Strawberry season

Linn County Master Gardener, Lisa Slattery, offered the following on growing strawberries in Iowa:

 Strawberries are a seasonal favorite from the home garden. They're hardy, easy to grow, and only require a modest effort. Now is a good time to plant them. You can choose from 3 different types. June bearing, the most popular type, ripen in June. Everbearing strawberries produce berries in June and again in early fall. “Day-neutral” varieties can flower and fruit throughout the growing season if temperatures are moderate but fruiting stops during hot weather.

 Iowa State University suggests planting ‘Earliglow,' ‘Allstar,' ‘Honeoye,' ‘Surecrop,' ‘Redchief,' ‘Jewel,' and ‘Kent' for June bearing varieties. ‘Ozark Beauty' and ‘Ogallala' are good everbearing varieties. For day neutral plant ‘Tristar' and ‘Tribute' which are good performers.

 Planting space is determined by the strawberry type. The June bearing require the most space. Plant 18 to 24 inches apart in rows spaced 4 feet apart. This allows the plants to send out runners and root freely. You'll end up with a nice row about 2 feet wide. Everbearing and day-neutral are typically planted in beds of 2 to 3 rows each. Space plants 1 foot apart with a 2-foot-wide path separating the beds. Unlike June bearing, runners that develop on everbearing and day-neutral strawberries should be removed and the plants maintained as large, single plants. When planting, water thoroughly and apply a starter fertilizer solution to aid establishment.

 During the first growing season remove all the blossoms from June-bearing strawberries. Remove all blossoms on everbearing and day-neutral strawberries until early July. Any flowers which bloom after this period may be allowed to develop into fruit. Removing flowers help plants become established.

 Make sure that berries are planted in full sun (6 – 8 hours of direct sunlight a day.) They also require well-drained soil. Don't plant in areas that typically have a lot of perennial weeds since they can be a real pain to control and weed control is essential for good fruit production. Stay on top of weed control with cultivation, hand pulling and generous mulching. Get the hoe out and cultivate often, but shallow so the berry roots aren't damaged. Herbicides aren't really an option since few, if any, can be used on home strawberry plantings. If given proper conditions and care strawberry plants can yield 1 to 1-1/2 quarts of fruit per plant.