Ripe and unripe strawberries on a garden strawberry plant
How to grow

Strawberries

Takes a hard frost. A perennial for zones 4 to 9. Plant out up to 4 weeks before your last frost. First harvest 13 to 14 months from planting.

Photo: Alabama Extension, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

  • Full sun6–8 hours or more
  • 12–24 in apartRows 3–4 ft
  • 13–14 monthsFrom planting out
  • pH 6.0–6.5Soil pH
  • 1 in a weekEven watering
  • HardyTakes a hard frost
  • Zones 4–9Comes back each year

Your dates

Put in your ZIP code to see when to start, plant and harvest strawberries where you live, from your own frost dates.

Look up the frost dates for this ZIP code
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From seed to harvest

  1. PlantSet in the groundWeek 0
  2. EstablishRoots take holdWeek 1–4
  3. DormantRests over winterWeek 26–32
  4. FlowersFlowers openWeek 54–57
  5. Fruit setsSmall fruit formsWeek 56–59
  6. HarvestReady to pickWeek 58–63

How to plant and grow

  1. Pick a sunny site

    Choose well-drained soil in full sun. Avoid ground that recently grew tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, raspberries or strawberries, since they share soil diseases.

  2. Plant dormant crowns

    Set dormant plants in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked. Spread the roots straight down and bury them to the middle of the crown, not deeper.

  3. Space for runners

    For June-bearers, set plants 18 to 24 inches apart in rows about 4 feet apart and let runners fill a matted row about 2 feet wide.

  4. Pinch first-year flowers

    Remove all blossoms on June-bearers the first season so plants build roots and runners. Day-neutral types can fruit later in the first summer after early blossoms are removed.

  5. Water and weed

    Give about an inch of water a week. Weed shallowly, since the roots are near the surface, or use mulch to hold weeds down.

  6. Mulch for winter

    Cover rows with about 2 inches of straw once nights near 20 °F. Pull it back in spring when new leaves start, leaving some between rows.

  7. Pick ripe berries

    June-bearers ripen over about three weeks in early summer of the second year. Pick fully red berries every day or two, and remove rotten fruit.

Common problems

Raspberries covered in fuzzy grey Botrytis mould
Photo: “Raspberry with grey mould (Botrytis cinerea)” by Schlaghecken Josef, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).

Botrytis gray moldDiseaseSprays are rarely needed

What you'll see: Soft brown rot covered in fuzzy gray mold on fruit, flowers or leaves, or small sunken brown or gray spots near the base of shallot bulbs. It is worst in cool, wet weather.

Prevent

  • Mulch strawberries with straw so fruit does not touch damp soil.
  • Space plants for air flow and water at the base in the morning.
  • Go easy on nitrogen in spring.
  • Pick ripe fruit often and remove rotting fruit and dead flowers.

Organic options

  • Remove moldy fruit and plant parts. Organic sprays have little proof of working, so rely on the steps above.

Conventional options

  • Same as organic. In home gardens the steps above work best; fungicides are mainly for commercial growers.
A tarnished plant bug on a white and yellow flower
Photo: “Tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris” by Judy Gallagher, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).

Tarnished plant bugPestSprays are rarely needed

What you'll see: Berries come out small, lumpy and seedy at the tip. Small, mottled brown bugs feed on the flowers and young fruit.

Prevent

  • Control weeds around the patch, but do not mow or pull them during bloom.
  • Clear debris in fall.
  • Use row cover in early spring, and remove it at bloom.

Organic options

  • Row cover and weed control.

Conventional options

  • Labeled insecticides exist for strawberries; never spray open flowers.
A grey field slug crawling on rotten wood
Photo: “Deroceras reticulatum” by Bruce Marlin, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped). The cropped version is shared under the same licence.

SlugsPest

What you'll see: Ragged holes in leaves and fruit, and shiny slime trails, mostly after damp nights.

Prevent

  • Clear mulch and leaf litter close to plants so the ground can dry.
  • Start early; do not wait for a heavy infestation.

Organic options

  • Sink shallow containers of beer to the rim; empty and refill them often.
  • Iron phosphate bait scattered on the soil around plants. Look for OMRI Listed products.

Conventional options

  • Same as organic: iron phosphate bait is the pick for food gardens, being far less harmful to pets and wildlife.
A male spotted wing drosophila fly with a dark spot on each wing
Photo: “Spotted-wing Drosophila (Drosophila suzukii) male” by Martin Cooper from Ipswich, UK, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).

Spotted wing drosophilaPest

What you'll see: Ripe berries soften, collapse and leak soon after they ripen, with tiny white larvae inside.

Prevent

  • Pick often, as soon as fruit is ripe.
  • Remove and destroy fallen, damaged and overripe fruit.
  • Refrigerate fruit soon after picking.
  • After bloom, cover plants with very fine netting sealed at the bottom.

Organic options

  • Spinosad, or OMRI Listed pyrethrins (without piperonyl butoxide), from when fruit starts to color.

Conventional options

  • Malathion or carbaryl, if the crop is on the label.

Bee caution: Don't spray open flowers. Spray in the late evening, when bees aren't flying.

An American robin eating red berries in a shrub
Photo: “American Robin eating Holly berries” by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).

BirdsPestNo spray helps

What you'll see: Ripe berries are pecked or gone, and sunflower heads are stripped of seed.

Prevent

  • Put netting over plants before fruit colors, on a frame if you can, and close every gap.
  • Scare devices work only for a short time; move them often and pair them with netting.

Organic options

  • Netting is the method that works; scare tape and balloons help only briefly.

Conventional options

  • Same as organic: netting. No spray is recommended for a home garden.
A squash leaf coated with white powdery mildew
Photo: “Powdery mildew 9” by Dmitry Brant, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped). The cropped version is shared under the same licence.

Powdery mildewDisease

What you'll see: White, powdery patches on the tops of leaves and on stems. Leaves yellow and dry, and fruit may ripen poorly.

Prevent

  • Grow resistant varieties.
  • Give plants sun and space for air flow.
  • Remove badly infected leaves, and clear debris after harvest.

Organic options

  • Sulfur or potassium bicarbonate, from the first spots. Sulfur can burn some vine crops in heat, and never use it near an oil spray.
  • Neem oil. Look for OMRI Listed products.

Conventional options

  • Myclobutanil or propiconazole, if the crop is on the label.

Bee caution: Don't spray open flowers. Spray in the late evening, when bees aren't flying.

Read and follow the product label: it is the law. It sets the rate, the crops it is for, and the days between spraying and picking. Products registered vary by state; for organic growing, look for products allowed under the USDA National Organic Program (OMRI Listed). We name active ingredients, not brands or rates.

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Sources

Planting dates and growing facts checked against these university extension and USDA pages:

Growth-stage drawings: TallyTill.

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