How to increase strawberry yields in open ground

To get a good strawberry harvest, you need to know some of the features of growing and caring for this berry crop. A lot of questions arise for both beginners and experienced gardeners. What soil does Victoria strawberry prefer? What time of year is most favorable for planting and why, what should the seedlings be like for better survival of the bushes? To ensure that you have enough berries for the table and for preparing for the winter for a long time, we reveal the secrets of how to increase the yield of strawberries by variety, growing conditions and time of season. Increasing yield can occur in several ways. Let's get to know some of them.

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Important criteria for increasing strawberry yields

• high-quality healthy planting material;
• choice of variety: regular strawberries or remontant ones, large-fruited berries, resistance to frost and diseases, plant ripening relative to the climatic zone;
• competent use of special agrotechnical techniques;
• hard work, patience and a responsible attitude towards growing crops.

Depending on these factors, yield indicators per acre, per bush, per hectare also fluctuate. Experienced gardeners collect up to one kilogram of berries per plant. And professional agronomists achieve higher results - up to two kilograms.

Root feeding

Root fertilizers are used by gardeners more often than foliar fertilizers because of their simplicity. It is enough to simply water the plant with fertilizer at the root or scatter the fertilizer in dry form.

There are several types of fertilizer used:

1. Mineral
2. Organic

You can also feed strawberries with manure, pharmaceuticals and folk remedies.

Before fertilizing the strawberry beds, it is necessary to provide special preparation:

• cutting dry leaves;
• mustache removal;
• cleaning up old fertilizers;
• loosening the soil and weeding.

Variety of strawberries

If, after a long search and experimentation, you have found a tasty, aromatic, chic strawberry variety suitable for your land, continue your search! Because in order for strawberries to delight you throughout the season, it is recommended to have at least four different varieties of this berry in your garden. Or better yet, six. One or two varieties should be early ripening and produce a harvest in early July. Two or three varieties are medium, that is, bear fruit in July and August. Well, one more variety - late, so that you can eat fresh strawberries before the beginning of September. It is advisable to make a separate bed for each variety of strawberry, and so that all the beds are not nearby, but scattered throughout the site. In this case, you will be able to fully appreciate the merits of each variety. Of course, there are also remontant strawberries, which, with proper care, are capable of producing one wave of harvest after another, but they have their own rules and special agricultural techniques. We will definitely have a separate conversation about it.

Purchasing healthy strawberry seedlings

Do you already have strawberries growing on your yard, but want more berries? Change your planting material supplier. If earlier you were content with your own seedlings or took them from neighbors, then know that you “will not go far” with this. Over the years, the berry becomes smaller, loses its taste, and the plants degenerate. Use healthy wild strawberry bushes from professional nurseries. They will help you choose the variety, and the presence of quality certificates for the purchased product will give you confidence. The main thing is that in such places the seedlings are guaranteed to be clean and healthy. It is treated with special preparations against rot and infectious diseases.

What kind of soil should there be for strawberries?

Strawberries are good because they are not picky about the soil, although, like many plants, they prefer black soil or well-fertilized soil. This berry does not like shade, so you need to choose a site for planting it in the sunniest places in your garden. To get a rich harvest of strawberries with large, sweet fruits, you need to remember that they should not be grown in one place for more than 3-4 years. Ideal conditions for plants would be “airy” soil so that moisture does not stagnate in it. If there is excess moisture, the roots rot, as a result of which the bushes stop growing. At the same time, strawberries do not like dry soil.

Follow the rules of care

How to get a big harvest:

When to plant strawberries in open ground

In order to reap a rich harvest next year, garden strawberries should be planted within a strictly defined time frame. The optimal time for planting is from the end of July to the end of the first ten days of August. When planting in spring this year, you will only get a couple of berries.

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You need to plant the bush in a small hole with a lump of earth. At the same time, make sure that the heart (the place where the leaves grow from the strawberry) was at soil level - not higher and not lower. With this planting, the plant will take root well. Garden strawberry bushes are planted at a distance of 10-15 cm from each other. It is most convenient to grow strawberries using the two-line tape method. Its essence is that the seedlings are placed in so-called ribbons, consisting of two rows. The distance between rows is 40-50 cm, and between ribbons – 70-80 cm.

Mulching strawberries

In general, all plantings need to be mulched, but strawberries need mulch like air. The ideal mulching material for it is pine needles. It retains moisture, protects from pests and diseases, rots over time and nourishes the garden bed. No needles - no big deal. Straw, mown grass, and trimmed weeds are suitable for mulching strawberries. In the fall, after harvesting, pruning and processing strawberry bushes, it doesn’t hurt to mulch the beds with a thick layer of fallen leaves. This mulch will also help protect the berries from frost.

Stages of fertilizing

For root feeding, plants can be watered with fertilizer at the root. There is also an option to simply sprinkle dry fertilizer on the ground around the plants.

Sprayers are used for foliar feeding. This method is more effective, since nutrients are absorbed faster through the leaves. However, you cannot replace one type of feeding with another - they must be alternated.

In standard situations, fertilizing is carried out in stages:

1. The first time was in the middle of spring, when the snow had just melted and the leaves had not yet blossomed. It is recommended to combine this stage with pruning the bushes. This prevents injury to the plant.
2. You can feed the second time at the time of flowering. Using the right fertilizer will help the berries become sweet and tasty.
3. The third time it is necessary to fertilize at the stage of ovary formation. This has a good effect on the volume of the harvest and the size of the berries.
4. It is recommended to feed the fourth time when the fruits are forming, to obtain a rich harvest.
5. The fifth time, when the formation of fruits is already completed.
6. One final time in the fall to ensure the strawberries are prepared for winter.

Removing buds from young strawberries

In pursuit of a big harvest, we treat every flower on every strawberry bush with reverence. However, this approach is completely unacceptable for young bushes in their first year of life. The task of a young plant is to take root, develop a root system and prepare for the coming winter. If it spends energy on fruiting, then the likelihood of freezing will increase significantly. Therefore, we will be merciless - we remove all flowers in first-years without hesitation. Yes, this year we will miss a dozen berries, but in a year well-developed, powerful bushes will thank us with a bountiful harvest.

How to properly use manure for feeding

First of all, you need to figure out why strawberries love manure:

1. High content of nutrients such as potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus. What is needed to get tasty large berries.
2. Attracting earthworms, which dig tunnels and provide an influx of rainwater.
3. Manure is well processed by soil bacteria, which improves the quality of humus.
4. Good soil warming.

Types of manure for feeding:

1. Horse dung. Rare, but one of the most useful, contains a lot of nitrogen and potassium.
2. Cow dung. More widespread and accessible. Contains a lot of calcium.
3. Chicken droppings. High nitrogen content stimulates the growth of young strawberry bushes.
4. Rabbit manure. Contains a lot of calcium.

It is better to feed with manure in the autumn, but it is also possible in the spring. In early spring, manure should be used in liquid form: the container is filled one third with manure and filled with water. Next, it is mixed and diluted at the rate of 1 liter of solution per 10 liters of water. The resulting fertilizer is used to water all the beds.

It should be taken into account that after applying manure fertilizer, the color of the leaves will be less green than usual.

Watering strawberries in open ground

The plant requires timely watering without long breaks. If there is insufficient moisture, there is no need to talk about abundant harvests. This process can be optimized by installing a drip irrigation system. But it should be taken into account that excess moisture can cause fungal diseases of plants or cause a decrease in their frost resistance.

Common mistakes when feeding

Many even experienced gardeners make serious mistakes when fertilizing strawberries. The most common:

1. Application of large volumes of organic fertilizers. In this case, a strong growth of green mass occurs, and rotting processes in the soil begin. Excess organic fertilizer can prevent fruit set.
2. Foliage burn due to large amounts of manure used. As a result, the plants may die.
3. Incorrect calculation of fertilizer dosage. Insufficient amount of fertilizing leads to a decrease in the effectiveness of fertilizing. On the contrary, an excess of fertilizer can make the fruits unsuitable for food.
4. Skipping foliar sprays in spring. This stage is important for the formation of plant protection from diseases and pests. If you skip it, there is a risk of losing most of the crop.

How to feed strawberries in the spring for a good harvest. While working, you must provide yourself with personal protective equipment. Some substances may cause allergic reactions if they come into contact with the skin. Fertilizers should definitely be kept out of the reach of children, as there is a high risk of poisoning if ingested.

Natalia

Author

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It is imperative to feed strawberries in the spring. Proper feeding will provide protection from diseases and pests of the plant, as well as provide an abundant, tasty harvest and allow you to prepare substantial reserves for the winter.

Fertilizing strawberries to increase yield

Strawberry fertilization is one of the main factors affecting yield. But, be that as it may, it is necessary to add nutrients to the soil only based on the calculation and the need of the berry itself for them. Otherwise, the effect may be completely opposite. Some consider manure and humus to be the best means for feeding strawberries. It is in humus that all the necessary nutrients are found in easily digestible forms for strawberries. Doses of manure on chernozem type soils are in the range of 30-40 tons. On podzols - 50-60 t/ha. Manure is applied in the fall. The biggest drawback is the presence of seeds of unwanted vegetation - weeds - in organic matter. Therefore, the likelihood of using herbicides increases.

Chicken manure is also often used. It has a very high nitrogen content, so it is important not to overdo it with the amount of such fertilizer. At best, the berries will be unsweetened. At worst, all the plants will burn en masse. Usually take 1 liter of litter per 10 liters of water. Leave the resulting solution for three days and water each bush. Consumption per plant is half a liter of solution.

Mineral fertilizers are suitable either complex or containing only one active ingredient. The main thing is to correctly calculate the required amount. Nitrogen is applied in two stages: early in the spring on slightly frozen soil and immediately after harvesting. On chernozems, 1.5 c/ha is applied in both periods, on podzolized soils - 2 c/ha. If the plantings are in good condition, the application rate can be reduced by a quarter. In the first year after planting, nitrogen is applied once - in the summer, after the seedlings have rooted. The application rate is halved.

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What fertilizers should I apply for strawberries in the spring?

In order to grow a generous harvest of strawberries, it is not enough to just weed and water them and fight pests. An important component is nutrition.

In addition to the well-known traditional folk methods of fertilizing with chicken droppings, peat or ash, industrial preparations - organomineral fertilizers - are widely known. For the greatest effectiveness, it is worth applying those preparations that are intended specifically for strawberries.

Strawberry fertilizer

They have the best balance and selection of the necessary components in the correct proportions - nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium. The greatest amount of potassium and nitrogen in such fertilizers. It is these components that are most important for the proper formation of the bud and the development of the strawberry fruit.

A similar category of fertilizers includes, for example, the drug “Lyubo-Green” from. In addition, various preparations containing dry chicken droppings, wood ash or humus concentrate are widely available on the market, which can easily help to perform the function of feeding strawberry bushes.