Strawberries are one of the easiest fruits for family gardeners to grow. These berries are perennial plants. Return to the garden year after year. They are very suitable for small spaces. You can plant them at a fraction of the supermarket cost. If you want to start your own crop quickly and easily, try planting strawberries on the garden beds. This article contains all the information you need to get started. This is a complete guide to strawberry planting in garden beds - from planting to harvesting.
Why is it a good idea to plant strawberries on the garden bed
Garden beds are perfect for strawberries. They provide good drainage for strawberry plants and can easily control the soil quality for berry growth. In addition, garden beds make it easy to care for plants. It is much easier to protect berries from birds than to plant strawberries underground, and the fruits do not need to be bent to harvest.
More benefits of planting strawberries on garden beds include:
It's a piece of cake to ensure that plants get enough water
Weeding is kept to a minimum
Easier to monitor signs of disease in plants
Fast spreading plants are controlled
What type of elevated bed is most suitable for planting strawberries?
After you decide to plant berries in a raised garden, the next step is to decide which type of garden bed to use. To tell the truth, the most important thing is to find your strawberry field in sunny conditions; What the bed is made of is secondary. The good news is that there are many options. The choice depends on your budget, your aesthetic sense and how much space you have.
How to plant strawberries on the garden bed
Strawberries are one of the easiest fruits for family gardeners to grow. These berries are perennial plants. Return to the garden year after year. They are very suitable for small spaces. You can plant them at a fraction of the supermarket cost. If you want to start your own crop quickly and easily, try planting strawberries on the garden bed. This article contains all the information you need to get started. This is a complete guide to strawberry planting in elevated beds - from planting to harvesting.
Garden bed with roof
A simple 4x8 wooden elevated bed is very suitable for strawberry planting, but there are many other options.
Why is it a good idea to plant strawberries on the garden bed
Garden beds are perfect for strawberries. They provide good drainage for strawberry plants and can easily control the soil quality for berry growth. In addition, garden beds make it easy to care for plants. It is much easier to protect berries from birds than to plant strawberries underground, and the fruits do not need to be bent to harvest.
More benefits of planting strawberries on garden beds include:
It's a piece of cake to ensure that plants get enough water
Weeding is kept to a minimum
Easier to monitor signs of disease in plants
Fast spreading plants are controlled
How to plant berries on garden beds
Garden beds are a great choice for growing strawberries. This article covers all the information you need to succeed.
What type of garden bed is best for growing strawberries?
After you decide to plant berries in a raised garden, the next step is to decide which type of garden bed to use. To tell the truth, the most important thing is to find your strawberry field in sunny conditions; What the bed is made of is secondary. The good news is that there are many options. The choice depends on your budget, your aesthetic sense and how much space you have.
Here are some different options for strawberry garden beds:
Untreated cedar, redwood or locust are the best. Avoid using pressure treated wood.
Elevated wooden or plastic bed. Raise your legs, these are perfect for a terrace, porch or deck.
Metal garden bed
Brick, rock or concrete. These materials create more lasting growth space than some other options
Garden bed DIY kit.
Geotextiles. These low-cost fabric garden beds are also a good choice.
A standard 4'X8 'garden bed provides enough berries for my family of three. We eat some fresh berries, use some to make jam, and freeze anything we can't eat fast enough. Obviously, larger beds provide more berries, while smaller 4'X4 'or 6'X2' beds are perfect if you only want to provide a small amount of berries for grains every morning. Really, there is no minimum or maximum bed size required. It is anything that fits your space and needs. You can even plant strawberries in flowerpots.
What should I use to fill the garden bed
In addition to ensuring that your strawberry fields are sunny, another important factor in your success is filling your garden bed with the best soil. There are many different choices. Over the years, I have tried several when growing strawberries on my garden bed. Here are three options for filling a new strawberry garden:
Fill the bed with a 50/50 mixture of topsoil and some form of organic matter. I like compost, but old dung is another option. Ideally, topsoil will come from elsewhere in your property, but if this is not an option, please purchase topsoil from your local landscape supply center.
You can also fill a strawberry garden bed with h ü gelkultur, much like creating an in bed compost heap by adding layers of material to the bed. The largest branches enter the bottom, and then various organic layers alternately fill the rest. The top few inches are a mixture of topsoil and compost.
If you don't have any other choice, you can fill the bed with the bagged garden bed mixture. You can also make it yourself. I like to use a combination of 1/3 bagged garden soil, 1/3 bagged bark potted soil and 1/3 bagged compost.
Strawberry grows best in slightly acidic soil with pH between 5.8 and 6.2. The soil in the elevated bed is tested every 3 to 5 years using a commercial soil test from a home test kit or laboratory. If necessary, adjust the pH value according to the instructions in the soil test results.
The best strawberry type to grow on the garden bed
The good news is that all types of strawberries are suitable for garden beds. You don't need to look for specific varieties or buy plants in special nurseries. The main thing to remember is that different varieties are produced at different times. Each variety tastes slightly different. Some varieties are more suitable for cold weather than others. Read the plant label, catalog description, or packaging to ensure that the strawberry variety you are looking for is suitable for your climate. Make sure it is cold resistant in your planting area. Most strawberries are hardy to - 30 ° F, but some are more hardy and others are less hardy. If you live in a very cold climate, please choose accordingly. The good news is that strawberries can be grown anywhere, from hot, sunny Florida to cool, cold Canada - and anywhere in between!
Next, decide when to harvest. There are three main types of strawberries:
Fruit varieties in June: large single crops are produced at one time, usually from the middle of June to early July. If you plan to keep berries as jam, strawberries with June are the best choice
1. Daily neutral variety: produce a small amount of fruit in most growing seasons
2. Common varieties: two crops are produced every year, one in early summer and the other in early autumn.
No matter which type you choose, when planting strawberry on the elevated bed, you need to water the plant before and after planting to ensure that the plant has a good start. If the plant is bare root (no soil on it), soak the root in water for 8 hours before planting.
Planting strawberries on the garden bed
From early spring to early summer, you can plant new plants on the strawberry bed. If your new plants grow in a small pot, be sure to gently loosen the roots before planting them on the garden bed, especially if they are potted (the roots spiral in the pot). If the plant is bare rooted, expand the root into the planting hole, and ensure that the plant is positioned so that the crown is above the soil line and the root is below.
Space strawberry plants are about 8 to 10 inches apart. The number of staggered rows gives each plant enough space to grow. By providing regular irrigation in the first year after planting, especially in the dry period, the growing season has a good start.
When planting strawberries on garden beds, the soil may dry faster than when growing underground. Carefully monitor the soil moisture, and water deeply if necessary. Avoid shallow watering of plants; A good and thorough soak is always better than a light sprinkling of water.
Other care tips for planting strawberries on garden beds
When planting strawberries on elevated beds, remember more.
- Pinch off any flowers produced in the first growing season. This transfers energy to the establishment of the plant, which is particularly important in the first year.
- Use balanced granular organic fertilizer to provide nitrogen and other nutrients throughout the growing season. Apply once every spring at the speed recommended on the package
- The runner end produced by the mother plant has seed plants. Pinch all strawberry runners in the first two growing seasons, especially for June varieties. They consume the energy of the mother plant and may affect production. If you like, you can save the seed plants to start a new strawberry field in the next year.
- In order to prevent fruit decay from becoming a problem, water the plants only in the morning so that they will be dry when night falls. Cover the plants with straw to keep the developing fruits away from the ground and avoid overcrowding. Congestive conditions can reduce air circulation, thereby promoting fungal disease.
Cover the garden bed with strawberries
When planting strawberries on garden beds, mulching is a particularly important step. As mentioned above, it can not only reduce the chance of fruit decay, but also reduce weed competition and protect the roots from water and temperature fluctuations. I like to use straw, but chopped leaves are another good choice. Some growers use black plastic or other types of plastic mulch, but these are not good choices for growing strawberries on elevated beds.
In autumn, apply 1 to 2 inches of mulch (no more) around the plant crown. If you like, you can add another inch in spring to freshen it up. Do not stack the mulch on the plant stem or directly place the mulch on the crown of the plant.
Winter care when planting strawberries on garden beds
Although strawberries are cold resistant and completely perennial, planting strawberries on garden beds requires some additional winter care. Cover plants as described above shortly after the first frost and before deep freezing. Do not fertilize late in the season, otherwise it may produce tender new growth that is easy to be damaged by frost.
If necessary, place round top chicken shreds on the plants to protect your strawberry garden bed from deer and other potential winter visitors. Mice and voles like to dig holes under the cover and eat the strawberry plant crown. If they have problems, please set up a rat trap with peanut butter bait in the strawberry field.
Protect your garden bed strawberries from birds and other pests
In addition to mammals that eat plants in winter, when planting strawberries on the garden bed, many other small animals may find your berries attractive, especially when they are mature. Birds like strawberries very much. To protect your production from these pests, please cover the entire garden bed with a bird net. Erect a frame or hoop made of PVC pipes, and then fix the bird net on it with clips or clamps. Press the edge with stones or bricks, or fix the net in place with landscape nails.
