[allotmentann]

Hi all, a little help needed, I have a strawberry problem. I have grown them at home for seven years, never touch them and they are full of fruit every year, so I was not expecting problems at the plot. I inherited some plants with my plot last year, they didn't fruit well, but plot neighbours told me that they were beautiful, large strawberries and it was a bad year for fruit, so I decided to give them another chance. The bed they were in was full of couch and bindweed, so I cleared a new bed for them and moved all but the oldest looking plants across to the new bed. I also planted some of my runners from home in the same bed.That is one lot of strawberries.
Then last spring I bought a load of a white variety runners and planted them up in a new bed, I obviously didn't expect fruit from them last year, but they grew well and sent out runners.
 The third lot of strawberries are on the other plot I help on. They were year old plants last year when they had to be moved as the bed there was riddled with bindweed that was strangling the plants to death, so they are on their second year this year.
Mine were given a top/ old leaf chop in the autumn and given a dressing of potash and in spring I gave them calcified seaweed. The ones in the other plot had no feeds.
All three sets of plants have done the same thing, hardly any fruit, they have just gone crazy putting out  runners. It is like a huge spaghetti tangle. I got no fruit at all from the white ones.
What have I done wrong and what can I do to ensure a better crop next year? I know it must be something I have done because it has been a great year for strawberries and my ancient garden ones have been beautiful! Should I have stopped them putting out runners? I have no idea how though, they are producing them in huge quantity still! I feel like I am being taken over by fruitless triffids!

[pink aubergine]

Has the bed you transplanted hem to been highly fertilised, ie too much manure?

[mumofstig]

I wonder if you had frosts when they were flowering, cos frosted flowers don't set fruit.
Perhaps your garden is more sheltered 

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[allotmentann]

Hi, no, no manure since I have had the plot and no one had done much with that part of it for a good while before then.
Frosts might be a possibility, I seem to remember quite a few flowers, but can't remember if we had frosts when they were flowering. My garden is certainly more sheltered and the soil is much lighter than at the plot.
Should I try and stop them putting out more runners do you think?

[goodtogrow]

Two guesses from me:

1.  The white variety is just slower to come into fruiting than other varieties.

2.  The others have been moved, and so in their terms have to start again before coming into fruiting.

While not fruiting they have to do something, so they might as well propagate themselves.

Would be an interesting experiment if you did remove runners from some of the plants to see if that provokes flowers, instead of vegetating.  I'm told that not watering initiates flowering too.

Best wishes

Tom

[Plot74]

I remove the runners off mine as soon as they appear this then let's the plant concentrate on producing fruit.
John
Happy gardening

[allotmentann]

Thanks John and Tom, I had wondered about moving them as it took the raspberries a long time to recover after I moved them. I will try removing some runners and leave them where they are for a few years!
I had not realised white varieties were slower to fruit, so patience seems to be the answer!