Detailed Guide to Strawberry Planting Time and Growing Conditions
Strawberries are cultivated throughout China, generally growing in areas with warm weather, and are not cold-tolerant. Hebei Province, Shandong Province and many southern provinces and cities all have strawberry cultivation. Strawberries cover more than 1.5 million mu nationwide, mainly distributed in Sichuan, Hebei, Anhui, Liaoning, Shandong and other places. Let's take a look below at when strawberries are planted!
When are strawberries planted?
Strawberries originated in South America and are perennial herbaceous plants of the genus Fragaria in the rose family. The seeds have no obvious dormant period, or can germinate when sown after a certain period. The planting time is generally spring or autumn, but in fact strawberries can be planted in all four seasons.
When do strawberries ripen?
Strawberries are widely cultivated around the world, with more than 2,000 varieties. They love light, like moisture, fear waterlogging, are not drought-tolerant, and prefer fertile, well-aerated sandy loam soil. When the spring temperature rises above 5 degrees, the plants begin to sprout, and the most suitable growth temperature is 20-26 degrees. In the Jiangsu area, they sprout in late February, bloom in early to mid-April, and the fruit ripens in mid to late May. Flower bud differentiation occurs when the temperature is below 17 degrees and under short-day conditions of 10-12 hours, with a short dormant period in winter. However, strawberries usually come on the market around February to March. In fact, every year from December to January of the following year is the peak season for picking strawberries, but some people say that strawberries during this period are basically ripened artificially, so the real ripening time for strawberries is April to May.
What conditions are needed to grow strawberries?
1. Temperature: Strawberries like a warm and cool climate. The root growth temperature is 5-30°C, with an optimum of 15-22°C. The optimum temperature for stem and leaf growth is 20-30°C. Buds suffer frost damage at -15 to -10°C. During the flower bud differentiation period, the temperature must be maintained at 5-15°C, and during the flowering and fruiting period it is 4-40°C. When overwintering through summer, if the temperature is above 30°C and sunlight is strong, shading measures need to be taken.
2. Light: Strawberries are light-loving plants, but they also have fairly strong shade tolerance. Under strong light, the plants are short and sturdy, the fruit is small, the color is deep, and the quality is good. Under moderate light, the fruit is large, the color is light, and the sugar content is low, and the harvest period is longer. Too weak light is unfavorable for strawberry growth.
3. Water: Strawberry roots are shallowly distributed and transpiration is high, so water requirements are strict, but the water requirements differ slightly at different growth stages. In early spring and during the flowering period, water needs are slightly lower than 70% of the soil's maximum water-holding capacity; during fruit growth and ripening, the requirement is as much as above 80%; after harvest, when runners are produced and new adventitious roots form, the soil moisture content also needs to be no less than 70%; autumn is the period when plants accumulate nutrients and form flower buds, and soil moisture must also be no less than 60%. Strawberries are not waterlogging-tolerant and require good soil permeability, so pay attention to field drainage during the rainy season.
4. Soil: Strawberries are best grown in fertile, loose neutral or slightly acidic loam soil. Overly heavy clay soil is not suitable for cultivation. Sandy soil with plenty of manure applied and frequent irrigation can also be used to grow strawberries.
When are strawberries planted? Strawberry planting time and planting methods
Strawberry planting time
Under normal circumstances, strawberries are suitable for planting in January or from September to December.
Small tips for strawberry planting
I. Pre-winter management
1. Apply thin fertilizer frequently: In mid-October, apply 5-8 kg per mu of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer or urea to promote root growth, increase the number of flowers in the terminal inflorescence, and enhance the plants' overwintering ability. The second application is from mid-November to early December, with a smaller amount, applying 7 kg per mu each time of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer or urea.
2. Keep moist: From late September to early October, begin covering with film for insulation. In addition to double covering with large plastic tunnels and small arched tunnels for insulation, leaf-surface covering and other insulation measures can also be used.
3. Weed, loosen the soil, and remove old leaves and diseased leaves.
II. Management before and after flowering
During the strawberry flowering and fruit-setting period, the main control is at 20°C-28°C. During this period, special attention must be paid to preventing frost damage during the flowering period, and temperatures below 5°C must not occur. Spray 800-fold dilution of "Xingaozhim" emulsion, once about every 10 days, for a total of 2 times. Prevent freezing and cold damage, and protect flowers and fruit.
Before flowering, at the young fruit stage, and at the fruit enlargement stage, spray "Caiguozhuangdiling" 0.3%-0.5% urea plus 0.3% monopotassium phosphate solution, and apply 0.1-0.2 kg of urea per plant to supplement the nutrients needed for fruit growth and improve grain-filling quality.
Strawberry fruit is tender and the flowering period is long, so integrated pest and disease control measures must be especially emphasized. Do not use chemical control during the flowering and fruit-setting period and the fruit development period. Control of gray mold, bud blight and others is mainly done with pre-flowering applications, and agents such as Sumilex, thiophanate-methyl or Ridomil may be used.
III. Overwintering period management
Strawberries are perennial herbaceous plants, and the key period for their high-yield management is winter. The key to winter management lies in doing a good job of the "three preventions," namely preventing cold, preventing drought, and preventing early flowering.
Before the cold winter arrives, water thoroughly to prevent cold damage.
When are strawberries planted? Strawberry planting time and methods
Strawberries are perennial herbaceous plants of the genus Fragaria in the rose family, and are one of everyone's favorite fruits. Strawberries have a unique flavor and are rich in nutrients, and have long been known as the "queen of fruits." They are deeply welcomed by the market and have high planting value. So, when are strawberries planted? The planting time and methods for strawberries are introduced below.
Image: Strawberry planting
I. Strawberry planting time
Strawberries originated in South America and are perennial herbaceous plants of the genus Fragaria in the rose family. The seeds have no obvious dormant period, or can germinate when sown after a certain period. The planting time is generally spring or autumn, but in fact strawberries can be planted in all four seasons.
II. Strawberry planting methods
1. Site selection and land preparation:The strawberry garden should be chosen with sufficient light, slightly higher terrain, flat ground, convenient irrigation and drainage, fertile and loose soil, and a previous crop of beans or onions and garlic vegetables. The garden should first have weeds removed and underground pests eliminated. It can be sprayed with 1000-fold dilution of 50% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate (moistening the soil layer 5-6 cm) to control white grubs, mole crickets and cutworms. After 1 week, apply per mu as a base fertilizer 5000 kg of high-quality decomposed farmyard manure, 100 kg of superphosphate, and 50 kg of potassium chloride. Combine with deep plowing of the garden and finely prepare the land, making beds 20 cm high and 50 cm wide, with a bed ditch width of 30 cm. The length of the plastic tunnel should be limited to 20 m, with 4 beds inside.
Image: Strawberry
2. Transplanting technique:In order to strive for strawberries to come on the market from the end of January to early February, the time for transplanting strawberry seedlings from the propagation nursery onto the plastic tunnel beds should be in early September. Seedlings should be lifted and transplanted as they go. Plant 2 rows per bed, with a row spacing of 27 cm, a hole spacing of 20 cm, and 12,000 plants per mu. When planting, the inflorescences of plants in the same row should face the same direction, with the arched back of the strawberry seedling facing the intended growth direction of the inflorescence, the crown of the seedling exposed above the bed surface, and the root system spread flat and buried in the loose soil layer. Water promptly after planting to settle the soil, and bury any exposed roots into the soil layer.
3. Cultivation and fertilization:Cultivating and loosening the soil helps the decomposition of organic matter. From November to December, shallow cultivation should be done 3 times. Apply topdressing once each at the early flowering stage and the early fruit-setting stage. Apply per mu 10 kg of urea, 20 kg of phosphate fertilizer, 10 kg of potassium chloride, or 35 kg of ternary compound fertilizer.
4. Management before flower bud differentiation:For strawberry seedlings transplanted in early September, in addition to timely water supplementation, a shade net should be added for shading. The net should be 1.2 m above the ground for ease of operation by workers. Dead leaves, old leaves, axillary buds and runners should be removed promptly, keeping 5-6 leaves. Flower bud differentiation requires relatively low temperatures and short-day conditions, so straw mats (straw curtains) can be added over the shade net. Through the process of uncovering and covering the straw mats, short-day conditions and relatively low temperatures are artificially created to promote the differentiation of the terminal inflorescence and axillary inflorescences, lasting for more than a month.
Image: Strawberry
5. Irrigation and drainage methods:Irrigate once each at flowering and at the early stage of berry growth. Furrow irrigation is preferable, with water best irrigated to 2/3 of the ditch height, allowing the water to gradually seep into the bed soil, and the remaining water in the ditch to be drained out. If there is drought, irrigate once every 5-7 days. Use a rubber hose with a section of metal pipe fitted at the front end for hole irrigation, which saves water and keeps the bed soil loose. When there is a lot of rain in autumn, drain promptly. Drainage ditches should be made early around the strawberry garden so that the water in the bed ditches inside the tunnel can be drained completely.
6. Adding plastic film covering:From October to early November is the end of the strawberry inflorescence differentiation period, and the shade net can be removed. In the Jianghuai area, cover with ground film after "Start of Winter," and cover with plastic tunnel film before "Major Snow," keeping the temperature inside the tunnel at 28-30°C. In "warm winter" years, add middle-tunnel plastic film covering at the time of "Winter Solstice." In "cold winter" years, both large and middle tunnel plastic films should be covered at the same time. In short, from "Minor Cold" to "Major Cold," the temperature inside the tunnel should be kept above 25°C, or at least above 23°C. Only when the above temperatures are met can strawberries grow normally.
7. Ventilation operations:The soil moisture for strawberry seedling growth should preferably be 70%-80%. The air humidity inside the tunnel is best at 60%-70%. Therefore, when the temperature inside the tunnel exceeds 30°C, ventilation should be provided. From November to December, the plastic film at both ends of the large and middle tunnels should be opened from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for ventilation. When the humidity inside the tunnel exceeds 70%, ventilation should also be provided to reduce the air humidity inside the tunnel. During the flowering period, keeping bees inside the tunnel, nylon mesh can be made separately at both ends of the large and middle tunnels to facilitate smooth ventilation. Another function of tunnel ventilation is to prevent and control strawberry powdery mildew.
Image: Strawberry planting
8. Harvesting:From flowering and fruit setting to the berries coloring, softening, and releasing their distinctive fragrance, the time is about 30 days. After the strawberry berries ripen, they should be harvested in batches for market. The general yield is 1500 kg of strawberries per mu.
[Editor's concluding remarks]Strawberries like a warm and cool climate, have a shallow root distribution and high transpiration, and have relatively strict water requirements. Waterlogging must be strictly avoided, and special attention is needed during the planting process. The above has introduced the planting time and methods for strawberries, and I hope it can be helpful to everyone!