Time to plant
Strawberries
By Jonathan van Wiltenburg
One of the best things about the month of June is strawberry season. They are large, sweet, fragrant, juicy and synonymous with the start of summer. Strawberries are also quite versatile in the kitchen. They are considered best fresh, but can be cooked, frozen, and dried for many delicious treats.
The common strawberry we eat today (Fragaria x ananassa) was bred in France in the mid 18th century. It originated from a cross between the wild American strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), known for its intense sweetness, and its South American cousin (Fragaria chiloensis), known for its larger berries. The cross combined the two traits and as a result the strawberry is now favoured worldwide.
There are two basic types of strawberries: June bearing, and everbearing.
June bearing are commonly grown for the commercial market. They produce flowers early and yield a heavy flush of fruits in June. The fruits tend to be large, firm and juicy. June bearing strawberries are the definite choice if you really want to get serious about your strawberry production and preserving. The common commercially grown June bearing cultivar here in BC is "Totem." Other excellent cultivars are "Tillamook" and "Pinnacle."
Everbearing strawberries bud and produce fruit all season long. Typically, they have smaller fruits and yields. However, the fruits are incredibly sweet and the supply is continuous. They are a great addition to the garden and are wonderful if you want to have strawberries with breakfast all season long. They are more sensitive to hot weather, and prefer to be planted in a cooler area. Everbearing varieties have vigorous growth, and for this reason are well adapted for growing in containers. Some of the most successful cultivars for BC are "Diamante" or "Seascape".
Growing strawberries is fairly straightforward. They adapt well to any reasonable soil and are extremely well suited to our climate. Strawberries are forest floor plants so they can handle shade but yields will increase if left in full sun. Strawberries prefer lighter soils (no clay) and do well with when compost is added yearly. They do not like competition from weeds and are considered heavy feeders. They like potassium, so it would not hurt to add a bit of kelp, well-rotted manure, or greensand. Try not to add too much nitrogen, as it will make the fruits soft and more susceptible to disease.
Once established, and after fruiting, the plant will send out runners (stringy growth with new plants on the ends) and before you know it, you will have more plants than you can handle. It is necessary to thin them out, usually in early spring.
Pest and disease do affect home strawberry production, but for the most part is fairly predictable. The two biggest culprits tend to be birds and slugs. Bird issues can be solved easily by covering the patch with netting, or by hanging something flashy. There is no easy solution for slugs. Some of the most common ways involve beer (yeast) traps, wood traps, copper tape, chemical slug bait, ducks, or hand picking. Every gardener swears by their own method; it is up to you to find the one that works best for you. Remember you're never going to completely get rid of all your pests. The idea is that you get the damage to a tolerable level.
Top tasks for June:
- Plant out all your heat-lovers such as beans, corn, eggplant, peppers, squashes, melons, and other frost tender summer annuals.
- Keep sowing your seeds to secure your supply of tender veggies all summer long.
- Weed, weed, and weed some more. Competition from weeds is most detrimental to young plants.
- Be mindful of your greenhouse temperature. If it is getting above 35¡C fully vented, think about putting up a whitewash or shade cloth to reduce the temperature.
- Thin your fruit trees--be harsh and take more than you think possible. A general rule is to have one fruit for every 10 cm of branch.
- In the potato patch, hill up the plants as they grow.
- Tie up or support tomato plants and perennials. Pinch off the side shoots that are growing in the crotches of the side leaves and main stem.
- Keep on the lookout for pest and disease. Cabbage white moths, slugs, and aphids are the main culprits to watch out for. Some signs are holes in leaves, curling leaves, wilting plants while soil is still damp, webs, sticky residues, black spots, etc.
If you have any garden related questions email me at edenhort@gmail.com or call 604.483.6053.
Jonathan van Wiltenburg has a degree in horticulture and runs Eden Horticulture Services.
