Frigo strawberry growing technology: description, planting, care

Strawberry frigo is a fruit crop grown using a special technology. It is distinguished by abundant fruiting and high endurance, while the requirements are quite simple.

What does strawberry frigo mean

Strawberry frigo is not a variety, but a special technology that can be applied to almost any variety of fruit crop. The bottom line is that mother bushes are planted in spring in light soil and grown with active top dressing, but they are not allowed to bloom so that all resources go to the appearance of young shoots. When the latter ripen in November, they are dug up and transferred to a cool room, subjected to special treatment and sent for storage in the cold from 0 to -2 ° C.

Shrubs harvested using the freego technology can remain frozen for up to three years. After planting, such plants quickly produce abundant fruits and show good endurance to external conditions.

Frigo strawberries are especially profitable to grow for sale.

Varieties and classes of strawberry frigo

Any variety of strawberry is suitable for growing using the freego technology. But usually gardeners choose the most high-yielding and juicy varieties. As for classes, fruit plants are divided into several groups in accordance with the diameter of the root collar and the number of peduncles.

Class B

Grade B strawberries grown using freego technology are considered the least prestigious. The root neck reaches 12 mm in diameter, up to two peduncles develop on the bush.

Frigo class B blooms only in the second year after planting

Class A

Strawberry frigo class A has a root neck up to 15 mm in diameter and produces two powerful peduncles or more. Allows you to collect from 20 to 25 large ripe berries from one bush.

The first harvest from class A frigo strawberries can be harvested already in the year of planting

Class A+

Class A+ frigo strawberry also bears fruit in the first year after planting and produces three well-developed peduncles. The width of the root neck reaches 18 mm.

Each frigo class A + strawberry bush is able to produce up to 40 juicy high-quality fruits

WB class

Elite strawberry frigo with a root collar diameter of 22 mm or more produces up to five peduncles on each bush. Begins fruiting in the current season after planting, brings stable and large yields.

From a frigo strawberry bush of class WB, you can collect up to 450 g of fruit per year

How to make and grow frigo strawberry seedlings with your own hands at home

Ready frigo seedlings are available for purchase in nurseries. However, if you wish, you can form high-yielding and hardy seedlings at home. The algorithm looks like this:

1. In spring, uterine bushes of the most fruitful and sweet varieties are planted in light soil. During the warm season, the plants are fed with fertilizers, but the flower stalks are cut off immediately after the appearance, so that the strawberries actively form young shoots.
2. In November, when the temperature drops to 5 ° C, the seedlings are carefully dug out of the ground. During this period, they go into a state of rest and stop the formation of generative buds.
3. The seedlings are shaken off the ground, sorted and sorted, and then large leaves are cut off, leaving only young plates. You don’t need to wash the strawberries.
4. Seedlings are harvested in plastic bags and placed in a refrigerator or dark cellar until next year. It is important to monitor the temperature – it should not rise above 0 ° C.

Bushes kept in the cold are planted with the onset of spring. Frigo strawberries quickly take root and increase the vegetative mass, as a result of which, after 60-70 days, it enters the fruiting phase.

With proper harvesting, frigo strawberries have a very developed and strong root system.

How to plant and care for frigo strawberries

The rules for growing strawberries using frigo technology as a whole do not differ much from the usual care of a fruit crop. But there are several important nuances.

Planting dates in open ground

The optimal planting time for frigo strawberries depends on the type of strawberry. The higher the crop class, the shorter the shelf life without negative consequences for the yield. So, type A seedlings can be planted from early April to mid-summer. But with class A + strawberries, it is better to hurry up and root it before mid-May.

When choosing a time for planting, you need to take into account the climatic features of the region. For example, in the Urals and Siberia, the soil thaws rather late. Accordingly, for cultivation using a special technology, it is initially necessary to select varieties intended for late rooting.

Freego strawberry planting in autumn is rarely carried out and mainly in closed greenhouses. In this case, the exact timing does not really matter. If the culture is to be rooted in the garden, you need to calculate the time so that about two months remain before the onset of cold weather.

Site and soil requirements

The freego strawberry method requires adherence to standard rules regarding site and soil selection. The fruit culture prefers sunny areas without significant changes in relief, covered from strong winds. The soil should be loose, with a low level of acidity and good drainage.

It is recommended to prepare the soil on the site in advance. The soil in the chosen place is dug up and mixed with humus, compost and complex minerals, loosened properly and all weeds are removed. For strawberries, beds up to 30 cm high are formed and small furrows are already made in them.

Preparing seedlings for planting

Frigo technology involves keeping strawberry seedlings at low temperatures for a long time and planting them in open ground immediately after being removed from the refrigerator or cellar. Immediately before rooting, the culture needs some preparation. Run it like this:

1. Seedlings are removed from the refrigerator or cellar and left in a warm room for a day.
2. After the time has elapsed, the package is opened and the roots of the plants are watered with warm water.
3. Completely thawed seedlings are immersed in containers with cool liquid for three hours.
4. The roots are carefully cut and proceed directly to planting.

Competent preparation will allow you to quickly but smoothly reanimate frigo strawberries after a long period of rest and start the main life processes.

It is necessary to plant frigo strawberries in the ground in the first couple of days after being removed from the cold

How to plant frigo strawberries

Planting and growing frigo strawberries in the open field is carried out according to the standard procedure:

1. Dig shallow pits or trenches in the selected area, exceeding the size of the roots of the culture by about two times.
2. After preliminary preparation, the underground strawberry rods are straightened and lowered into the dug holes.
3. Carefully distribute the roots so that they go straight down, do not give creases and do not form bunches.
4. Cover the strawberries with soil to the surface and lightly compact the soil.
5. Seedlings are watered abundantly.

Between individual bushes you need to leave a free space of at least 30 cm.

When planting, it is necessary to ensure that the root collars of the frigo are flush with the bed.

Watering frequency

Frigo strawberries are distinguished not only by fast fruiting, but also by high resistance to heat and drought. In the first ten days after planting, it should be watered daily, but then the frequency of moistening is reduced to once a week.

At 1 m² soil should be applied in 8-10 liters of water. Watering is carried out under the root, making sure that the leaves and flowers remain dry. During rainy periods, additional humidification can be canceled.

Application of fertilizers

When caring for frigo strawberries, it is recommended to pay attention to dressings, although the culture shows good fruiting even without them. In the spring, during active growth, organic matter with a high nitrogen content is introduced into the soil.

Before flowering strawberries and during the formation of ovaries, potassium and phosphorus must be added to the soil. With the onset of autumn, the bushes are fed with complex minerals, bird droppings and manure. Fertilizers are especially important during this period for remontant frigo strawberries, which are entering the phase of re-fruiting.

Measures to control diseases and pests

Freego strawberries can suffer from fungal diseases. The most dangerous for her are:

• gray rot – a fungus that leads to the appearance of light, brown or pinkish spots with a soft structure;
  
  

  Gray rot occurs on flowers and fruits

• verticillosis – the disease develops from the lower part of the plant, affects the roots and rosette of leaves, strawberries turn brown and begin to fade.
  
  

  Verticillium wilt develops most often in warm and humid weather.

Of the insects, frigo strawberries are threatened by:

• spider mite – the parasite settles on the lower surface of the leaves and leads to the appearance of yellow spots and cobwebs;
  
  

  Spider mites usually appear during dry summers.

• root nematode – the pest sucks juices from the leaves and buds of young frigo strawberries and slows down its growth.
  
  

  Strawberries often suffer from nematodes on waterlogged, acidic soil.

The fight against pests and diseases is carried out, first of all, preventive – they regularly loosen the soil and remove weeds in the beds, monitor the intensity of irrigation and the acidity of the soil.

When alarming symptoms appear, strawberries are treated with copper preparations that are effective against fungal diseases and sprayed with insecticides. At the same time, chemicals can be used only in the early stages of crop development 3-4 weeks before fruiting.

Preparation for winter

With the onset of autumn, after the temperature drops to about 5 ° C, frigo strawberries must be protected from winter freezing. Usually, lutrasil or perforated film is laid on the beds with culture and shelter is left until flowering in the next season. In this case, fruiting will come faster and will be more abundant.

Straw or fallen leaves can also be used to protect against cold weather. But they must be removed immediately after the onset of the thaw, otherwise the soil will not warm up in time, and the development of the crop will slow down.

How to save seedlings in winter

Long-term winter storage in the cold is completely natural for frigo strawberry seedlings, in fact, this is where the technology lies. Purchased or self-prepared seedlings are removed in late autumn in plastic bags and placed in a refrigerator or cellar with a stable temperature of 0 to -2 ° C and humidity not higher than 90%. In this state, it can be stored not only throughout the winter, but also up to three years.

The temperature during storage of frigo strawberries should be stable, without sharp fluctuations.

Advantages and disadvantages of berry growing technology

Description of frigo strawberry varieties, photos and reviews of gardeners allow us to conclude that the technology has many advantages. These include:

• precocity – the berries ripen on average 8-9 weeks after planting the bushes;
• high yield;
• seedling endurance and good survival;
• suitability for year-round cultivation in a greenhouse.

Any variety of culture can be stored using the freego technology. Plants after prolonged exposure to cold are guaranteed to be healthy and do not start to hurt immediately after planting.

However, the technology has its drawbacks. These include:

• high cost of purchased seedlings;
• limited benefits in time – in the second year after rooting, frigo strawberries are no different from the usual ones and ripen in standard terms.

In addition, it can be quite difficult to properly prepare seedlings at home due to the lack of professional refrigeration equipment.

Conclusion

Frigo strawberries are high yielding and fast ripening. Although the benefits of a crop after cold storage usually last only in the first year, the method of processing is popular with gardeners.

Reviews of gardeners with a photo about strawberry frigo 2020