runners on strawberries

If you want new plants, leave the runners attached to the parent plant, fill 3 inch pots with compost and position a pot under each plantlet. Then use wire pegs to keep the base of the young plant ( where the roots will emerge from ) in contact with the compost. DO NOT sever this plant from it`s mother until it`s well rooted. 

Oh dear Ivor, I have messed up then!  I got some strawberries last year from an offer mentioned in Frugal Living.  They didn't do much in baskets, got one strawberry, but did get lots of runners so I transplanted the strawberries into a bed at the allotment (see Meet Mavis thread - the bed is underneath her!) and let the runner root.  The way that I did this was by pinning the runner down using a hair grip.  After a while I cut the runner once the new plant had rooted.  This year I have lots of lovely fruit and there is no way I am waiting and leaving it until next year!  I am counting last year as the first year definitely!

In my experience taking runners in the first year has worked really well, but I didn't get any fruit last year.

I planted 24 strawberry plants for a client in April. Not only are they fruiting superbly, but they are also throwing some healthy looking runners. So will be potting them up THIS season.

Last year I was told to bring some 3' pots of compost

Surely you are showing off. Us ordinary strawberry growers use much smaller pots.

I am currently growing 24 plants from seed and they will not flower nor runner. Last years plants are flowering and older plants are also flowering and so far I have not taken any runners. The older plants are substantial and this year I should have an excellent crop which will improve the next year (hopefully) The life span of a strawberry plant is about four years so in their final year those plants will provide runners for their own replacement.

You cannot expect a plant to provide an abundance of fruit (which is what we all want) and new plants as well.