They tell you to cut off all flowers so that a the plant's energy goes into growth and runners. It is a good thing to do. Last summer I placed 4"x4" pots next to my established plants and placed a runner in each pot. By july I cut the new plants from the mother plant and babbied them till I planted them in the new bed in September. The next June I did not cut the flowers off and I got a full harvest got some great berries. Strawberries set their fruit in lat September to early October for the next year. If your plants are well established before this time you can get away with not cutting the flowers. Good luck. JOHN