7 Strawberry Growing Tips for Successful Harvest

- Mulching may become necessary if you want to protect your strawberry plants in winter time. Using of mulch during winter time will be very helpful to keep the temperature at ground level in the plantation. It will also help to conserve the moisture during spring. It will further help to delay flowering and will provide better picking conditions when you harvest strawberries. To control weeds you should start off with a clean and re-worked soil clear of roots and other wastes on the land. Try to cultivate and hoe the land when the weeds are small to keep your plants ahead of weeds. Use only approved herbicide on strawberry plants. To set new runner plants you can adopt the practice of providing 36 inch row spacing with 12 inch spacing on new fruit beds. - Any planting method that allows the roots of the berries go straight down and spread the dove-tail can be adopted for planting strawberries. Make sure that the soil is pressed firmly against the roots of the plant when you plant strawberries in your garden or in your farm. The crown of the plant should not be covered with soil. If the roots are too long to get straight down to earth, you can cut it off above 5- 6 inches in order to avoid doubling up of the roots. It is always recommendable to plant strawberries 18 to 24 inches apart in rows that are three and a half feet apart. One can plant 6,225 plants in an acre of land by following this method. Do not forget watering of plants whenever transplantation is taking place. Do not let the strawberry plants to dry out. You can keep small lot of plants in the refrigerator. Larger lots can be kept in cold storage at about 32 degrees Fahrenheit. They can also be heeled in a four to five inch depth V shaped trench on arrival. These plants should be kept moist until you are ready to plant them. -The land for the cultivation should be spaded in the late winter or early spring. The land should be tilled thoroughly into a depth of 7 to 8 inches. Keep it free of clods to ensure easy setting of the plant. If possible use organic fertilizers such as compost, poultry or stable manure on the land. Never attempt to use fertilizers on newly grown strawberry plants.