Planting out the runners of your strawberries is a great way to get more strawberry plants for free, as well as a more abundant crop. Autumn is a great time to do it! Learn how to replant strawberry runners with Candy @nzgardener.
1. Planting the runners of your strawberries means more strawberry plants for free!
2. The parent plant will put out numerous runner plants every year.
3. They form on the end of a long stem, that's still attached to the parent plant.
4. Snip of the runner plant so that the stem is about 3cm long.
5. Plant it straight into some Tui Strawberry Mix.
6. For big, juicy berries feed new plants with some Tui Strawberry Food.
7. Apply Tui Organic Seaweed Plant Tonic every few weeks for an extra boost.
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How to replant strawberry runners with Candy Comments
i just love being out in the garden..every day..
geoff leathwick
Thank you Tui for all the helpful tips, I really appreciate it and so do my plants!
Xavier
Hi, please can you tell us why strawberries have a hard white core in the middle and are rather sour in November.
Judith
Hi Judith, there could be several reasons for the hard core and sour fruit, it will be a process of elimination or a combination of things. Poorly drained soils could be one reason, strawberries need a free-draining soil, that is why they are often planted in mounds, to improve drainage. They prefer an acid (rather than alkaline) soil that is rich in organic matter, such as peat and compost. Another reason is poor or incomplete pollination, this can happen with wet or windy weather at the time of flowering, and the bees aren't working. Plant flowers in your garden to attract pollinators to your plants. Strawberries require regular feeding, use a specialty fertiliser such as Tui Strawberry food which contains phosphorus and potassium for enhanced flowering, fruiting and flavour. Make sure your fertiliser contains trace elements to correct soil deficiencies, apply fertiliser every 4-6 weeks in the growing season and water in well. Temperature variation can affect fruiting going from hot to cold, make sure your plants are in the sunniest spot in the garden and get maximum sunshine hours. Water consistently throughout the growing season, inconsistent watering can affect fruit flavour, water every 2-3 days, depending upon the weather.
Lianne
What do you do with the parent plants? Do I just trim the dead leaves and leave them planted along with the runners?
Sharon
Hi Sharon, strawberry plants are good for 2-3 seasons and then should be replaced. If the parent plant has only been in the ground for one season remove dead leaves or any that have black spot, tidy the plants up and they will produce fruit again next season. After a few seasons the plants are less productive and the fruit get smaller, that is why it is a good reason to take new runners each season to have a continuous supply of fruit. It is also a good idea to remove any straw mulch that may be around the plants for winter as this is a good hiding place for slugs, snails and slaters. Replace the straw again in early spring.
Lianne
Thank you for all your knowledgeable advice. Looking forward to a bumper crop of strawberries next season.
Helen Ward
Yey! Can’t wait to plant my first strawberries this year and hopefully will have some to harvest for the next year. I’m glad I found this guide and will be all prepared for my babies.
Mary-jean Williams