fruit

Strawberry

Plant in winter, pick from late spring right through summer. Give the crowns room, mulch underneath, and net them before the birds notice.

Strawberry seedling
Seedling
Mature Strawberry
Ready to pick
Thrives
15–24°C
Water
High
Difficulty
Beginner
Ready in
90–150  days
Spacing
30cm apart
Containers
Yes

How to plant it

  • Plant 30cm apart with the crown sitting right at soil level. Bury the crown and it rots; leave it proud and it dries out.
  • Mulch underneath with straw so the fruit is not sitting on wet soil. That is where most losses come from.
  • Water often. Strawberries are shallow-rooted and dry out faster than almost anything else in the patch.
  • Net them before the fruit starts colouring, not after. Birds are watching and they are quicker than you.
  • First berries arrive in late spring and keep coming through summer. Peg down the runners into pots and you will have free plants for next year.
  • They are the one plant here that minds a hard frost. Cover them if it is going below about minus two.