Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
everything else, and the birds and deer haven't found them so
far!
Strawberries
Very few fruits are as prolific and easy to grow in limited
space as strawberries. Moreover, because of their delicate
nature, they are expensive to ship long distances, so they sell
well in season if you decide to market them. Beds are easy to
establish and require minimal maintenance on the scale of a
mini-farm.
Strawberries come in three basic types: spring-bearing,
ever-bearing, and day-neutral. The spring-bearing variety
produces a single crop; the ever-bearing variety produces
crops in spring, summer, and fall; and the day-neutral
strawberry produces fruit throughout the season.
Spring-bearing varieties can be early season, middle season,
or late season, meaning that through careful selection of more
than one spring-bearing variety, it is possible to extend the
length of harvest substantially. Consider the intended use of
the strawberries—preservation or fresh eating—in selecting
varieties for either a continuous small crop or one or more
larger harvests.
Strawberry plants can be spread either through seeds or
through plants and runners. The best bet in most cases is to
buy strawberry plants of known characteristics and then let
them spread by runners. Runners are a long stem that emerges
from the crown of the strawberry plant and establishes a new
crown and root system wherever it contacts suitable earth.
Simply place the runners where they will fill in the gaps in
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