Trish Posted May 12, 2005 Share Posted May 12, 2005 My cheapy strawberries from the GYO have been in the ground about 2 weeks and are starting to flower already? I've never done Strawbs, is this normal? My Alpine Strawbs have been in the garden, in pots, for weeks and whilst healthy are not flowering or anything yet and I didn't expect them to be. Any advice folks. I got the Calypso ones not those advertised and they did say not to remove runners or suckers as they will fruit on those as well, if that makes sense Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Frugal Posted May 13, 2005 Share Posted May 13, 2005 I've got strawberries flowering at the moment, Trish and my Mum's got little berries starting to develop so don't worry! They'll be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leanne Posted May 13, 2005 Share Posted May 13, 2005 if you tuck the runners back into the soil, new little plants will grow from them, which you'll be able to transplant and increase your plant stock next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted May 13, 2005 Author Share Posted May 13, 2005 Oooo I like plants for free, thanks both feel quite horticultural now and all I did was stick em in't muck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fowlbird Posted May 20, 2005 Share Posted May 20, 2005 I haven't bought any strawberries this year. Previous years I grew them in strawberry pots in the herb garden but I have visions of chooks eating every berry so I'm waiting until I can get plants in to the veg patch which the girls don't have access to. Although there is a plant growing from seed in the gravel of the herb garden. I'll keep an eye on it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowcloud Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 The great thing with strawberries is that you can buy 'early' , 'mid-season' and 'late' ones. If you mix these into your beds you can have strawberries fruiting for nearly six months ! Your's are probably an early variety that are kicking in with the (short-lived) warm spring weather. The other thing to consider is that some strawberries do well in one type of soil and not in others. I have tried a few and find that Cambridge Favourite are best for my soil, which is sandy rather than clay. Need to experiment with different ones (try and get runners for free from friends) and then the ones that do well - propagate from them. The best way to do this is put your favourite plant in the middle of a good sized bed after fruiting and feed it a little (tomato feed is good). Then over the next few week it will produce DOZENS of little strawberry plants of the perfect variety for your garden. Where the little plants form, bury the runner from the main plant end so that the root can form more quickly. then in a couple of weeks you will be able to scissor cut the runner, lift the plant and put into a pot ready for transplanting the following spring. Keep doing this for a couple of months - I took 15 plants off one main strawberry plant last year. They will fruit well the next year, even better the next, but by the fourth year you should take your favourite plant and propogate again as they get tired by their fifth year. Oh, and the other thing you can do, if you have a green house, is stick a few of your favourite type in the green house for early strawberries. Good luck. I am experimenting with gooseberries this year, looking forward to a nice gooseberry tart in summer.... mmmm. (Check out my website for other tips if you fancy - http://www.geocities.com/stinkycabage - which has other tips) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheilaz Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 Thanks for those useful strawberry tips, snowcloud. Also found the website interesting, keep up the good work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahJo Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 No tips from me I'm afraid ... but .. when I watered Nikki's allotment earlier in the week, I noticed green starwberries on the plants. Also, they are everywhere ...... rambling free plants which have self seeded. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cate in NZ Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 I've got strawberries in hanging baskets this year. I've tried them in the past in the ground, but never actually got any fruit, kids, slugs or birds always beat me to it Can't remember what varieties I've got, about 3 different ones so I can see which are the most successfull, or taste best, but the flowers look quite pretty in the basket, and I've got several, still green, fruits developing. Maybe this year I'll get to eat a home grown strawberry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Strawberries seem to be good this year - most fruit seems to go in cycles. Our plants are laden with small green fruit so looks like a bumper crop. Last year was a bit disappointing. Plums are doing well this year as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cate in NZ Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Yes, my plums look very promising this year as well. Bizarrely though I have 4 apple trees, 2 are laden with very small fruit, the other 2 seem to have next to nothing. And my pear tree, leaves aplenty, not a fruit to be seen. I really don't understand it, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Kate A We have new pear trees so I can't really say but we had one with lots of little fruitlets - they all dropped off while we were on holiday due to the hot weather I think. I couldn't ask our Chicken Sitter to water fruit trees as well as look after the chickens and water in the polytunnel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
