5 Winter Strawberry Do Nots - Garden Quickie Episode 28

Strawberries. That perennial berry favourite giving us much much more than it asks in return. And while we don't have to do much to obtain berry nirvana with a good strawberry patch, there's definitely a few things you don't want to be doing this winter. Five in fact. Hi, I'm Jeff from the Ripe Tomato Farm and welcome to another episode of the Garden Quickie, where in two minutes or less we tackle the most important garden questions of the day. And today is all about your winter strawberry don'ts. Like I said, there's five things you really need to avoid doing to your strawberry mother plants this winter. Time's short, so let's dive right in. First up, we have fertilizing. Yeah, don't. It doesn't need any. Your strawberry plants are entering dormancy if they haven't already. The last thing we want to do is boost the soil to entice them to start growing. They don't need it, save it for spring. In that same train of thought, don't bring your strawberries inside either. Not into a greenhouse, not into your garage. Strawberries produce the next year's fruit buds in the fall and winter. Like right now. If that plant breaks dormancy just before the winter hits, or even during the winter, there goes next year's fruit. And possibly the plant. And about those developing flower buds, don't cut them off. As obvious as that may sound, it's actually quite easy to accidentally nip them off while you're trimming the old foliage. I've done it too many times to count, so take it from me, just be careful. Another mistake that people often make when winterizing their strawberries is mulching too early. Just like fertilizing or bringing the plants inside, mulching too early can cause your plants to warm up, reversing the natural cycle of dormancy. Again, strawberry plants need this winter dormancy. It's part of their life strategy. Wait until at least two to three hard frosts before you start mulching. And finally, the fifth thing to avoid doing with your strawberry plants this winter is to dig them up and divide them. Strawberry plants need at least a month or more before your first fall frost date to regrow and establish themselves. Dividing them in the winter is a certain death sentence. So either leave it until the spring or do it early enough in the fall so that the plants can have a chance. All right, that's a lot of don'ts. But you know what else you shouldn't do? Miss the next episode of The Garden Quickie. Thanks for watching, guys. And hey, if garden quickies are your thing, be sure to click on this playlist here as we explore and solve more growing issues in two minutes or less.