Moving my strawberries

10 years ago

I haven't been happy with my strawberries growing in my main veggie garden. I got a few nice berries last year but mostly they were small and we never got a nice crop from them.

So this year I am starting over with new plants, new type of bed/planter, and a new (sunnier) location. Questions...

Can anyone recommend a favorite variety for the northeast/mid-atlantic (zone 6 apparently, thought we were a zone 5). I don't think I have a preference between June-bearing or ever-bearing, although it would be nice to have berries all summer long rather than just one crop and done.

I'm slightly concerned with my new location. I had a couple of pepper plants over there last year and now I'm reading about verticillium wilt. They won't be in the same soil - I'm planning on planting in a couple of pallets and propping them up at a 45 degree angle. Think they'll be okay since they aren't sharing the same soil that the peppers were in last year?

Comments (3)

drew51 SE MI Z5b/6a
10 years ago
Not many have tried all the various types. So many of them!
I have grown quite a few different types trying them for my area. But after 2 seasons I still can't tell you much. Plus they may vary by area, and type of soil and nutrients they receive. My best suggestion is to go to strawberry.org and see what is recommended for your state.

I discovered that some do well right away others do not, but by the 2nd year many that were slow to grow took off! It seems they grow best after being established. others overcome this, but some do not. Mine mostly grow in pretty acidic envoronment, they are more for ground cover than fruit. This year I moved a lot out into a bed of their own. It is not as acidic, just slightly, like they like it, and so i expect them to grow better. I grow them all over and some spots they do better than others.

Here is a link that might be useful: strawberries by state

This post was edited by Drew51 on Tue, Jan 28, 14 at 12:31
emorems0
Original Author
10 years ago
Thank you Drew, that was very helpful... being close to the OH border, I looked at the varieties that do well in both PA and OH to narrow down the options.

I'm thinking of going with Earliglow for a June-bearing variety and Evie for an everbearing. Both are resistant to verticillium wilt and seem like sweet, productive varieties. Evie wasn't actually on the list, but came up when I clicked on Tribute (which I'm also considering for it's long season, but not resistant to verticillium wilt - still trying to decide if that will be an issue). Anyway, the Evie had really good reviews from Hirts nursery including several in PA and NY but it doesn't seem to be widely available elsewhere.

Anyone have any experience with Hirts Gardens? They carry both the Earliglow and Evie and seem to have good reviews on Amazon... just wondering if anyone more in the 'know' has any experience with them?

Also, still looking for more info on verticillium wilt... is it soil related? Because my strawberries won't be in the same soil my peppers were in last year, but the will be in the same 'location'.
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drew51 SE MI Z5b/6a
10 years ago
"Also, still looking for more info on verticillium wilt... is it soil related?"

Yes!

Also just a note some of the first berries are usually really tart, as the plants become more established the berries become sweeter. By the end of the summer, even unripe berries were sweet in my patch. I just planted Earliglow myself, last year. i removed the berries to let the plant grow, so i can't comment on taste although the plant grew well.