1st Year Strawberries - Pick buds/flowers or let them fruit? (Plus - what's up with these leaves?)

Hi all

I've got 30 strawberry plants in pots and am growing them for the first time ever. Some were bare root and some were plugs... Exciting times!

I've read in a couple of places that it is a good idea to cut off the buds and flowers and prevent them from fruiting in year one, so that all the energy can go into the plant and root structure. It would be painful to do that, but if it will really help the fruit production in subsequent years them I'm up for it. But other articles I've read have not mentioned this as being necessary.

So I wondered what you guys here think?

Also, a few of my plants have developed odd patches on their leaves and I wondered whether this is an obvious sign of anything to the trained eye? Here's a couple of pics.





Huge thanks

Max

 

I dont bother either. I let them fruit for three years, then either use the "runners" for new plants in the fourth year.

 

My strawberry patch was planted last year and this year the space is completely filled in with tall plants and lots of flowers. Do I understand that I am not to pick any fruit for 3 years? Confused here...

 

@CanadianLori its the heat getting to me. Pick the fruit the first, second and third year. What you will notice is that the third years crop will be smaller. Renew the plants after the third year. I normally do this in Spring due to the climate.

 

Ah, thank you. I was eyeing all those flowers and thinking about the desserts I can make with the berries they're going to give me.

 

I've just been eying mine as well and thinking about their use. Thats four things. 1) Fresh ones for the Midsummer celebrations in 19 days time. 2) To make some Strawberry 'Shine with. 3) The odd dessert or two. 4) Jammmmmmmmmmmmmm!

 

Are you having a Crayfish party?

 

In August, yes....and a "day of rest" after it!

 

Amazes me just how much Schnapps a crustacean can put away

 

Quite true, thats the reason they are red. The colour spreads from their noses!

 

Go well with the strawberries then

 

Seeing people mention strawberry beds on here, I thought that our own garden was missing a little something. So last year I set about potting up numerous cut runners and a handful of two-year old divisions into plastic drinking cups.

Now, potted on into their final positions.


There are atleast two varieties of strawberry plants. The big-leafed ones produce just one crop of big plump juicy berries, the small-leafed ones produce atleast two crops of smaller berries.


Planted three plants per 10 litre pot. I made sure to include atleast one plant that would produce fruit in each pot by guesstimating the maturity of each plant.


No, I don't remove the flowers either, but I will make sure that each plant has no more than three crowns (to reduce overcrowding) come autumn time.



Propagating and potting up was the easy part.

Now we have to contend with the onslaught of slimy pests and the occasional pesky pilferer. That will be the hard part.