Growing strawberries in the garden

Strawberries have few crop needs and adapt well to the different climates of our entire peninsula.

There are various types: let's get to know them and find out how to grow them strawberries.

Strawberry varieties

There are many varieties of strawberries, approximately 600 types although we can make a division into two large groups, distinguished by the moment of flowering:

unified or non-flowering strawberries that produce fruit only once a year during spring
bifre or re-flowering strawberries that instead produce several times a year from spring to autumn .

On the market there are mainly the flowering ones that are chosen precisely because of their long production, even if some varieties of unifere have an excellent production with a delicious taste and large dimensions that compensate the disadvantage of having a single annual flowering.

In addition, the unified varieties are more suitable for having a single more suitable collection when we want to prepare strawberry jam or want to keep them in large quantities dried or in a freezer ; for fresh consumption, however, the re-flowering varieties are better and continue to produce smaller quantities but for a much longer period.

Strawberry cultivation

The time to grow strawberries is spring from the end of February to April, although an autumn transplant is recommended, which allows a better adaptation of the young seedlings to the soil, thus having a better flowering as early as the first spring.

For some varieties of strawberries, spending the winter time already at home is important because they need cold to give a more abundant harvest of strawberries.

Strawberries are usually transplanted because instead starting with sowing is really more difficult than buying the plants ready for cultivation in the field or in pots directly.

The distance to hold to plant the strawberries is 20 or 30 centimeters from each other and 40 centimeters between the rows; just make a hole as deep as the earthenware and cover the base of the strawberry plant with the soil.

The subsequent treatments see to hold weed the soil around the strawberries which can also be helped with the mulching technique . In fact, organic material such as straw is usually added to the base of the strawberry seedlings and by covering the soil this organic mulch is able to control the growth of wild herbs, maintains the water and the right temperature, protecting the strawberry plants and thus allowing a better growth .

A difficult adversary for the cultivation of strawberries are insects and animals: snails are fond of this fruit and therefore their position so close to the ground and their pleasant taste recalls them in the garden.

To avoid this problem, there are several natural solutions such as beer, ditches with ash or other materials, without having to resort to synthetic chemicals and pesticides that can be very dangerous in domestic areas, especially for children and animals.

Top May fruit: how to eat strawberries

Location and ground for strawberries

Strawberries love sun exposure so in the vegetable garden they should be placed in full sun, apart from some varieties such as wild strawberries that by the name prefer gray areas, away from direct sun.

For the climate, as mentioned, they do not fear the cold so much that some varieties grow sponatnee over the 1000 meters of altitude.

The soil suitable for the cultivation of strawberries is certainly a bit sandy with a good superficial part of compound and organic substance.

The optimum pH of the soil should be around 6 then slightly acidulous for strawberries, but in general strawberries have no great pretensions.

Irrigation of strawberries

For watering the strawberries need plenty of water at the time of transplanting the young seedlings and at the time of flowering .

In the drier periods they require water, but indicatively they do not have great water requirements even if regular ; however, it is important to avoid stagnation of water that can lead to rotting and disease or otherwise risk weakening the plant.

A good drainage of the soil by adding pumice or other porous materials such as expanded clay will allow for the right distribution of water and the best drainage for strawberries.

A good rule to water strawberries is to do it in the morning being careful not to wet the leaves but only the base of the strawberry plant, again to avoid stressing the plant and avoiding diseases. Excellent is the use of drip systems that help save water by giving the right dose at the precise point of the dripper.

Strawberry propagation

From the cultivation of strawberries it is possible to obtain other strawberry plants to be transplanted in other areas of the garden or garden or even in pots.

It is sufficient to wait for the strawberries to develop until their lateral branches called stolons, which are cut from the mother plant and transferred to a new home, thus creating a new plant identical to the mother plant.

The strawberry plants can last up to 4 years and with this method of propagation we can always have new plants.

Strawberries, strawberries and more strawberries ...

Strawberries are a food loved by the whole family both for its taste and for its excellent beneficial properties: in fact they are very rich in vitamin C and flavonoids .

Growing strawberries thus becomes not only a hobby but also the production of a healthy fruit for the whole family. The more plants we will have in our garden or even just grown in some pots on the balcony or on the windowsill, the more we will be able to make use of a production that is approximately for every strawberry plant from 0.5 to 1 kg of harvest per month .

Choosing between the different varieties and discovering the nuances of flavor, shape and size is a journey into the red world of this delicious fruit and bringing the children with us on this journey is certainly very exciting; in fact, children really like growing strawberries not to mention picking them up and eating them directly heated by the summer sun.

Both for them and for all lovers of greenery, it is therefore definitely advised to have small, fresh and fragrant strawberry cultivation corners to share with loved ones.