Planting strawberries
Strawberries are one of the most beloved berries in our country. It can be grown practically throughout Russia. This berry is unpretentious in care and, when grown correctly, gives a rich harvest of large and juicy berries.
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Strawberry varieties
For growing on your site, strawberries should be selected depending on the climatic conditions. For example, for the northern regions, varieties frost-resistant, and in the south you need to grow strawberries that tolerate drought well. In the middle lane, the following varieties will give good yields:
- Strawberry Lord belongs to a medium late species due to the extended ripening period. It gives large berries with a deep red color. The taste of these berries is unusual for strawberries, with a slight sourness. However, the yield of this variety reaches three kilograms from one bush.
- Popular varieties include Queen Elizabeth. Strawberries of this variety are distinguished by their large size and high yield. The berries are elongated and have a bright taste. This variety belongs to remontants and bears fruit several times during the season. The first harvest can be harvested in May, and the end of ripening occurs just before the frost.
- The very name of the Gigantella strawberry variety speaks of its main advantage. Berries of this variety can gain weight up to 100 grams. This variety can bear fruit well without transplanting for up to 8 years. The berries tolerate transportation and storage well and taste great. At the same time, the variety is very capricious to the soil and growing conditions.
- Zenga Zengana strawberries have excellent taste. The berries have a dense skin, so they perfectly tolerate storage and transportation. With small berry sizes, the yield of this variety is quite high. From one bush, you can collect up to one and a half kilograms of berries. This variety does not suffer from powdery mildew and root decay, but it is susceptible to many other diseases.
Planting and caring for strawberries
To get a good strawberry harvest, it is important to choose the right seedlings. It is better to purchase seedlings with closed roots in special cassettes. Such seedlings will allow you to get high yields in a short period.
Strawberries like sunny areas where they won't be disturbed by the wind. The soil in this area should be loamy or sandy loam with a lot of organic matter. Black soil or gray forest soil is also suitable. You can grow a berry in one place for up to four years, after which you need to take a break for two years.
Site preparation for landing begin in the fall. It is necessary to dig up future beds and apply fertilizers: humus or manure, superphosphate and potassium salt. When planting, maintain a distance between adjacent bushes of 30 cm. It is necessary to deepen the seedlings so that the roots are free. In order for rooting to proceed quickly and successfully, pinch the longest root. Excess leaves must be cut off, leaving no more than 4 of the largest. The neck of the bush should be flush with the ground. After planting, the seedlings are covered with earth and watered abundantly.
In the first year, the plant is given the opportunity to develop a strong root system by cutting off all whiskers and peduncles. From the second year, it is necessary to throw out the mulch in the spring, remove the dried foliage and loosen the ground. Then it is necessary to constantly remove weeds, loosen the soil and regularly water the plants, preventing them from drying out.
During the laying of flowers, strawberries are fed with potash fertilizers. At the same time, the ground between the bushes is mulched, and the excess foliage and mustache are cut off. It is necessary to water the strawberries in moderation, once every one and a half weeks is enough. In the summer heat, the amount of watering is increased. Watering should be done so that moisture does not get on the foliage and flowers.
Planting strawberries in the open field in autumn
Before the autumn planting, the beds are dug up and fertilizers are applied in a month. It can be potassium salt, superphosphate. During planting, it is necessary to add nitrogen-containing fertilizing.
It is best to plant seedlings after rains, then rooting will take place as quickly as possible. Having planted the seedlings in the usual way, they are watered with water, and the beds are mulched in order to retain moisture longer. For mulch, you can use peat, humus or vermicompost. Within 10 days after planting the seedlings, it must be watered daily.
How to prepare strawberries for winter
After harvesting the last crop, you need to prune the strawberries. For seedlings, one young rosette should be left, and everything else in the garden is cut with sharp scissors or pruning shears. This will preserve the aesthetic appearance of the plantings and will enable new foliage to grow in the spring.
A couple of months before the establishment of frost, it is necessary to loosen the soil, spud the plants and mulch. Hilling allows you to keep the root system of the mustache intact, so they are sprinkled on top with a mixture of earth and peat.
Humus or peat is used for mulching. These substances simultaneously shelter plants from winter frosts and feed them. Mulch should be laid only on the ground around the plant, avoiding contact with the leaves themselves.
For the winter, it is best to cover strawberries with needles or dry raspberry branches. Such a shelter reliably protects against frost and does not accumulate excess moisture. Instead of natural materials, you can use artificial means of protection, for example, agrofibre.
Growing strawberries at home
You can successfully grow delicious berries all year round at home. To do this, choose the sunny side of the apartment with maximum protection from drafts. The easiest way to grow strawberries is in pots larger than 3 liters. Containers must be provided with holes for water drainage.
For home cultivation, you should choose remontant or ampelous varieties... The first varieties bear fruit all year round with short breaks of several weeks. Ampel plants give only one harvest. Their peculiarity is that they form many shoots that bear fruit without rooting.
It is important to provide good lighting for the strawberries for a rich harvest. The duration of daylight hours should be at least 14 hours. Therefore, the plants are additionally illuminated with fluorescent, sodium or metal halide lamps.
To maintain optimal humidity, it is necessary to periodically spray the plants or using containers with water installed next to the strawberries. If it is necessary to lower this indicator, the room is ventilated. Water the plants sparingly, preferably by drip.
Strawberry transplant
Transplanting strawberries is essential to maintain high yields. This can be done in spring, summer or autumn. In springtime, you must first thin out the plantings, throwing away all old or diseased plants. The selected bushes are dug under the root and transplanted into a previously prepared place in the usual way. In the first year after planting, such plants will not give a rich harvest, so it is better to cut off all whiskers and peduncles. This will enable the plants to develop a powerful root system.
If necessary, strawberries can be transplanted in summer. It is only necessary to carry out this procedure after the end of fruiting. Plants are transplanted in cloudy weather or in the evening. For better rooting on the seedling, cut off all excess leaves. The beds for new plantings must be dug up twice, adding manure after the first digging and only then replanting plants on them.
An autumn transplant is the best option. This must be done in September. Then the plants will root well and gain enough green mass for wintering. The next year, the seedlings will give a good harvest.
Feeding strawberries
In April, after clearing the strawberry planting from old foliage, the first top dressing... Organic matter is suitable for feeding biennial plants: bird droppings, compost or manure in the form of mulch. I just lay these substances around the strawberry bushes and sprinkle them with soil. Older plants are fed with a solution of mullein and ammonium sulfate. Half a liter of organic matter and a tablespoon of mineral fertilizer are added to a bucket of water. This solution is enough for 10 strawberry bushes.
During flowering, a second fertilizing is carried out with mineral fertilizers. The solution is mixed from 2 tablespoons of nitrophoska and 1 tablespoon of potassium, diluting them in 10 liters of water. This composition is poured on strawberries under the root, half a liter for each bush.
During the formation of berries, feeding is carried out with infusion of weeds. To do this, place any weeds in a plastic bottle and add water to the top, insist for a week in a warm place. Then the infusion is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 10 and used as fertilizer.
