Strawberry Horticultural Facts
- The strawberry is a small plant of the Rosaceae (Rose) family. All
varieties of the strawberry plant belong to the Fragaria genus.
- It grows both as a wild plant and as a cultivated plant.
- Some strawberries, called everbearing, produce berries throughout
the summer and fall.
- Strawberry plants can be planted in any garden soil. But the richer
the soil, the larger the crop. The plant grows best in a cool, moist
climate and does not do well in warm temperatures. The plants may be
planted in the spring or fall, but if the temperature is too cold, fall
planting requires a great deal of care.
- The strawberry grows close to the ground on the stem in groups of
three. The greenish white fruits turn to a rich red colour when they
ripen. When the strawberry ripens, the petals of the flower fall off
and all that remains is the calyx, a leafy substance shaped like a star.
Not every flower produces fruit.
- Strawberries are not really berries or fruit in the "botanical"
sense (i.e., the end result of a fertilized plant ovum). A strawberry
is actually an "aggregate fruit" -- the "real" fruit
are the objects we think of as the "strawberry seed" -- properly
called "achenes" -- which are fruits in the same way that
a raw sunflower seed with it's tough shell is a fruit. The "berry"
is actually an "enlarged receptacle" and is not reproductive
material. As a result, strawberries must be picked at full ripeness,
as they cannot not ripen once picked.
- The strawberry plant has seeds on the outside skin rather than having
an outer skin around the seed, as most berries do. They do not however,
normally reproduce by seeds. When the fruit is developing, the plant
sends out slender growths called runners. These look like strings. They
grow on the ground and send out roots in the soil. The roots produce
new plants which grow and bear fruit. Sometimes these plants are taken
from the soil and replanted to start a new plantation of strawberry
plants.
Information provided by strawberryJAMM Designs www.jamms.com
Strawberry Varieties
Strawberry varieties should be selected on the basis of dessert
quality; preserving quality; disease resistance and season of maturation.
When to
Plant
Plant strawberries as soon as the ground can be worked in the spring.
This is usually in March or April allowing the plants to become well
established before the hot weather arrives. Do not work the soil if
it is wet. Wait a few days until it dries.
Planting Depth
Try to plant strawberries on a cloudy day or during the late afternoon.
Set the strawberry plant in the soil so that the soil is just covering
the tops of the roots. Do not cover the crown. After four or five weeks,
the plants will produce runners and new daughter plants.
The center plant is set correctly, with the soil just covering the tops
of the roots. The plant on the left is set too shallow; the plant on
the right too deep.
Planting Systems
Matted Row Systems: This system is the best for growing June-bearing
cultivars. In this system, the strawberry plants should be set eighteen
to thirty inches apart in rows three to four feet apart. Daughter plants
are allowed to root freely to become a matted row no wider than two
feet.
Spaced-Row Systems: This system limits the number of daughter plants
that grow from a mother plant. The mother plants are set eighteen to
thirty inches apart in rows three to four feet apart. The daughter plants
are spaced to root no closer than four inches apart. All other runners
are pulled or cut from the mother plants. Even though more care is needed
under this system, advantages include higher yields, larger berries
and fewer disease problems.
Hill System: This is the best system for growing day-neutral and everbearing
strawberries. In this system all the runners are removed so only the
original mother plant remains. Removing the runners causes the mother
plant to develop more crowns and flower stalks. Multiple rows are arranged
in groups of two, three or four plants with a two foot walkway between
each group of rows. Plants are set about one foot apart in multiple
rows. During the first two or three weeks of growth, the planting should
be weeded; then the bed should be mulched.
General Care
Strawberries are among the most widely grown fruit in the
home garden. Strawberries prefer a well drained soil, high in organic
matter. They need full sun for the highest yields, at least 6 hours
per day. Do not plant strawberries where peppers, tomatoes, eggplant
and potatoes have been grown. These plants could harbor verticillium
wilt, a serious strawberry disease. Strawberries need about one inch
of water per week during the growing season.
Blossom Removal
During the first growing season, remove flowers of June-bearing strawberries
as soon as they appear. Removing the flowers promotes root and runner
development thereby insuring a large crop the following year.
For everbearing and day-neutral strawberries, remove the flowers until
the end of June and then after that date allow the flowers to remain
to set fruit for a summer/fall harvest.
Fertilization
Before planting apply one pound per 100 square feet of a 10-10-10 fertilizer
and dig into soil at least six to eight inches deep. After the first
harvest in the second season strawberries should be fertilized after
renovation in July. Water the fertilizer in to get it down to the root
zone. This application is made to keep the plants in a vigorous condition
and to promote new growth causing the development of more fruit buds.
Do not over fertilize. Overfertilization will cause excessive vegetative
growth, reduce yields; increase losses from frost and foliar disease
and result in winter injury.
Mulching
Strawberries are very susceptible to frosts in the spring. Mulches that
have covered the plants during the winter months should be removed in
the early spring but should be left in the aisles to cover the blossoms
in the spring when frost is predicted. Old blankets or sheets can be
used for protection against frost. Spun bond material such as Reemay
or row covers will protect strawberry plantings down to temperatures
of about 23°-25°F. In the fall between mid-November and mid-December
in Illinois but before temperatures drop below 20 degrees; apply a straw
mulch three to four inches deep over the rows. This mulch will protect
the plants from cold temperatures that can kill the buds and injure
roots and crowns. Remove the mulch in the spring when the strawberry
leaves show yellow. Leave some of the mulch around the plants to keep
the fruit from soil contact and to conserve soil moisture.
Renovation
Renovation is an important part of strawberry care. In order to insure
good fruit production, June-bearing strawberries grown in the matted
row system should be renovated every year right after harvest. A strawberry
patch will continue to be productive for three to four years as long
as the planting is maintained. The first step in the renovation process
is to mow the old foliage with a mower, cutting off the leaves about
one inch above the crowns. Rake the leaves and if disease-free, compost
or incorporate into the soil. Fertilize with one pound of a 10-10-10
fertilizer per 100 square feet. Narrow the rows to six to twelve inches
wide by spading, hoeing or rototilling. Remove all weeds. Thin the plants
in the narrowed row to 4 to 6 inches between plants. Water with one
inch of water per week to promote growth and to make new runners for
next year's crop.
Strawberry Fact & Lore
-
"Doubtless God could have made a better berry,
but doubtless God never did." (Dr. William Butler, 17th Century
English Writer) Dr. Butler is referring to the strawberry. Strawberries
are the best of the berries. The delicate heart-shaped berry has always
connoted purity, passion and healing. It has been used in stories,
literature and paintings through the ages.
-
In Othello, Shakespeare decorated Desdemonda's handkerchief
with symbolic strawberries.
-
Madame Tallien, a prominent figure at the court of
the Emperor Napoleon, was famous for bathing in the juice of fresh
strawberries. She used 22 pounds per basin, needless to say, she did
not bathe daily.
-
In parts of Bavaria, country folk still practice the
annual rite each spring of tying small baskets of wild strawberries
to the horns of their cattle as an offering to elves. They believe
that the elves, who are passionately fond of strawberries, will help
to produce healthy calves and abundance of milk in return.
-
The American Indians were already eating strawberries
when the Colonists arrived. The crushed berries were mixed with cornmeal
and baked into strawberry bread. After trying this bread, Colonists
developed their own version of the recipe and Strawberry Shortcake
was created.
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In Greek and Roman times, the strawberry was a wild
plant.
-
The English "strawberry" comes from the
Anglo-Saxon "streoberie" not spelled in the modern fashion
until 1538.
-
The first documented botanical illustration of a strawberry
plant appeared as a figure in Herbaries in 1454.
-
In 1780, the first strawberry hybrid "Hudson"
was developed in the United States.
-
Legend has it that if you break a double strawberry
in half and share it with a member of the opposite sex, you will fall
in love with each other.
-
The strawberry was a symbol for Venus, the Goddess
of Love, because of its heart shapes and red color.
-
Queen Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII had
a strawberry shaped birthmark on her neck, which some claimed proved
she was a witch.
-
To symbolize perfection and righteousness, medieval
stone masons carved strawberry designs on altars and around the tops
of pillars in churches and cathedrals.
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The wide distribution of wild strawberries is largely
from seeds sown by birds. It seems that when birds eat the wild berries
the seeds pass through them intact and in reasonably good condition.
The germinating seeds respond to light rather than moisture and therefore
need no covering of earth to start growing.
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Medicinal Uses
-
The strawberry, a member of the rose family, is unique
in that it is the only fruit with seeds on the outside rather than
the inside. Many medicinal uses were claimed for the wild strawberry,
its leaves and root.
-
The ancient Romans believed that the berries alleviated
symptoms of melancholy, fainting, all inflammations, fevers, throat
infections, kidney stones, halitosis, attacks of gout, and diseases
of the blood, liver and spleen.
Information provided by the University of Illinois Extension. www.urbanext.uiuc.edu
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Oregon's Tricounty Farm Information Area
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