Then scatter your mulch material on top. To grow a strawberry ground cover, space the mother plants in a grid, either 1 x 1 foot or 2 x 2 feet. Where your berries are located can also provide them with some protection. I planted a strawberry patch this fall and have heard that I should cover the plants with mulch for the winter. Remove winterizing mulch in spring as growth resumes. The planting will require regular weeding, especially in the first year, but maintenance should be minimal after the plants are established. Adventures in Family Gardening Yes, I would recommend mulching your strawberry bed for several reasons. Trimming the strawberries is necessary to allow new foliage for over wintering. Commercial farmers do a couple of things to protect the berries from frost and so can you. Allow about 20-30″ between plants on each row and about 3 feet between rows. A June bearing strawberry plant grows larger and has more fruit than a day-neutral. That way you will prevent the strawberry foliage from getting wet and thus make the plants less susceptible to foliar disease. Overhead irrigation is another popular method for protecting strawberries plants from frost. Plant manure (often called "green manure") is another good source of organic matter for your strawberry patch. As you know, I’m more than a bit partial to some sun-warmed, superbly juicy and sweet home grown strawberries ….but just because the season is well and truly over that’s not to say that we can forget those small, inconspicuous strawberry plants. Burlap is an excellent material to use for wrapping potted strawberry plants. Read more articles about Strawberry Plants. The lowest temperatures under row covers were 10°F, while under straw mulch, it was about 15°F. Crowns (the tops of individual dormant plants) should be at soil level, 40cm (16in) apart in the row with 1m (3ft) between the rows Many gardeners grow strawberries through polythene, ideally white, with black on the underside, but any plastic mulching film will do. The top also also has a steel wire to manage the weight of this container when full. There are three types of strawberry plant: June-Bearing varieties that form buds in the fall, bloom in … They are nutritious and are quite easy to grow. Be the first to have exclusive content and access to our events, P. Allen Smith Fine Gardens & Landscapes (external site), Oliver-Smith Community Conservation Design + Development (external site), Allen's Heritage Poultry Conservancy (external site), Allen's TEDx--Saving a Hungry Planet (external site), Allen's Learn + Grow Corner of the Internet, Allen's Go-To Plant Provider -- Gilbert H. Wild & Son (external site), Allen's #PlantForVictory - Hope & Wellbeing during COVID-19 Project, Weddings at Moss Mountain Farm (external site), P. Allen Smith Fine Garden and Landscape Design, P. Allen Smith Conservation Community Design + Development. Disease-resistant alfalfa, popular among many gardeners, is typically grown on the garden as a so-called "cover crop". In warm weather, berries ripen about 30 days after blossoms are fertilized. “Such covers can improve earliness, yield and quality,” Lilley says. Strawberry plants need a lot of water when the runners and flowers are developing and again in the fall when the plants are mature. If possible, use a soaker hose or a drip irrigation system to water strawberries. It has not really warmed too much during the day and still remains near freezing at night. Remove the mulch in spring after the last frost date in your area. Use row covers made from a clear material in order for sunlight to filter through to the plants. Plants should be completely covered with 6-12” of straw in November (after the ground is staying frozen). To protect them from winter temps, mulch over the strawberries in the fall to early winter with straw or pine needles. You can use black plastic mulch or organic mulch such … Strawberry plants may also be grown as a ground cover. That's it. Some gardeners like to use row covers to protect strawberry plants, rather than mulch. I prefer to use wheat straw because it is less likely to pack down, but pine needles or even shredded newspaper will work as well. Other ways to keep your strawberry plants healthy and productive include planting them in well-drained soil where they receive full sun and little wind. Eaten fresh off the plant or turned into baked goods and jams, the strawberry fruit has many uses. Renovate Your Plants. Strawberry plants and frost are fine when the plant is dormant during the winter, but a sudden spring frost when the plants are blooming can wreak havoc on the berry patch. Then scatter your mulch material on top. This will prevent the mulch from smothering the plants. If so, what should I use for mulch? The plants under row covers encountered the threshold temperature thus we lost 3 out of 192 plants and a few plants were injured. A freeze following warm spring weather can be devastating. Remove straw mulch from over the plants in early to mid-April and cover rows with the floating row covers. A row cover is a plastic fabric draped over a frame. If snow has already covered them, but not … Frost protection of strawberries is less important when the flowers are still in tight clusters and just barely peaking from the crown; at this point they will tolerate temps as low as 22 F. (-6 C.). It is loose enough to allow water and air through, but keeps plants protected. 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