Greenhouse strawberries dying

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Donnchadh

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Greenhouse strawberries dying
« on: June 06, 2024, 21:01 »
Hi, I'm new to the forum, so I hope this is the right place to post.
I grew strawberries on the allotment last year - healthy plants which unfortunately never ripened as the local rodent population took all the fruit.
This year, I brought 18 of the healthiest plants home to plant in the greenhouse, hoping they would thrive in the warmth and away from furry nibblers.
I planted them out in growbags. One by one they have died, so that only 5 are left alive. I don't believe they have been over/under watered, and I have been feeding them gently. Any ideas why?
IMG_20240606_204655427.jpg

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New shoot

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Re: Greenhouse strawberries dying
« Reply #1 on: June 06, 2024, 21:15 »
Hi and welcome  :)

The compost in those grow bags looks wet and green on the surface from algae growing, which is also an indication of things being way too damp. Did you make drainage holes in the bases of the bags? 

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Donnchadh

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  • Location: Edinburgh
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Re: Greenhouse strawberries dying
« Reply #2 on: June 06, 2024, 21:19 »
There are small draining holes in the bag, but maybe not enough. However, the soil had dried between waterings (but maybe only near the top). The bags are from LIDL and I wondered about the quality of the compost - it was very compacted and wet when I planted.

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New shoot

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Re: Greenhouse strawberries dying
« Reply #3 on: June 06, 2024, 21:45 »
It is probably peat free and the quality of that is very variable and usually pretty poor.

Compacted wet soil wouldn’t be good for strawberries. You might do better with troughs on your staging that you could fill with the compost of your choice.

Most of us are finding we need to add stuff to peat free to get it to work. Have a look at the Grow Your Own board in the forum. There are a couple of threads there about compost.


 

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