It was said: "I really wonder what rust it is. I did some diggin on the 'net, and can't find any mention of rust on strawberries in the US." I found my reference to rust on strawberries in the "Compendium of Strawberry Disease" from the American Phytopathological Society, the author J. L. Maaas, USDA, Beltsville, MD. As I said, that source stated it was rare. They cited the disease as in Florida. That said, kurtg, from MD, reported seeing rust while growing up on a PYO strawberry farm. So, unless kurtg is smoking something funny, I'd say that strawberry rust does occur in the US but perhaps it's not widely spread enough to be reported. (Just a thought.)

Jodi: I want to be nice, and sometimes I try, but you have one plant out of 21 with rotting berries, and you need "help"? If you insist on perfection, you are going to have a hard time with fruitgrowing. Your other plants will be sending out plenty of runners to replace the one you lose, and if you suspect a disease you should remove it now. You may regret your decision not to pinch off at least half the blossoms from your plants, not that it has anything to do with your blackened berries. You may also find that applying an organic mulch like aspen shavings between the rows provides the ideal environment to hatch out slugs, pillbugs, and strawberry beetles that will eat your strawberries as they become ripe. You would be better off with just the landscape fabric during the fruiting season, unless you don't have any of these ground-dwelling creatures around. Mulch is fine over the winter season if you want to protect the plants and build up the soil, but it should be worked in or removed when the plants start to fruit. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Rick: What is your strategy for dealing with weeds? I would give that some thought before expanding your patch to four 40' rows. Keeping the plants thinned to 8-10 inches apart is easy, but the weeds can be nearly impossible. I will try to respond to your specific questions, but keep in mind that all these issues are insignificant in a strawberry planting when compared with weeds. 1. Runners may be transplanted any time from late fall, right through winter and into spring. 2. The ground never really freezes in N. Virginia. That is why no insulating mulch is required in winter. If left around the plants in spring, mulch can harbor hatcheries for slugs, pillbugs, and the black strawberry-eating beetle. In most N. Virginia locations, strawberry plants remain green throughout the entire winter. Deer eat them, often pulling them out by the roots. You can reduce deer damage by covering the patch with the cheap, black plastic fencing material sold at bigbox stores, but it must be pinned down or the deer will simply move it out of the way. 3. You can place your runners wherever you like, maintaining a rough distance of 8-10 inches between the plants. Any closer than that and they will start to crowd, sunlight to the berries will be reduced, berry size will decrease, and fungal problems like gray mold will increase. If a runner has rooted in an acceptable location, leave it where it is. 4. If you planted bareroot, bundled plants only this past March, they are still young and should be good for another year. I am a little surprised that you harvested an acceptable crop from spring planted berries. That testifies to the vigor and productivity of the Jewel variety. When I renew a strawberry patch, I remove all plants two years or older in favor of vigorous new runners. Older plants will have longer crowns and are easy to identify. Berry size and productivity fall off rapidly with older plants. After years of fighting weeds in my strawberry plantings, both annual and perennial, deep-rooted types that are nearly impossible to remove, I planted my most recent patch on 10' wide, 6 mil. black plastic from Lowes. Sometimes they have 6 mil. plastic that is 20' wide. That would be even better for a wider patch. The plastic was one of the better ideas I have had. I just cut an "X" in the plastic for each plant; when runners formed I cut slits and made sure the new crown of leaves was in contact with the soil so it could root. Of course you can't root all the runners from a vigorous variety like Jewel; maybe only 20% or less. Toss out the rest. Worked great. There is some hand labor involved, but nothing like what you will soon face from weeds in a patch as large as you contemplate. A few weeds will still grow around the cuts in the plastic, but nothing like you will see if you leave the area open. If you feel like trying another variety, that's up to you. Delmarvel is good, from the same development program as Jewel. So is Honeoye. But you will find it hard to improve on the productivity and quality of Jewel, although like most of the berries grown around here it is a little tart and requires some sugar to bring out the strawberry taste. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Are they Strawberry Root Wevils? They're typically out at night, but I've seen some during the day, in very shaded areas, tucked down by the base of the plant. If it looks like your plant is starting to go down hill, then I'd take one in to a nursery to have them look at it and give suggestions, but, if it looks like the plant is continuing to do well, with no leaf or stem damage, then they're probably okay. You can just pick them off, and throw them away in a yard waste bin.