Strawberries are a hardy and frost-resistant crop that can be planted not only in spring, but also before winter. Taking advantage of this, experienced gardeners prefer to plant strawberries in the fall. We will find out what are the benefits of autumn planting, and how to carry it out in order to get a good harvest?
Features of autumn planting
It is much more profitable to plant strawberries in autumn - during this period, gardeners have more free time, and most importantly, autumn planting has a positive effect on the productivity of the culture.
Advantages and disadvantages
Benefits of autumn planting:
- Harvesting in the first summer. With spring planting, you have to wait for berries for a whole year.
- Good root survival.
- Preparedness of the soil for planting.
- In the fall, when the crop is harvested, there is enough space on the site for planting.
- Weather favorable for planting - damp, moderately cool.
- There are many saplings for sale - any variety can be found. In the spring, they usually sell what they did not sell in the fall.
- The cost of planting material is lower than in the spring.
- If the seedlings are ordered in another city, then in the fall, conditions for transportation are more favorable.
There is only one drawback to an autumn planting: there is always a risk that the seedlings will suffer. If frosts break out early, or planting is done too late, the strawberry will not have time to take root, its leaves, and then the roots, will first die from the frost. To avoid this, follow the weather forecast. At least a month must pass between disembarkation and frost.
Suitable varieties of strawberries for autumn planting
Recommended varieties of remontant strawberries - Kimberly, Florence, Kent, Honey, Crown, Ali Baba, Forest Tale... These varieties bear fruit all summer and even in autumn - until October. They take 2 or 3 crops per season.
Non-repair varieties are no less popular with gardeners - Desna, Pocahontas, Rusanovka, Zarya... They are also planted in the fall and are sweet, large, and disease resistant.
Whichever variety of strawberries you plant, the first crop will ripen in about six months.
Basic landing requirements
Strawberries cannot be called a capricious culture, they are ready to bear fruit under the most modest conditions. But in order to get good yields, favorable conditions should be created for it, and then each square meter of area will give the maximum return.
Timing and climate
Planting dates for strawberries depends on the local climate and the specific weather. There are three periods of autumn planting:
- early - until mid-September;
- average - until mid-October;
- late - ends 30-45 days before the onset of cold weather.
Gardeners prefer early to mid planting as they are more productive and less risky. Delayed planting of strawberries is fraught with the danger of freezing of seedlings - you can never predict with accuracy when the first frosts will hit. Strawberries, after being tested by frosts, lose productivity.
Suitable conditions for planting strawberry seedlings:
- overcast weather;
- afternoon;
- warm weather - at least +10 ° C.
It is not recommended to plant strawberries in the heat.
Experienced gardeners, determining the optimal moment for planting, take into account the growing season of the crop. Whiskers in most varieties grow back in June, they take root in July or late summer, and fruit buds form in the fall.
Focusing on the vegetative characteristics of crops and the characteristics of the local climate, they choose the optimal planting time. Table 1 - the timing of planting strawberries by region.
Table 1
Regions | Planting dates for strawberries |
Moscow suburbs | early August-late September |
Leningrad region | mid-August-early September |
Middle zone of Russia | end of August - mid September |
Siberia | no later than the last decade of August |
Ural | late July-mid-August |
Southern regions | October |
Predecessors and neighbors
Predecessors and neighbors are selected taking into account diseases that may be common to different cultures.
The relationship of strawberries with other crops:
- Favorable predecessors: beets, radishes, onions, green manure (mustard, lupine), beans, peas, carrots, corn, celery.
- Unfavorable predecessors: raspberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, potatoes, eggplants. These crops can become a source of late blight. If you still have to plant strawberries after these crops, the soil is treated with Fitosporin M (35 ml for 10 liters of warm water). This volume is enough for hundreds of seedlings.
- Favorable neighbors: parsley - it scares away slugs, garlic and marigolds are undersized - a nematode.
- Unfavorable neighbors: all nightshades - potatoes, tomatoes and others, as well as raspberries, horseradish, cabbage, Jerusalem artichoke, sunflower.
Site selection and soil preparation
If you plant strawberries in an unfavorable place, this will certainly affect its yield, health and berries. In the shade, strawberries grow small and tasteless. In one place, strawberries grow for no more than 3 years, then the land is depleted, and the culture has to be replanted. Experts advise repotting varieties to replant annually.
Site requirements:
- good illumination, no shading and thickets;
- soils - sandy loam, loam;
- optimal acidity - 5.0-6.5 pH;
- permissible groundwater occurrence - 60-80 cm.
In the southern regions, a little shading of the site is allowed in the afternoon.
Strawberries are not planted:
- on swampy soils;
- after unfavorable predecessors;
- on heavy soils - here the strawberry is oppressed, its roots rot.
In areas flooded by spring waters, strawberries can be planted, but only in beds of the appropriate height.
Adjustment of soil composition:
- In clay soils, 2-3 buckets of river sand are added per 1 sq. m.
- Add 1-2 buckets of peat to sandy soils.
How are seedlings prepared?
If it's a week before disembarkation, start preparing:
- cut the roots to 10 cm.
- spray with drugs against fungal infection.
- sprinkle with earth, leave in a dark and cool place.
- an hour before planting, moisten the seedlings and soak.
- tear off excess leaves - leaving 4-5 pcs.
Soaking solutions:
- infusion of garlic - from parasites;
- clay talker - to protect the roots from drying out and improve survival;
- growth biostimulant - to speed up rooting and good plant development.
The ideal breeding option is seedlings from mother bushes. Such seedlings are disease resistant and productive. Signs of quality seedlings:
- healthy, well-developed horns 7 mm thick;
- branched roots, length - 7-8 cm;
- leaves - shiny, dense, green;
- the number of leaves is no more than 4-5;
- no damage or traces of disease.
Formation of beds and their fertilization
Berries from greenhouses are often tasteless, watery - this is due to the fact that they are fed only with mineral fertilizers. And strawberries need organic feeding for deliciousness.
Preparing the beds:
- Half a month or a month before disembarking, dig up the soil onto the bayonet of a shovel - at least 30 cm deep.
- Bring 5-15 kg of humus and 2 glasses of ash per 1 sq. m. Or add compost (1 bucket), urea and superphosphate - 50 g each, and potassium salt - 1 tbsp. l. All these fertilizers can be replaced with nitrophos - it is applied in 2 tbsp. for 1 sq. m.
- If the soil has been infested with insects, a month before planting, treat it with insecticides - Marshal, Confidor or others.
- Fertilizers are scattered over the dug soil and raked with a rake, forming beds. Usually gardeners make simple beds. They rise 20-25 cm above the soil surface. This method is popular in damp climates.
How to prepare a site for planting strawberries and how to properly prepare the strawberry seedlings for planting, you can see in the video below:
Types and landing patterns
Everyone plants strawberries as it is more convenient for him - in rows, on a continuous basis, according to the nesting principle. Consider landing options.
In the open field
The procedure for planting in open ground:
- Loose and level the soil.
- Mark the area according to the selected planting pattern.
- Dig holes 10-15 cm deep. The depth of the hole should not be less than the length of the roots.
- Water the wells. If planting is carried out after rain, watering can be dispensed with.
- Mix the soil removed from the holes with compost and rotted manure - if you have not fertilized the soil before. If the beds have been fertilized, skip this step.
- Fill the roots of the seedling dropped into the hole with soil, up to the root collar - it should be at ground level.
- Compact the soil and water the seedling. Do not spare the water, but water gently so that the water does not fall on the bush.
- When the moisture has been absorbed, loosen the soil. Sprinkle humus or peat on top.
With agrofibre
To implement the project, use:
- p / e film;
- agrofiber - spunbond, for example;
- organic mulch - straw, rotted sawdust.
The advantages of using covering materials when growing strawberries:
- the soil retains moisture, it does not need to be loosened;
- protection against drought, extreme conditions;
- no weeds;
- does not allow mustache to take root;
- protection from pests and decay;
- reducing the labor intensity of cultivation;
- clean berries - no contact with the soil.
The covering material is changed every 3-4 years - simultaneously with the strawberry transplant.
Stages of planting on the covering material:
- Mark the beds. Take into account the width of the covering material - it is best to cover the bed with a whole strip. If there is not enough material, place the material on top of each other.
- Prepare the beds in the same way as when planting in open ground. Dig up the soil and fertilize.
- Cover the bed with plastic wrap, agrofibre or other covering material. Secure it with wire pins or something heavy.
- Mark the landing sites. Use chalk to mark the agrofibre. Cut out the holes and unscrew the corners, plant the seedlings.
The video below provides an overview of planting strawberries on agrofibre. The gardener also talks about the advantages of this method:
Planting in a greenhouse
Planting in a greenhouse repeats the process of planting in open ground. The difference is a tighter fit. If you have a greenhouse, you can create the perfect microclimate for strawberries. When preparing the soil, they use the usual set of fertilizers - rotted manure, ash, humus and others.
Strawberry care
Care of strawberry seedlings is aimed at providing ideal conditions for rapid rooting and growth of bushes.
Watering
Features of watering young strawberries:
- During the first 10 days, strawberries are watered often, but little by little.
- The water used for irrigation must be warm.
- Water the bushes so that the water does not get on the leaves.
- The best time to water is in the morning.
- The frequency of watering after rooting is reduced. It is recommended to water the strawberries only 2-3 times a week, but the watering rate increases.
Top dressing
Feeding rules:
- At first, fertilizers are not needed - it is sufficiently applied during planting.
- Top dressing consists of organic and mineral fertilizers. The culture is especially fond of potash and phosphorus fertilizers, which affect photosynthesis and root growth.
- Top dressing in the fall is applied at regular intervals. If the strawberry is in the greenhouse, then it is fertilized in winter. It is important not to exceed the rate of fertilizers - an excess of phosphorus provokes the death of the roots.
- Strawberries are fed in the spring - after the snow melts, during flowering and after the end of fruiting.
- Nitrogen fertilizers are never applied in the fall.
- After fertilization, the bushes are watered so that the nutrients are evenly distributed in the soil and do not damage the roots.
Do I need to trim?
Not all bushes are subject to pruning. If the seedling has only a couple of leaves, you can leave them. Later, the mustache is cut off so that the plant wastes energy on the root system. Prune bushes if they are too thick. Rotten and deformed leaves are certainly removed.
It is not recommended to cut the strawberries too low - you can damage the plant. Pruning is carried out carefully, cutting off the leaves at a distance of 10 cm from the ground.
Mulching
Mulching is required if strawberries are planted without using agrofibre or film. This activity simplifies the cultivation technique. Mulch the soil after watering. A variety of materials are used as mulch - sawdust, hay, straw, tree bark, humus, peat.
For the autumn-winter period, dry leaves, cut grass, straw and needles are more suitable. Mulch is scattered over the soil - it should not fall on the bushes. If the planting is done on a covering material, mulch is not needed - film, spunbond or agrofibre act as mulch.
Preventive actions
Strawberries can be sick with fusarium and verticillary wilting, brown spot, and other diseases of berry crops. To prevent damage to strawberries by diseases and pests, prevention is carried out:
- If there is no covering material, the soil is loosened.
- Processing with Karbofos. This preparation is used to water the ground and spray the bushes. For a bucket of cold water - 150-170 g of substance.
- Wood ash (50 g), vegetable oil (3 tablespoons), vinegar (2 tablespoons) and liquid soap (2 glasses) are diluted in a bucket of water.
Preparing for winter
Strawberries are hardy berries that can easily survive severe winters. For wintering, this culture has enough snow cover. Strawberries, under a layer of snow, can easily withstand prolonged twenty-degree frosts and short-term frosts down to minus 30 ° C. To protect strawberries from abnormally low temperatures, it is enough to cover the plantings with covering material.
Additional mulching is carried out before winter. Mulch, in addition to its main functions of retaining moisture and preventing the growth of weeds, can play the role of insulation. But for this, the thickness of the mulch layer should be at least 5 cm. For pre-winter mulch, straw, sawdust, peat are used, but the most popular insulation is spruce branches.
When the work in the garden is almost finished, and the harvest is harvested, it's time to start planting berry crops. By planting strawberry seedlings in the fall, you can get a harvest as quickly as possible - by the spring the seedlings will get stronger and begin to bear fruit.
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Russia. City Novosibirsk
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