North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["William C. Garthright" <billg@inebraska.com>]

> I live in Northern VA (zone 6b) and have all of my strawberries (> 100 
> plants) on the north side, 2-3 feet from the house and they have done 
> wonderfully for 18 years!


I'm curious if anyone else has grown strawberries on the north side of 
their house. This would be a perfect place for me, since it's nothing 
but grass and lily of the valley right now. But I've got a tall house, 
and it wouldn't get sun except for a bit in the morning and then very 
late in the afternoon.

I planted strawberries near my apple and pear trees, thinking that I'd 
enjoy them until the trees got bigger. They're doing great, but I 
discovered that I can't work around the fruit trees with the 
strawberries underfoot. And I have to watch what I spray when the 
strawberries are blooming. But, I must admit that I'm enjoying them so 
much that I don't want to get rid of them entirely.

The biggest problem I have with strawberries is trying to keep them 
watered during our hot, dry summers. So the north side of the house 
might actually help with that. I just wonder if they'll do well enough 
here (Nebraska, zone 5) in so much shade. Barbara's suggestion sounds 
great to me, but has anyone else here tried it? I thought it might be 
helpful to ask.

Thanks,

Bill
Lincoln, NE (zone 5)

--
We can only wonder what a Manhattan Project aimed at alternative energy 
might have accomplished by now, had it been started 15 years ago. What 
we have had in lieu of vision, leadership, and backbone is a series of 
easy paths taken. - Jeremy Grantham