Caring for strawberries in autumn

All care for strawberries (garden strawberries) for summer residents comes down to spring work – they clean it from old leaves, water it, feed it, then harvest it and … forget about the plantation until next spring. Advanced gardeners take care of the plantings in the summer too – they water them again, someone cuts the leaves, and that’s it. Is that bad! In autumn, strawberries also require close attention.

The main task of autumn work is to provide strawberries with conditions for a good wintering. But here it is important not to overdo it, because excessive care can play a cruel joke.

Feeding strawberries in autumn

In autumn, phosphorus and potash fertilizers are traditionally applied in the garden and garden, and strawberries are no exception. However, experiments have shown that potassium has a very bad effect on the quality of berries: they become watery, sour or tasteless. But phosphorus, on the contrary, makes them dense and sweet. Therefore, phosphorus is always contributed more, and less potassium. In addition, autumn fertilization rates (per 1 sq. m.) depend on the age of the plantation (1)(2).

Before landing (in mid-August) make:

• humus or compost – 4 kg (1/2 bucket);
• phosphate rock – 100 g (4 tablespoons) or double superphosphate – 60 g (4 tablespoons);
• potassium sulfate – 50 g (2,5 tablespoons).

All these fertilizers must be evenly scattered over the site and dug onto a shovel bayonet.

After such a filling of the site for the 2nd and 3rd year, it is not necessary to apply fertilizers – neither in autumn, nor in spring, nor in summer.

For the 3rd year (mid-October) for strawberries, you need to add:

• humus or compost – 2 kg (1/4 bucket);
• double superphosphate – 100 g (1/2 cup);
• potassium sulfate – 20 g (1 tablespoon).

For the 4th year (mid-October):

• double superphosphate – 100 g (1/2 cup);
• potassium sulfate – 12 g (2 teaspoons).

In the last two cases, fertilizers should be evenly scattered between the rows and embedded in the soil with a rake.

In the 5th year of life, the yield of strawberries drops sharply, so there is no point in growing it – you need to lay a new plantation.

Pruning strawberries in autumn

Many summer residents like to cut strawberry leaves. This is usually done in early August. And very in vain.

The fact is that strawberries grow leaves three times per season (1):

• in early spring, when the air temperature reaches 5 – 7 ° C – these leaves live for 30 – 70 days, after which they die off;
• in summer, immediately after harvesting – they also live 30 – 70 days and die off;
• in autumn, from late September to early October – these leaves go before winter.

So, spring and summer leaves form a good layer of natural mulch by autumn, which will protect the roots from freezing if the beginning of winter is cold but snowless. If you cut them in August, you will not have any protection left and the plants may die.

For the same reason, it is not recommended to rake dry leaves from the plantation in autumn – they should remain until spring. But in the spring, as soon as the snow grows, they must be removed, because they are a breeding ground for diseases. However, you can, of course, remove the leaves and mulch strawberry plantings with 10 cm of peat, but these are additional costs of labor, time and money.

But what is really worth doing in the fall is trimming your mustache if you didn’t do it in the summer. Because practice has shown that they greatly deplete the mother plant, reduce winter hardiness and yield (1).

Processing strawberries in the fall from diseases and pests

From diseases. All treatments for diseases are usually carried out after flowering (3). That is, the usual strawberries in a good way had to be processed in the summer. But remontant strawberries bear fruit until late autumn, and therefore the fight against diseases is shifted to October. At this time, the plantation must be disinfected with Bordeaux liquid (1%) – 1 liter per 1 sq. m (4). However, if nothing was done with ordinary strawberries, you can sprinkle it too.

The second treatment should be carried out in the spring, before flowering – also with Bordeaux liquid with the same consumption rate.

From pests. It makes no sense to fight pests in the fall with the help of chemicals – they have already hidden in the soil for the winter. All treatments must be carried out during the growing season.

The autumn digging of row spacing to a depth of 15 cm could reduce the number of pests – if clods are not broken, insects and larvae will find themselves in them and freeze in winter. But here another problem arises – there will be no protection in the form of mulch on the dug-up plantation, and not only insects, but also the strawberries themselves will die in a snowless cold winter. And if the site is mulched, then the pests will overwinter without problems.

Strawberry preparation for winter

For some reason, summer residents get the feeling that strawberries are very winter-hardy, but this is a myth. Her roots die with a short-term (!) decrease in soil temperature to -8 ° С (1) (5). And wintering leaves and horns (short growths of the current year, on which flower buds are laid) are severely damaged already at a temperature of -10 ° C, and at -15 ° C they die altogether (1).

Surprised? Don’t believe? Tell me, all this is nonsense, because strawberries grow even in the North and Siberia!? Yes, it is growing. Do you know why? There is a lot of snow there. And he is the best protection from the cold. In snowdrifts 20 cm high, this crop is able to withstand frosts down to -30 – 35 ° C (1).

Therefore, the main thing that needs to be done in the fall is to ensure snow retention. The easiest way is to throw brushwood on the plantation. It does not cake and does not allow the wind to sweep snow from the site.

Another good option is to cover the beds with spruce or pine branches (5). Maybe even a thick layer. They themselves protect against frost, because a layer of air forms under them, which also prevents the soil from freezing too much. Plus, they are also excellent at holding snow. At the same time, the plants under them do not die. But getting them is harder.

Sometimes it is advised to mulch strawberries with dry leaves, but this is a dangerous option. Yes, they will protect the plantation from the cold, but in the spring they can become a problem – if they are not removed in time, as soon as the snow melts, the plants can dry out and die. It’s good to mulch with leaves if you live in a country house – you can always catch the right moment, but for weekend summer residents, especially if they open the season in April, it’s better not to practice this method – it can get warmer in March and in the middle of the week, and strawberries can be severely affected literally in 2 to 3 days.

Popular questions and answers

We talked about the features of autumn strawberry care with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova.

Sources of

1. Burmistrov A.D. Berry crops // Leningrad, publishing house “Kolos”, 1972 – 384 p.
2. Rubin S.S. Fertilizer of fruit and berry crops // M., “Kolos”, 1974 – 224 p.
3. Grebenshchikov S.K. Reference manual for plant protection for gardeners and gardeners (2nd edition, revised and additional) / M .: Rosagropromizdat, 1991 – 208 p.
4. State catalog of pesticides and agrochemicals approved for use on the territory of the Federation as of July 6, 2021 // Ministry of Agriculture of the Federation https://mcx.gov.ru/ministry/departments/departament-rastenievodstva-mekhanizatsii-khimizatsii- i-zashchity-rasteniy/industry-information/info-gosudarstvennaya-usluga-po-gosudarstvennoy-registratsii-pestitsidov-i-agrokhimikatov/
5. Korovin A.I., Korovina O.N. Weather, garden and garden of an amateur // L .: Gidrometeoizdat, 1990 – 232 p.