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Fruit & Orchards

Strawberries - how to get old plants ready for the new season

14 years ago

I bought 2 dozen strawberry plants from a nursery last spring, planted them, let the runners run wild, and harvest about 4 tiny berries. After investigation, I learned they don't grow berries until the following year.

I have the plants still sitting in my garden, with green and brown (dead?) leaves from the winter. I live in the SF Bay area, so not much frost around here.

What am I supposed to do to get them ready for this year? Do I cut the plant off above the soil so it grows new leaves?

Do I have to cut off runners this year in order to get berries?

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Comment (1)

homertherat
14 years ago
All I do is weed the bed. Make sure they are the ONLY thing getting light/water in the bed. It can really be a pain, but it's much easier if you lay down some sort of mulch. Straw works well in keeping the fruit off the ground to reduce bruising and rotting.

I never cut off the runners, but you will get bigger/more berries if you do. It seems like too much of a hassle for a little reward.

You might as well pull off the brown dead leaves and stems. They should come right off, but they can be stubborn. Make sure you don't pull the crown out of the ground. That's bad.
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