North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Jim Fruth" <jfruth@tds.net>]

   One of the agricultural newsletters I get recently mentioned a 
devastating-to-strawberries disease that is worth passing along.  The 
disease is called "Black Rot."  I had it (Black Rot) here and didn't know 
what it was.
   When I started my (still almost weedless) strawberry patch six years 
ago, I planted Honeyoye and Cavandish.  After three years, the Honeyoye 
mysteriously died - the article said that black rot typically kills 75% or 
more of the plants and the patch should be fallowed for a couple of years or 
planted into a resistant crop.
   I did let it be fallow for one year.  Suspecting that a soil-borne 
pathogen killed the plants, I covered the former honeyoye patch with black 
plastic to intensify the summer sun's heat hoping to kill whatever was in 
the soil.  Passers-by, used to seeing strange or odd plants growing in my 
garden asked what I had planted under the plastic.  Then following year I 
acidified the ground and planted Lingonberry.  Only about half of the 
Lingonberry plants survived their first year and I don't know if there is a 
relationship to the Black Rot; I may never know.
   Cavandish strawberry, the article said, is the most resistant (to black 
rot) strawberry variety and my Cavandish are still producing wonderfully.
   My alluding to "still almost weedless" (above) dates back to a Pomona 
article I wrote a couple of years ago about growing weed-free strawberries: 
I had planted my plants into 4-5" of loose pine needles and enjoyed weedless 
strawberry picking ever since.  The pine needles are nearly gone now, 
deteriorated into 3/4" of new soil and wind-blown seed is starting to 
germinate and grow.  Weeds are not yet a terrible plague.
   Last year I tried adding a couple inches of new pine needles to the 
patch after I mowed them in July but the plants failed to grow through it so 
I was forced to remove it.  This year, I'm going to mulch them with pine 
chips from two trees I cut and shredded the branches.  Immediately after 
mowing the strawberry plants, I spread a generous amount of ammonium nitrate 
(Strawberries are heavy nitrogen feeders) and the extra nitrogen should 
counteract any reaction from the wood chips.  I'm guessing that the plants 
will grow through 1/2" or more of the finely shredded wood.  I'll keep you 
posted.

Jim Fruth
Brambleberry Farm
Pequot Lakes, MN  56472
For jams, jellies & syrups:
www.bberryfarm.com
(877)265-6856 [Store]
(218)831-7018 [My Cell]