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Fruits & Berries

How to Grow Strawberries (And Get Fruit the First Year)

Strawberries are easy to grow and easy to get wrong. Which of the three types to plant, why you pinch the first flowers, and how to keep a bed producing.

By The Grow In Backyard Team 3 min read Save to Pinterest — opens Pinterest in a new tab
A strawberry plant with ripe red fruit growing among its leaves
Photo: Kolforn (Kolforn), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Strawberries are one of the few crops that give you fruit in a single season from a plant that costs about a dollar. They are also one of the easiest to quietly ruin — by planting the crown at the wrong height, or by letting a first-year plant fruit itself into exhaustion.

Which type to plant

This is the only decision that really changes the outcome, and it should follow what you want to do with the fruit.

The three types of strawberry, compared
TypeWhen it fruitsYieldRunnersBest for
June-bearingOne heavy crop, 2–3 weeks in early summerHighestManyFreezing, jam, a glut
EverbearingTwo or three smaller flushes, summer to fallMediumFewFresh eating
Day-neutralSteadily from June to frostLowest per plantVery fewContainers, small spaces

If you want to fill a freezer, plant June-bearing. If you want a handful of berries most weeks through summer, plant day-neutral. Planting one when you wanted the other is the most common disappointment.

Getting the crown height right

This is the detail that decides whether the plant lives.

The crown is the thickened point where the roots meet the leaves. It must sit exactly level with the soil surface — not below it, not above it. Planted too deep, the crown rots within weeks; planted too high, the roots dry out and the plant never establishes.

Spread the roots out in the hole rather than bunching them, firm the soil, and water in.

Do not plant where tomatoes or potatoes grew

Strawberries share verticillium wilt with the nightshade family. Planting into ground that grew tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, or aubergines within the last three years is a reliable way to lose a bed to a soil disease you cannot see coming.

Why you pinch the first year’s flowers

It is counterintuitive, and it is the advice most often ignored.

A first-year June-bearing plant that is allowed to fruit puts its energy into a small crop of berries instead of into roots and crown. Remove every flower in that first season and the plant builds the structure to carry a much heavier crop the following June — commonly around double.

On day-neutral and everbearing types, pinch flowers only until late June, then let them fruit for the rest of the season.

Through the season

Water an inch a week, more as the fruit swells, always at soil level. Strawberries are shallow rooted and dry out fast, but wet leaves invite botrytis — the grey mould that turns a ripening berry to fuzz overnight.

Mulch with straw as soon as fruit sets, tucking it under the developing berries. It keeps fruit off wet soil, stops mud splash, and suppresses weeds.

Net the bed before the fruit colours, not after. Birds find ripening strawberries the day before you plan to pick them.

Runners are free plants

Each runner that roots is a new plant identical to the parent. Peg three or four per plant into small pots of compost sunk into the bed, and cut them free once rooted — that is your replacement bed, at no cost, ready to go into fresh ground.

Renovating and replacing

After the June crop finishes, renovate: shear the old leaves back to about 4 inches, thin crowded plants to roughly 6 inches apart, remove weeds, and top-dress with compost. The bed looks brutal for a fortnight and comes back stronger.

Yields fall off sharply after the third or fourth year as plants age and soil disease builds. Plan on starting a fresh bed on new ground every three years, using runners from your best plants — so the replacement costs nothing but the space.

Step by step

Time
P120D
Cost
$25
You need
Bare-root crowns or runners (10–25), Compost, Straw mulch
Tools
Trowel, Netting or mesh

  1. Pick the right type for your goal

    June-bearing gives one big crop in early summer and the most fruit overall — plant it if you want to freeze or make jam. Everbearing and day-neutral give smaller harvests spread from June to frost, which suits eating fresh.

  2. Plant in early spring, or fall in mild zones

    Set bare-root crowns as soon as the soil is workable, usually 4–6 weeks before your last frost. In zones 8 and warmer, plant in fall for a spring crop instead.

  3. Get the crown height exactly right

    The crown — where roots meet leaves — must sit level with the soil surface. Buried, it rots; exposed, it dries out. This single detail kills more new strawberry plants than anything else.

  4. Space 12–18 inches apart in full sun

    Allow 12–18 inches between plants and 3 feet between rows for June-bearers, which spread by runners. Strawberries need 6–8 hours of direct sun and soil that drains; they will not tolerate wet feet.

  5. Pinch off the first year's flowers

    On June-bearers, remove every flower in the first season. It feels wrong, but it forces the plant into root and crown growth and roughly doubles the second-year crop. On day-neutral types, pinch flowers only until the end of June, then let them fruit.

  6. Mulch with straw once fruit sets

    Tuck straw under the developing fruit to keep berries off the soil. It prevents rot and mud splash, suppresses weeds, and is where the name strawberry most likely comes from.

  7. Water an inch a week at soil level

    Strawberries are shallow-rooted and need consistent moisture, especially as fruit swells. Water the soil, not the leaves — wet foliage invites botrytis, the grey mould that turns ripening fruit to fuzz overnight.

  8. Manage the runners

    For the biggest berries, cut runners off so the plant feeds fruit rather than offspring. To fill a bed, peg three or four runners per plant into the soil and cut the rest.

  9. Renovate after fruiting, and replace every 3–4 years

    After the June crop, mow or shear old leaves to about 4 inches, thin plants to 6 inches apart, and top-dress with compost. Yields decline sharply after the third or fourth year — start a new bed from runners on fresh ground.

Common questions

How long do strawberries take to grow?

From a bare-root crown planted in spring, fruit arrives the following June if you pinch the first year's flowers — or a light crop the same season if you do not. From seed it takes 12–18 months, which is why almost nobody grows them that way.

Should I really pinch off the first year's flowers?

On June-bearing types, yes. Removing first-year flowers pushes the plant into building roots and crown, and typically doubles the following year's yield. On day-neutral and everbearing types, pinch only until late June and then let the plant fruit.

How many strawberry plants do I need per person?

About 6–10 plants per person for fresh eating, and 25 or more per person if you want to freeze or make jam. A healthy June-bearing plant yields roughly one pound of fruit a season once established.

Can you grow strawberries in containers?

Yes, and they do well in them — a container keeps fruit off the soil and away from slugs. Use at least 8 inches of depth, one plant per 8-inch pot, and expect to water daily in summer, because containers dry out much faster than a bed.

Why are my strawberries small and misshapen?

Usually incomplete pollination, which produces lopsided fruit — common in cold or wet weather when bees are not flying. Other causes are old plants past their fourth year, overcrowding, and inconsistent watering while the fruit is swelling.

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