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What to do with strawberry plants in winter


How to Winterize Strawberry Plants

Strawberries, Fragaria × ananassa, are low-profile, fruit-bearing perennials suited to cultivation in USDA Hardiness Zones 3 to 10.

Sometimes considered a challenging crop, folks in cold regions with freezing winters often grow plants as annuals and discard them at season’s end.

However, when you select the hardiest cultivars, and provide a little pre-winter TLC, your favorite berry-makers can yield sweet and tasty treats year after year.

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In our comprehensive guide to growing strawberries, we cover all you need to know to plant, care for, and harvest strawberries.

In this article, we focus on a few easy steps to take to winterize plants so they return with vigor each spring.

Here’s the lineup:

What You’ll Learn

There’s a chill in the air. Let’s get started!

Why Winterize?

Most types of strawberry require 200-300 chill hours with temperatures between 45 and 32°F for optimal fruit production.

However, according to Emily Hoover, extension horticulturalist at the University of Minnesota Extension, temperatures of 15°F or below can cause fatal damage to the crown.

If you live in a region where the ground freezes in winter, your strawberries will benefit from a few proactive measures to help them survive the coldest months of the year.

There are four reasons why:

  1. To avoid damage to next spring’s buds.
  2. To minimize root damage from temperature fluctuations caused by repeated cycles of freezing and thawing.
  3. To inhibit “heaving,” a spontaneous uprooting caused by soil shifts during freezing and thawing.
  4. To retain the moisture needed to keep crowns – the part of the plant where the stems originate – from drying out.

With a bit of preparation, you can protect your plants from the ravages of winter and set them up for a healthy return after their period of dormancy.

Container-grown plants can be prepared using the same methods described below and then placed in a basement, shed, or garage to winter over.

Four Easy Steps

The four steps to prepare strawberries for winter are: renovate, fertilize, water, and apply mulch.

Let’s look at each step in more detail:

1. Renovate Your Plants

There are three types of strawberry plant:

After harvesting fruit, plants that are expected to winter over need to be renovated. This process consists of pruning foliage, thinning, and removing debris and weeds.

For June-bearing varieties, you’ll need to prune the foliage to a height of one to two inches above the crown. You can do this with pruning shears or hedge clippers.

If you have a large flat strawberry patch, you can also use a lawn mower with the blade set to the appropriate height, but be sure to mow no more than one week after the last harvest or you risk damaging the new leaves.

Thin plants that have spread and matted together to rows eight to 12 inches wide, with two to three feet between them.

Remove runners as needed to contain your plants to their target width. You may use a tiller for this task.

If they are not growing in rows, thin them to five per square foot, or about four to six inches apart.

Discard all those that have been weakened by adverse weather conditions, disease, or infestation by pests.

Remove any weeds and debris.

For everbearing and day-neutral varieties, prune off any leaves that appear damaged, diseased, or pest-infested. Remove entire plants if necessary.

Thin those remaining to five per square foot, or about four to six inches apart.

Remove runners to prevent the growth of new plants and remove any weeds and debris.

Be sure to discard diseased and pest-infested foliage in the trash, not on the compost heap.

2. Fertilize

Outreach Horticulturist Richard Jauron from the Department of Horticulture at the Iowa University Extension recommends the application of a balanced, 10-10-10 (NPK) fertilizer at a quantity of five pounds per 100 feet of row, or one pound per 25 plants at least one month before your average first frost date.

Take care to avoid direct contact with foliage, apply granular fertilizer or pellets between plants in beds and containers, and in the aisles between the rows. Water in well.

3. Water

After you have renovated your plants, continue to water right up until first frost. Provide one inch of supplemental water per week in the absence of rain.

During the cold months, while they are dormant, there is no need to provide supplemental irrigation for those growing in the garden.

Container-grown plants placed in a cold shed or garage will require minimal water, just enough to prevent the soil from drying out completely.

4. Apply Mulch

Mulch is the final step toward winter readiness. An application of mulch provides a layer of insulation that is especially important in regions with little to none of nature’s own insulation: snow.

Photo via Alamy.

Covering plants not only helps to keep them uniformly cold during temperature fluctuations, it aids in retaining the moisture essential to crown health, while also promoting optimal drainage.

Timing

The application of mulch is not something to be rushed for three reasons:

The best time to apply mulch is between late November and early December, after first frost when much of the foliage is brown and floppy, and before temperatures drop below 20°F.

As mentioned earlier, at 15°F, plants not covered by mulch or snow are susceptible to fatal crown damage.

Application

Choose a mulching material that is loose to avoid matting, facilitate air circulation, and aid in drainage.

Straw or pine needles are excellent choices. Avoid leaves and grass, as they are likely to mat, as well as hay, because it tends to be full of weed seeds.

Photo via Alamy.

To apply mulch, drop it around and over the plants by loose handfuls. The pieces of straw or pine needles should separate as they fall, creating airy heaps, rather than tight clumps.

Completely bury all visible foliage beneath a continuous cover of mulch, all the way down the rows, or to the edges of the beds, raised beds, or containers.

For those growing in the garden, the pros at Iowa State University Extension and Outreach recommend an application of three to five inches of mulch.

They recommend six to eight inches in raised beds, especially pyramid planters, because the soil temperature becomes even colder than ground soil.

Some folks prefer to lay mulch when rain is in the forecast, to help hold it in place.

If you’re in an especially windy locale, you may want to anchor the mulch in your rows and beds with chicken wire. You can use bricks, rocks, or stakes to hold the chicken wire in place.

Regardless of when you lay it, or if you anchor it, mulch will compact over time and you may need to make additional applications during the winter months.

If you are growing your strawberries in barrels or pots, you can move them into storage in a cold shed or unheated basement or garage. Wrap the containers loosely in burlap, and fill the sides and top with six to eight inches of straw.

Berry On

That’s all there is to it. To recap, there are four steps to take to prepare your strawberries for winter’s onslaught:

And then, one dry day in early spring, after the winter winds have ceased to howl and the snow has finally melted, gently pull back the mulch.

If you see green shoots, it’s time to remove the mulch and let them bask in the sunshine. If not, try again soon.

What should you do with the mulch?

Rake it into the aisles between rows, to soak up spring rain and make walking less muddy. Leave some tucked around the sprouts to inhibit weeds, aid in moisture retention, and keep future berries up off the dirt.

Keeping mulch near is also handy when a late-season frost threatens, for short-term protection in a pinch.

We hope that winterization is soon a routine part of strawberry care in your garden, so you can weather the cold months with confidence, and berry on!

Have you successfully overwintered your strawberry plants? Share your tips in the comments section below.

And for more information about growing strawberries, check out these guides next:

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Winterizing Strawberry Plants – Strawberry Plants

Winterizing strawberry plants is necessary for gardeners in many areas. As the temperatures drop each year, people write in asking when and how to winterize strawberry plants. This post will cover the basics and help you determine how and when to protect your strawberry plants as the weather cools.

Jump to:

Why Winterize Strawberries?

Strawberry plants are perennial. They produce for many years after the initial planting, and they can thrive for very long periods if a rotation is used to keep plants fresh. But, there is a problem with perennial plants. How do they survive the freezing temperatures of the winter months? Well, strawberries are classified as forbs. Consequently, they don’t have the thick bark that protects many other perennials like most trees. If they don’t get extra protection (at least in the colder Zones), they will either die or suffer cold injury. Both death and injury can significantly hamper your plants’ ability to grow strawberries for you!

Simply put, you need to winterize strawberries to keep them alive and well.

When Is the Right Time to Winterize Strawberry Plants?

Strawberry plants should be winterized when they have entered dormancy and the temperature threatens to get cold enough to damage them. The time when strawberry plants go dormant varies. It depends upon the temperature and daylight in your location. As the days shorten in the fall, strawberry plants begin to march toward dormancy. Yet, it isn’t until the temperatures drop well below freezing for several nights in a row that the plants will actually begin their slumber.

For USDA Hardiness Zones 5 or lower (4, 3, etc.), plants will often enter dormancy by the end of November. For Zones 6 through 8, the plants will usually go dormant in December. You know the plants have gone dormant when you have a combination of cold temperatures and plants with dead-looking, wilted vegetation. If winterizing strawberry plants in mild winters, they will often live without any mulch or special winter care in Zones 7 and higher (8, 9).

How to Winterize Strawberry Plants in the Ground

First, ensure that the plants are truly dormant by checking the crowns to make certain there is no active new growth growing. Then, gently remove all the dead and wilted leaflets by carefully raking them out of your strawberry patch. Next, clear any accumulated leaves or debris from the strawberry beds. Finally, place a thick layer of a suitable mulch over the strawberry plants. The lower your USDA Hardiness Zone, the higher you need to pile the mulch. Any material that allows water to drain and air to circulate is an acceptable mulch. The most common, of course, is clean straw. Pine needles is also a good choice. Hay can be used, but it isn’t the best option. Hay almost always has loads of grass seeds and other weed seeds that will find a happy home alongside your strawberries making much more work for you when spring comes. Mulches that compact tightly or do not allow airflow are not appropriate for winterizing strawberry plants. Leaves, for example, will trap moisture. Wet, clumpy mulches will harbor pathogenic fungi and bacteria that can damage or kill or your strawberry plants, if they aren’t suffocated outright by a compressed mulch mat.

How to Winterize Potted Strawberry Plants

Potted strawberry plants are a little bit more difficult to care for because they are a little bit more vulnerable than in-ground plants. The soil in pots is quicker to freeze than the better-insulated soil of Terra Firma. Winterizing strawberry plants in containers can be done several ways, depending on how much effort you wish to expend.

Winterize Potted Strawberries in the Ground

If the ground isn’t already frozen when you decide to prepare your plants for winter (it should not be!), you can overwinter your strawberry plants in the ground. If you have a spare area, simply dig pot-sized holes and place the pots containing your dormant strawberry plants in them. Pack the dirt down around the sides of the pot tightly to simulate a natural planting and provide insulation. Then, mulch them just like you would if they were actually in-ground plantings. In the spring after the danger of cold injury has past, pull the pots up, wipe them off, and re-place or re-hang them in their designated places. If this method is too much work or is impossible…

Use Ambient Heat to Protect Potted Strawberry Plants

If your home is situated so that it has a side sheltered from the harshest winter weather, utilize it to help protect your strawberries. Homes are not perfectly insulated. If you heat your home, a lot of that heat is going to be lost through the walls during the winter. Placing your strawberry plants in containers along the wall of your home on the most sheltered side can keep them happy all winter in milder Zones. It is a good idea to mulch these plants as well. This is one of the easier ways to go about winterizing strawberry plants in pots!

Overwinter Strawberry Plants in the Garage

If you have an unheated garage, you can winterize strawberry plants in it as well. You typically don’t have to mulch them in a garage, but you do want to have them against an inner wall (to utilize the ambient heat) if you live in very cold locations. If you don’t, it can actually be best to keep them by an outer, unheated wall as long as the temperature inside the garage doesn’t get much below the upper 20s.

Strawberry plants require water over the winter, however. So, be sure to check the soil moisture levels. If the soil drys completely out, the plants will die. If the soil stays soggy, they will probably die as well. Water just enough each week to keep the soil slightly damp. An easy way to achieve an appropriate level of moisture is to place a handful of snow (if available) on each potted strawberry plant once a week. The snow gradually melts and keeps the soil moist, but not soggy.

Winterizing Strawberry Plants in Non-Standard Containers

Most people plant strawberries in pots. But, lots of people use other methods as well. Strawberry pyramids and tires and cinder block plantings can generally be treated like plants in the ground (just mulch a bit extra due to the greater surface area exposed to wind). Overwintering strawberry towers or winterizing strawberry plants planted in gutters or pipe systems is more difficult. If the strawberry towers or gutters/pipes can be moved into the garage or other similar shelter, they will often do better than if left suspended above the ground and exposed to all the harshest weather winter can throw at them. If that isn’t possible, one option is to wrap the containers in an insulating-yet-breathable material (like burlap) after dormancy has arrived. Several layers will need to be applied to offer sufficient protection, so it is also necessary to check the soil to ensure it remains moist. That may involve unwrapping and re-wrapping several times during the winter (which is a frozen pain in the fingers). But, if you live in colder Zones, it has to be done if you want happy and productive plants in the spring.

Winterizing Strawberries: Conclusion

Regardless of how you accomplish the task, most people will have to protect their strawberries in some way over the winter months. Cold injury is particularly problematic for strawberry plants since they produce fruit by means of perennating buds. In short, the flowers that become strawberries aren’t formed in the spring. They get their start during the waning warm days of the previous year in the form of flower buds in the crown of the strawberry plant. If strawberry plants have poor care or nutrition during the end of August, September, and October, they won’t form many buds. If the plants suffer cold injury, the buds are be damaged. When the buds are damaged by the winter weather, no flowers are produced when spring rolls around. And everyone knows that no flowers means no strawberries.

So, pay attention to your plants in the fall. And, protect them through the winter by appropriately winterizing strawberry plants. Then, when spring arrives, you’ll be harvesting heaps of delightful and delicious strawberries! If you want to see more, follow up with: Strawberry Flowers and Overwintering Strawberries. Good luck!

Learn more:
Growing Strawberries in Cold Weather
Fall Strawberry Plants
Strawberry Plants and Cold Injury

Learn everything about growing strawberries from the Strawberry Master Manual, also don't forget to follow me on Pinterest and Facebook to stay updated with everything I post. We also have a Strawberry gardening group on Facebook! Feel free to join.

How to save seedlings before planting. How to store strawberry seedlings before planting.

Autumn is a fertile time for gardeners. From September to November, there is a huge selection of seedlings of different varieties on the market and in stores. But for some reason, it is not always possible to plant plants on time and have to postpone the procedure until spring. This is not critical - if the seedlings are correctly sent for wintering, then they will wait for spring planting.

Maybe still plant?

It happens that worries are in vain and purchased seedlings can be planted. We are talking about winter-hardy varieties of pears and apple trees, currants, gooseberries, chokeberries, raspberries. The best time for planting them is autumn, the roots of trees and shrubs in the ground will develop to a temperature of + 3 + 4 degrees. That is, on the street at this time there may already be a stable minus. In addition, autumn planting has several undeniable advantages.

  1. Planting before winter hardens plants and develops increased immunity.
  2. In autumn, plants go dormant and easily tolerate care, planting, transplanting, and transportation.
  3. During autumn planting, the root system is actively growing, while the buds are still sleeping.

Important! For a successful autumn planting, take into account the climatic features of your region and the individual requirements of the planted plant.

If the outdoor temperature has confidently crossed the negative line, then it is better to take care of the storage places for plants.

Cellar, basement, balcony storage

Seedlings can be stored in any cool and protected room. Knowing the basic rules of storage, you can arrange a place convenient for you.

  1. The roots of seedlings must be kept in the ground. When stored in the basement, you can simply lay them out on the floor and sprinkle with wet sand. When keeping the balcony, the plants are placed in buckets, containers, boxes and poured with a loose and light substrate. In both the first and second cases, seedlings will need watering as the soil dries up. During winter storage, small suction roots are built up so that they are not damaged during transplantation, it is convenient to use individual perforated bags.
  2. Plant keeping temperature +2 +4 degrees. If it is warmer, then the buds may wake up ahead of time, growth will no longer be stopped, and the seedlings will have to be planted in improvised containers and buckets.

If you live in an apartment and there is no other option than to store seedlings on a closed balcony, then keep them closer to the wall of the house, additionally insulating the plant box with cardboard boxes and lining it with old rags.

Refrigeration

Suitable for storage and conventional refrigerator. But since its dimensions are limited, the method is also suitable for small plants (roses, ornamental perennials, etc.). This is an ideal place with optimal temperature and humidity. Before laying, the roots of the seedlings are packed in bags with wet peat or sawdust, small holes are made for air to penetrate and put on a shelf.

Prikop

If there is still time and the outside temperature allows you to equip the prikop, then it is better to choose this method. With this content, the highest rates of survival. Any place on a hill is suitable for the construction of a dig, for example, vacant vegetable or potato beds. The standard trench dimensions are 50 cm deep, 40 cm wide, more accurate figures depend on the size of the seedling itself. Seedlings in the pit are installed with their roots to the north, tops to the south at a slope of 45 degrees. The roots are covered with earth "with a slide", protruding branches are shifted by shoots from thorny bushes.

Do not rush to plant seedlings immediately after purchase. You need to prepare them:

In winter, cover the makeshift trench regularly with snow. You can read more about the arrangement of the prikop in this article.

How to store coniferous plants

Coniferous plants do not overwinter in the basement, and room conditions are very poorly tolerated. The fact is that even during the dormant period they need light, optimal humidity, soil and temperature. Of course, you can dig them in, leaving the green mass covered with non-woven material “on the street”. But it is best to put them in a greenhouse or keep them near the wall of the house on the south side. A prerequisite is a frame shelter. You can not fantasize much and use ordinary pegs folded into a hut around pots and burlap.

There is no reason to put off buying your favorite seedlings until spring. There are many ways to help plants overwinter while maintaining vitality and health. And our recommendations will only benefit. Article: Oksana Artemenko0002 Tired of buying strawberry seedlings every season or want to "tame" a new variety that is not yet available in stores? Then you need to know how to grow strawberries from seeds at home and what to do with seedlings before planting in the ground.

Garden strawberry seedlings are grown from seed for many reasons. For example, this is the only way to propagate varieties whose bushes do not give a mustache. In addition, this way you can do without buying seedlings of new varieties or get a variety of berries that your neighbors have treated you to.

How to choose strawberry seeds for sowing

There are so many varieties and hybrids of strawberries on the market now that choosing the right one is quite difficult, because each manufacturer promises large, sweet berries, fast ripening and disease resistance.

If you are still an inexperienced gardener and do not know what you want, pay attention to the following large-fruited varieties of garden strawberries (strawberries): Alyonushka, Vima, Kokinskaya early, Xima, Lord, Moscow delicacy, Fireworks, Festivalnaya, Holiday, Honey .

If you want to grow remontant strawberries from seeds, then the following will suit you: Ali Baba, Baron Solemacher, Seasons, Garland, Yellow Miracle, Queen Elizabeth II, Early Crimean .

Pollination is also of great importance as a seedling. Blooming strawberries should not be allowed to cross-pollinate with berries of a different variety, since the resulting plant will partially or completely lose the initial signs of the mother.

Remember that garden strawberry seeds remain viable for 4 years

You can prepare strawberry seeds for sowing on your own. To do this, you will need to take one of the earliest and largest berries from the bush of the variety you like and carry out a series of manipulations with it.

  1. Cut off the top and use a knife or blade to scrape off the top layer of seeds.
  2. Lay this layer on paper or heavy fabric and leave to dry in a warm place for 2-3 days.
  3. Grind the dried mass in the palms to separate the seeds.
  4. Put the received seeds in a small jar or bag and sign. On a piece of paper, indicate the variety (if you know) and the date of collection.

How to sow strawberries for seedlings

Delicate tiny strawberry seeds cannot be sown in ordinary soil taken from the ridges, and not every container is suitable for them. Therefore, you need to prepare for planting strawberries for seedlings.

You will need transparent containers (they will allow you to observe the degree of soil moisture throughout its thickness) and a soil mixture consisting of 2 parts soddy soil, 1 part sand and 1 part lowland peat. However, you can not be too smart with the substrate and buy ready-made, for example, for violets or begonias.

Strawberries do not tolerate picking, so if the size of the window sill or seedling rack allows it, it is advisable to immediately sow the seeds in separate containers, for example, plastic cups.

Don't know when to sow strawberries for seedlings? You can focus on the dates indicated on the bag of seeds, or you can sow in late February - early March.

Some gardeners lay a paper towel on the ground and spray the crops through it before the entrances appear

The sowing of strawberry seeds is within the power of everyone and takes no more than half an hour. It is enough to shed the soil with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, after drying, pour it into containers, spread strawberry seeds on top with tweezers and spray with warm water from a spray bottle. The distance between the seeds should be left about 2 cm, and the container itself should be covered with a film or a transparent lid on top.

From the first days, strawberry seedlings need long (at least 10 hours) daylight hours and air temperature within 18-20°С

Don't forget about daily illumination of seedlings with special phytolamps. Otherwise, the plants will stretch out a lot, be pale and weak.

Growing strawberry seedlings

The first shoots of garden strawberries do not need to be watered too often - this can lead to blackleg on plants or mold on the walls of the container, which is also detrimental to seedlings. Only with the advent of true leaves, strawberries will need water. Then you need to gradually remove the film (lid) from the containers.

Do not remove the film (cover) immediately, but gradually, starting from 15-30 minutes a day, thus hardening the seedlings to the dive.

Tiny bushes are transplanted together with a clod of earth, so as not to damage the root, in a container measuring 9 × 9 cm

After the appearance of the second pair of true leaves, strawberry seedlings are fed every 7-10 days with Kemira Lux, Aquarin, Solvent or any other complex mineral fertilizer according to the instructions.

Irrigation of strawberry seedlings varies at different growing stages. In the first days after sowing, it is enough to lightly spray the soil with seeds from a spray gun once a day so that a crust does not form on it. After germination, watering is reduced to 1 time per week. With the appearance of real leaves in strawberries, watering is carried out every 3 days, and the water should penetrate to the entire depth of the soil.

For irrigation use unboiled, settled water at room temperature. Rain or melt water is ideal for seedlings, but you can use it only if you live away from the city, major highways and industrial facilities.

Planting strawberry seedlings

If the planting of strawberries for seedlings was successful and the bushes have grown, you can start hardening in mid-late April. To do this, in warm weather, pots with plants are put outside, avoiding direct sunlight on them.

At first, seedlings should spend only 5-7 minutes in the open air, but this time should be increased every day .

Learn more