[AmandaLouise]

When can they go outside?  There is lots of advice how to grow them, but just wondered what in your experience is a good time to put out.  In a container by the way.

thanks
Amanda

PS.  I have 6 beds at the allotment, 2 of these not sure what to do yet, so is it a good idea to set up a strawberry bed when the plants have finished producing.

[DD.]

Strawberries are as tough as old boots. (Well the plants are anyway!). They can go out any time.

If you're thinking of setting up outside beds, why not use the runners that the plants will inevitably send out this year?

[digalotty]

mine dont go anywhere else not even in the frost or snow ,   even the ones in pots come through winter and start sprouting 

[viettaclark]

Yup! I'm overrun with the things.....

[DD.]

I tidied up my strawberry bed yesterday, it's sat there through the last 2 winters - (remember the one last but one winter?).

It's not bothered them. I've made a new row with 30 of the self-rooted runners, (I don't faff about pegging down), and given away about 70 others.

[AmandaLouise]

I have a strawberry planter that is like  a stacker and want to grow the plants I buy from home.  (Until i do it I dont quite get it.... sorry a bit slow on the uptake), but starting from scratch and never grown before. 

If I buy some strawberry plants then they produce runners.  So I replant the runners at some point.  They produce limited fruit, until the second year?  Is that right?  I have a spare bed so like suggested I will make a bed for them.  I have info on planting the runners from videojug.

Buying strawberry plants, I dont actually know what year runners they are.

I bet I am totally wrong arent I.  I think too much!

[A Reyt Tayty]

Strawberries are as tough as old boots. (Well the plants are anyway!). They can go out any time.

If you're thinking of setting up outside beds, why not use the runners that the plants will inevitably send out this year?

The one I'm trying in a container must be a wimp then! Put it in nice compost, left it in an unheated greenhouse just to get going, and it promptly shuffled off to the great stawberrry patch in the sky.

[carlrmj]

Is your strawberry stacker the triangular shaped ones which fit on top of each other.

I had one last year,ok but I found it better to grow them in a dedicated bed.

It's easier for the runner to replant themselves in the soil.

I put in strawberries for the first time last year and had a small crop.

From these I had about 90 runners,some of which were put into new beds and some into

large pots.

This year I'm hoping from a large crop from these

When these send out runners they will be potted up to start new beds again

carl     

[Dopey113]

I sowed 200 strawberry plant seeds today, will I get fruit from them this year do you know, thanks

[JayG]

No.

[Lady Rosemary]

Just a quick thought....

I planted 24 plants with long root systems from T&M yesterday.  Is it likely that I will get anything from them this year at all? 

Thanks.

Mandy

[DD.]

You'll get a few, although the perfectionists will tell you to remove the flowers for the first year to put the energy into the plant.

[JayG]

Buying strawberry plants, I dont actually know what year runners they are.

Newly-rooted runners will usually have just one set of leaves growing from the crown - mature plants will have several individual sets.

[sunshineband]

Conventional wisdom is that plants should not be allowed to flower in their first year, as DD said

I've never worried about it at all and my plants I started with have reached plague proportions, flower when they like and give us masses of fruit  
 
I fed them with blood fish & bone in Feb/March, water them (good soak) occasionally wheen fruits are swelling if we get no rain, and... don't forgte this bit ... protect them from birds as soon as green fruits are visible with some netting with wide enough holes for bees to get through.

Bu then I am not a perfectionist 

[Lady Rosemary]

Sweet! Thanks again guys.  May remove the flowers from half of the plants and leave the others on to see if we get anything at all. Will pop some FBB down the plot this afternoon. They're already netted as I've seen the damage birds and mice have done in previous years. 

Time to get out in the sunshine! 

Mandy