strawberries with runners 24 inches on center; strawberries without runners, 15 inches on center. In raised beds, strawberries can be used as a border along each edge of each bed, down the center in a straight line or zigzagged.
Generous spacing between strawberry plants allows for the rooting of runners, which can be used for subsequent plantings in other beds. TIMING: Purchase and plant your strawberry starts as soon as local nurseries offer them for sale in the spring. There’ll be a greater selection of varieties, and your berries will get an earlier start.
Then sow seeds for borage, chives, lettuce, onions, radishes or spinach in the open spaces around the strawberries. By the time these vegetables are ready to be harvested as babies, the strawberries will be off to a good start. The vegetables can be succession-planted in the same places. View full size Vern Nelson/Special to The Oregonian Zigzag planting of strawberries (with onions and greens). Plant strawberries with runners 24 inches on center; strawberries without runners, 15 inches on center. MAINTENANCE: Remove the strawberries’ flowers for a stronger start.
- Fertilize the strawberry starts in spring and again after the first crop with a fertilizer high in phosphorus.
- Eep a supply of strawberries coming year after year by planting another strawberry bed each year for four years.
- Then, at the end of each bed’s fourth year, rip it out and move runners to a bed without strawberries and start the cycle again.
The old strawberry bed can be sown with cover crops for a year to recharge the soil. The best pest control you can practice is to keep the bed scrupulously clean of debris and rotate your strawberries every fourth year. Strawberries and marigolds make a fine mixed border.
- Marigolds’ acrid smell is good for confusing pests or masking strawberries’ fragrance.
- French marigolds are thought to deter root knot nematodes, which damage plant roots.
- RECOMMENDED VARIETIES These varieties will be available at local nurseries in spring.
- JUNE-BEARING: These produce their crop in late spring to early summer.
Canners like the convenience of a heavy crop over a short period. Look for ‘Benton,’ ‘Firecracker,’ ‘Hecker,’ ‘Hood’ and ‘Rainier.’ EVERBEARING: These produce berries summer through fall, offering a lighter crop over a longer period. Look for ‘Aromas,’ ‘Eversweet,’ ‘Fern’ and ‘Seascape.’ Freelance writer/photographer If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
Are strawberries good hanging plants?
Plant a Strawberry Hanging Basket Find out how to create a strawberry hanging basket, for attractive flowers and tasty fruit through the summer. By Published: Friday, 17 May, 2019 at 3:55 pm
Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
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At its best | J Plant is not at its best in January | F Plant is not at its best in February | M Plant is not at its best in March | A Plant is not at its best in April | M Plant is not at its best in May | J Plant is at its best in June | J Plant is at its best in July | A Plant is not at its best in August | S Plant is not at its best in September | O Plant is not at its best in October | N Plant is not at its best in November | D Plant is not at its best in December |
To do | J Do not To do in January | F Do not To do in February | S Do not To do in September | O Do not To do in October | N Do not To do in November | D Do not To do in December |
Strawberries are not only delicious but versatile, too – you can grow them in the ground and,
Find out all you need to know about growing strawberries in our practical guide:,You can also grow strawberries in a – it will not only look great, but will provide you with rich pickings of fresh fruit over several weeks, and all for just a few pounds.Choose your varieties carefully and you can have fruit from June until early autumn – find out how to,
As a guide, a 35cm basket will hold four plants. Here’s how to create a strawberry, Strawberries in a hanging basket not only look great, but will provide you with rich pickings of fresh fruit over several weeks.
Strawberry plants Hanging basket and liner Multi-purpose, peat-free compost
Make a few holes in the polythene lining of your basket, to allow for drainage. Adding drainage holes to the hanging basket Fill the basket with multipurpose compost to just below the rim.
Adding compost to the hanging basket Space the strawberry plants evenly around the edge of the basket.
Planting strawberry plants in the hanging basket Water the basket well to settle the compost and encourage the roots to grow. Start feeding the plants once flowering has started. Hang the basket in a sheltered, sunny spot to encourage pollinating insects and help the fruit ripen.
Watering the strawberry hanging basket The strawberry plants will produce runners after they have fruited – snip them off and pot them on to create new plants for free. They’ll produce fruit of their own the following year so it really is worth the effort. : Plant a Strawberry Hanging Basket
Can I plant strawberries next to tomatoes?
Strawberries and tomatoes should not be planted together. Planting tomatoes near strawberries can lead to the spread of fungal disease.
Can you grow strawberries in a container?
Growing Strawberries in Containers It’s hard to beat the treat of juicy fruit picked at perfect ripeness, straight from the plant. But what if you don’t have enough sun or space to grow fruiting trees or shrubs in your yard? Give strawberries a try! They’re small enough to plant in a pot, and when you choose the right kind, they can produce delicious fruit through much of the growing season.
- Besides being a great choice where there’s little or no garden space, keeping strawberries in containers makes it easier to protect the fruits from slugs and many animal pests, and the good air circulation around their leaves can help to prevent disease problems.
- Growing potted strawberries on your deck, patio or balcony also makes it a snap for you to keep an eye on the maturing berries and catch them at the peak of ripeness for picking.
With their lush leaves, pretty white or pink flowers, and colorful fruits, strawberry plants are also quite attractive, as well. Regular (hybrid) strawberries come in a couple of different types. “June-bearers” produce an abundance of berries over a period of a few weeks in late spring or early summer, then send out lots of runners (slender, horizontal stems with small plantlets).
- Varieties sold as “ever-bearing” or “day-neutral” usually produce moderate amounts of berries in late spring and early fall, often with some during the summer, too, if the weather’s not too hot.
- Ever-bearing and day-neutral varieties, such as ‘Seascape’, ‘Temptation’ and ‘Tristar’, tend to be the best choices for containers, because they bear fruit during their first year, and you get an extended harvest period.
They do produce runners, but usually not as vigorously as June-bearing types. Alpine strawberry ( Fragaria vesca ) plants look similar to regular strawberries, though their flowers and fruits are much smaller, and they stay neat and bushy, with no runners.
- While the berries are intensely flavorful, they’re somewhat delicate and don’t ship well, so you’ll rarely find them sold in grocery stores.
- Fortunately, it’s no trouble to grow these pretty plants in pots, which means you can enjoy these gourmet treats over a period of months right outside your door.
‘Alexandria’, ‘Improved Ruegen’ and ‘Mignonette’ produce red fruits; ‘White Soul’ and ‘Yellow Wonder’ bear creamy-white to pale-yellow berries. Strawberries can adapt to a wide variety of containers, from 6- to 8-inch pots for individual plants to larger planters, such as wooden or plastic half barrels, for multiple plants.
They grow in hanging baskets and window boxes too. You can also find “strawberry jars,” which are upright planters with multiple small pockets in the sides to hold the plants. It’s difficult to water these sorts of containers effectively, however, so they often produce disappointing results. Fill the container you’ve chosen with a soil-less potting mix, then add the plants.
Set the container in a site with plenty of light; at least eight hours of sun a day is ideal for good fruit production, though alpine strawberries can do well even with just six hours of sun. Water as needed to keep the roots evenly moist if rain is lacking.
- Every two weeks or so from late spring to late summer, give your strawberries a dose of liquid fertilizer, mixed according to the directions on the package.
- In many areas strawberries can survive the winter outdoors in their container and sprout again in spring.
- The hybrid types get crowded quickly, though, and eventually stop producing fruit.
If you’re growing ever-bearing or day-neutral types, you may just want to treat them as annuals and plant new ones each spring to keep them fresh and productive. Alpine strawberry plants can last for many years, but it’s a good idea to divide the clumps every three years or so in early to mid-spring and replant them in fresh potting mix.
What should you not plant next to zucchini?
Tips for Success – Both zucchini and summer squash are heavy producers when grown in the correct conditions and this means less is often more. Two or three plants can provide enough yield for a family of four. You will enjoy a better yield with fewer healthy plants than with 5 or 6 crowded together.
- While you may see these plants for sale at your local garden nursery, both are easily grown by simply pressing a seed into the soil,
- You may want to experiment with different companion crops until you find the perfect combination to fit your personal tastes and growing conditions.
- Avoid planting zucchini and summer squash with all other vining plants which include cucumbers and sweet potatoes as well as pumpkins, winter squashes, and melons.
It helps to know that these summer-type squashes tend to hide among the large leaves and vines of the plant, so check your plants daily as they begin to fruit. They can grow overnight to an unpalatable size, especially after a good rainfall. The Spruce / K.
Where do strawberries keep best?
Where is the best place to store strawberries? – Unless you plan to use the strawberries right away, it’s best to store them in your refrigerator to preserve freshness. Unrefrigerated, berries will last only a few days; stored in the fridge, they could last up to a week.