Strawberries

What I do is peg a runner into a pot alongside the parent plant and keep it watered until it feels like its rooted ( doesn't come out easily when gently tugged) . Once rooted the connecting stem can be cut leaving two completely independent plants. I am never in a hurry to cut the joint stem as I like them to become established.

Hope my pics are of help.

 

With regards to over wintering them I prefer to keep them in my cold frame, I don't grow them in beds but in hanging baskets to stop slug and bird attacks.

 

Thank you so much, big help. Wasn't aware at all that i needed to do this. Better get a shifty on this afternoon

 

Glad to help, others might offer different advice, but this way has always worked well for me over the years.
Sometimes you have to try several ways before finding one that works well for you. Good luck.

 

I'll give it a good bash anyway i'm itching to get out and make a start already...but its a very hot day with me! I'm trying to be patient and let it cool down before I head out. I'll take snaps and let you know how i get on. This is my tangled patch i'll be sorting

 

Oh that is certainly a good patch you have there. I'm small scale compared to you as I keep to about 10- 12 plants each year. Most as I said are in hanging baskets and a few in pots.
But yes keep me posted as I would like to know how you get on.

Yes it's way too hot here too, so I'm sitting out in the shade ...

 

Well Upsydaisy what can I say. A huge thank you. I've learnt so much about my strawberries today. I got into the bed and snipped off a fair few runners (if I hadn't I now realise that next years strawberries probably would have been piddly little things. Disclaimer..they still might be haha). The amount of runners I had, and therefore plant energy, was incredible. Some were well rooted in (I only started out with 6 plants this year) so I snipped contact with their parents!! And some good runners I kept with their parents and pinned into pots of compost! Hopefully this gives the bed the boost it needs. If i get new plants im going to put into hanging baskets. Again huge thanks for your expertise

 

Aww bless you, we all learn from each other here. It's not often that I am able to offer advice.....I'm usually asking for it myself but any offerings I have I am all too happy to share.

 

Planted up two baskets but I've been thwarted by the squirrels so far with my strawberries, one basket completely gone and two left in the other (which you can see they've been busy in this morning) hoping to at least save what's left to start off next year.

 

Oh gosh that's real shame @mazambo !! ....thankfully it's proven to be the only way we can guarantee to keep pests of all kinds away from ours. Do they climb along that framework??? Ours are hanging just from the walls of our house and hubs workshop.

 

Yes @Upsydaisy it's pretty easy for them, I was going to fasten chicken wire around the baskets but never got round to it, my own fault really I thought it was nice having squirrels around but you live and learn. If I can hold on to the plants left at least I've got a start for next year.

 

@mazambo I have the same problem. They love the soft compost mixed to perlite, so easy to dig.
There are a few solutions though:
1) Of course, horticoltural fleece. Unsightly perhaps but quite efffective.
2) Filling the basket with good compost but putting as a top layer some bark, or simply normal, hard garden soil mixed with grit and tiny pebbles
3) putting on top of the basket unusual object. For instance, if I leave on a basket or pot my scissors, or a clamp, squirrels and mice will not dig there. I guess, because it just looks unusual enough to be potentially dangerous.

 

Strawberry runner update Hoping we're doing okay!

 

Looking good Emily:bigthumb:

 

Here's the new strawberry plants ... I think they've turned out well