Vegetable · Rosaceae
Strawberry
Fragaria × ananassa
Give it full sun, steady water, and clean straw mulch, and the strawberry rewards you with sweet fruit year after year.
Full sun
Every 2–4 days
59–77°F · 15–25°C
90–120 days
Overview
Few fruits are as easy to grow at home as the strawberry. It belongs to the rose family and is a low, spreading perennial that sends out runners to fill a bed on its own. A single planting can keep cropping for several years before it needs renewing.
There is more than one kind, and the type you pick shapes your season. June-bearers ripen one big crop over a couple of weeks in early summer, while day-neutral and everbearing plants keep fruiting from late spring into fall. June-bearers throw plenty of runners to spread, and day-neutrals make few, which changes how you manage the bed.
Strawberries ask for little but reward attention. Give them sun, even moisture, and clean straw underneath the fruit, and the berries come in sweet and unblemished. Let the bed crowd or the fruit sit on wet soil, and you trade that harvest for gray mold and soft, ruined berries.
Care
The short version: full sun, evenly moist soil with about an inch to an inch and a half of water a week, rich sandy loam on the acidic side, and clean straw mulch to keep the berries off bare ground.
Light
Strawberries want full sun, ideally 8 or more hours a day, to ripen sweet fruit. They tolerate a little partial sun, but real shade thins the crop and leaves the berries dull and watery.
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist but never waterlogged, which works out to about 1 to 1.5 inches (2.5 to 4 cm) of water a week. Watch it closely through flowering and fruiting, and always water at the base so the foliage and berries stay dry.
Soil
Plant in well-drained sandy loam with plenty of organic matter worked in. A pH of 5.8 to 6.5, on the acidic side, suits them best, and good drainage is what keeps root rot at bay.
Temperature
Strawberries grow best in the 59°F to 77°F (15°C to 25°C) range. They are hardy enough to overwinter in the ground, but flowers and fruit suffer once summer heat pushes well past that band.
Humidity
Average humidity of 40% to 70% suits them fine, so there is no number to chase. Airflow matters far more, since still, damp air around crowded plants is how gray mold and leaf fungi take hold.
Feeding
Feed a balanced 10-10-10 in spring at planting, then again after summer renovation. Go easy on spring nitrogen with fruiting June-bearers, or you grow soft, leafy plants and lose firm fruit.
Pruning
Pinch the first-year blossoms off June-bearers so they build strong crowns, and thin the runners to stop the bed from choking itself. Renovate June-bearing beds after harvest by mowing the old foliage and thinning the plants, and remove every runner on day-neutral types.
Repotting
Refresh or pot up container plants every 1 to 2 years, and renew in-ground beds every 3 to 4 years. Declining fruit size, slow drying, and roots circling the pot all signal it is time.
Size & spacing
Plants stay low, running 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 cm) tall, and spread 12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm) wide as the runners fill in. Give them that room so air moves freely and the fruit stays clean.
When to plant
Strawberries go in early, while the ground is still cool. Set out dormant crowns or transplants in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked, and pick fruit from early summer through fall depending on the type you grow.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: Early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked; set dormant crowns or transplants 2 to 4 weeks before the last frost.
- Harvest: June-bearing: harvested over 2 to 3 weeks in early summer; day-neutral and everbearing: harvested from late spring through fall.
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 3–10
Temperature: down to -40°C
Troubleshooting
Most strawberry trouble shows up on the fruit, the leaves, or the roots, and wet conditions are usually behind it. Learn the early signs and you can step in before a problem spreads through the bed. Match what you see below, then act while it still helps.
Stunted plants that wilt in dry weather and stop growing
A soilborne rot such as red stele or Verticillium wilt attacks the roots from below, and there is no saving a plant once it sets in. Dig a struggling plant and slice a root lengthwise to check, then pull and destroy any that show the rot. Plant in well-drained ground, choose resistant cultivars, and keep strawberries off sites that recently grew tomatoes or potatoes.
Fix:
- Remove and destroy affected plants
- Improve soil drainage and avoid waterlogging
Soft brown patches and fuzzy gray mold on ripening berries
This is gray mold, caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea, and it takes hold in wet, humid weather right as the fruit colors up. Pick ripe berries often and pull off any that are already marked before the spores spread. Mulch with clean straw, give the plants room to breathe, and keep the fruit off bare soil.
Fix:
- Remove and destroy infected berries promptly
- Harvest ripe fruit frequently
- Improve air circulation and keep fruit off bare soil
Purple spots and scorched edges on the leaves
These are leaf scorch and leaf spot, two fungi that pepper the upper leaf surface and burn the margins reddish-brown. The damage looks worse than it is and rarely costs you fruit. Strip out the old infected foliage at renovation, keep the leaves dry, and reach for a labeled fungicide only when an outbreak runs out of hand.
Fix:
- Remove and destroy old infected foliage at renovation
- Apply a labeled fungicide if infection is severe
Toxicity
Good news for households with pets: strawberries are safe from root to runner to fruit. The leaves, stems, and berries carry no toxic compound, so a curious cat, dog, or rabbit that takes a bite is in no danger. The fruit is a wholesome treat for pets and people alike, best offered in small amounts.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
Strawberry is safe for cats, with no toxic compound in the leaves, runners, or fruit. A cat that nibbles the plant is in no danger.
Dogs None
Dogs can be around the plant and even share a ripe berry without worry. Keep treats small, since a big helping of fruit may loosen the stomach.
Horses Safe
Horses can graze near strawberries safely, as the whole plant is non-toxic.
Rabbits Safe
Rabbits take no harm from the leaves or fruit. A small slice of berry now and then makes a fine treat.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep can browse the foliage without any toxic risk.
Birds Safe
Birds eat ripe strawberries readily and come to no harm, though they will happily strip a bed before you do.
People Safe
Strawberries are a kitchen favorite and safe to eat fresh or cooked. The rest of the plant is harmless too.
No toxic principle is present in the plant; the ripe fruit is edible and safe for pets and people.
Varieties
Strawberries come in three broad fruiting types and a long list of named cultivars. These are the ones worth knowing before you plant.
June-bearing (Junebearer)
Gives you one heavy crop over 2 to 3 weeks in early summer and throws plenty of runners to fill out a bed.
Day-neutral
Keeps fruiting all season no matter the day length, and it makes few runners in return.
Honeoye
A very cold-hardy June-bearer that crops well and carries large, firm, bright-red berries.
Albion
A day-neutral type prized for big, conical, sweet berries and solid disease resistance.
Seascape
A heat-tolerant day-neutral cultivar that takes to a wide range of climates.
Ozark Beauty
A favorite everbearer that hands you two main crops, one in spring and another in fall.
Companions
Strawberries do best beside low crops and pollinator plants that share the bed without crowding them, and worst beside relatives and heavy feeders that pass along wilt or steal nutrients.
Plant near
Bush beans: Legumes fix nitrogen and compete little with shallow strawberry roots.
Spinach: Low-growing leafy crop that uses bed space efficiently without shading strawberries.
Borage: Attracts pollinators that improve strawberry fruit set.
How to propagate
Strawberries are among the easiest plants to multiply, mostly because they do the work themselves by sending out runners that root into new plants.
Offsets & pupsEasy
Summer to early fall · 4 to 8 weeks
The easiest way to make new strawberries is to let the plants do it for you. Through summer and into early fall, daughter plants form along the runners, and you simply peg one down to root before cutting it free of the parent. It settles in within 4 to 8 weeks, and a single June-bearer can throw roughly 120 runner plants in a season.
DivisionModerate
Early spring or after renovation · 4 to 6 weeks
Older plants that have built up several crowns can be lifted and split to renew a tired planting. Do it in early spring or right after renovation, separate the rooted crowns by hand, and replant them. Each piece roots and takes hold in about 4 to 6 weeks.
SeedDemanding
8 to 10 weeks before the last spring frost, indoors · 2 to 3 months to transplant size
Growing from seed is mostly for breeders and alpine types, since hybrid garden strawberries do not come true to the parent. Sow indoors 8 to 10 weeks before the last spring frost and be patient, as the seedlings take 2 to 3 months to reach transplant size.
Myths
The strawberry is a true berry.
Despite the name, it is what botanists call an accessory fruit. The sweet red flesh forms from the receptacle, and the real fruits are the tiny achenes, the little seed-like dots scattered across the surface.
Let June-bearing plants fruit heavily in their first year.
A first-year crop drains a young plant before it has built a strong base. Pinch off the first-year blossoms on June-bearers and the crowns and runners come in stronger, paying you back with far bigger harvests in later years.