Strawberry Growing Guide

Fragaria ananassa

Crop Rotation Group

Miscellaneous ●

Soil

Well-drained rich soil with compost dug in, 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, topdress established plants with rich compost or an organic fertiliser. 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, make sure to take appropriate control measures in areas where they are present. It is important to dispose of any infected fruit and fruit has fallen to the ground by placing them in a sealed plastic bag in the sun for at least 7 days to kill the eggs and larvae. Do not compost fruit as this will lead to the fruit fly completing their life cycle and lead to the problem recurring.