North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Don Yellman <dyellman@earthlink.net>]

Brian:  Just put in new strawberries this spring myself, from Indiana
Plant & Berry -- 50 Delmarvel, 50 Jewel, and 25 Selva.  The deer
completely wiped out my bed of Honeoye last season, which was a pretty
good berry for this area.

    I'm not a strawberry expert, but the biggest problems I have had
with strawberries were when I overfertilized/overmulched them.  They
don't like manure at all.  On the other hand, the best years I had were
when I spread clean straw between the rows and around the plants.  Not
enough nitrogen there to do any damage I would guess.  Anyway, I don't
think strawberries need much fertilizer at all, even in poor soil.

    I used to pick off blossoms the first season, but pretty much
stopped doing that when I observed that the berries were runnering
freely anyway.  Think I might put a little straw around the new plants
later this summer.  I have never trimmed leaves from my berries (the
deer do that), and only run the tiller down the row after the first
fruiting year if the plants are crowded.  Then I can again spread straw
where I've tilled.

    So far, Jewel is the most vigorous of the three varieties I'm trying
(Selva is day neutral), with the largest plants and most runners.  But
I've found that does not necessarily mean that Jewel will have the
largest or the most berries.  Next June will tell the tale.  What
variety did you plant?

Rgds, Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA



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