Strawberries are a unique berry that adults and children love.
It has not only excellent taste, but is also a natural medicine.
The berry is rich in its composition, it contains a large number of different vitamins, there are sugars, fiber, folic acid, pectin, iron, calcium, cobalt and phosphorus.
All these components are so necessary for the human body.
Strawberry is an unpretentious plant, so you can grow it in any soil. However, chernozem with the addition of wood ash is considered the most suitable. After planting, the plant needs daily watering. After it has taken root, watering is necessary every 2 days.
Although strawberries love moisture, but you need to be careful not to fill it too much, as this can adversely affect it. Too much moisture provokes the appearance of diseases and pests, resistance to frost decreases and the number of fruitful kidneys decreases. For uniform irrigation of the soil, it will be good to install drip irrigation. It is important to timely remove weeds that are highly spread in open ground. How to plant strawberries in a personal summer cottage? There are several effective methods that will be discussed later.
How to propagate a strawberry mustache
The most common strawberry breeding method is the antennae. This method was used by grandmother's niches, and it is the most effective and simple. However, there are some nuances that are important to consider when choosing this method. There is one indisputable rule: a bush should give either berries or a quality mustache. For seedlings, it is not recommended to take a mustache from the bushes that gave the crop. The plant spent all its strength and nutrients on berries, and the antennae will be very weak, which will degrade their quality.
The first thing to do is to select the uterine bushes. It is worth paying attention to healthy plants that have wintered well and yielded excellent fruits. Such bushes need to be marked with a stick or a rope, the main thing is to be noticeable. The following year, on the uterine bushes, it is necessary to remove all the flowers in order to prevent the formation of an ovary. Such manipulation will allow the plant to devote all its efforts to the formation of good vegetative processes (mustaches).
In the month of June the bushes will begin to produce a mustache, at the end of which there will be sockets. The gardener needs to leave only the largest antennae, and the rest just need to be cut off. The length of each outlet is important to regulate, shortening it. On each plant, it is desirable to leave one outlet closest to the mother bush. As soon as the first roots appear on the outlet, you can act in two ways:
- the socket must be deepened into the soil and watered, after which it should be looked after, as with ordinary seedlings;
- plant the resulting outlet in a small pot, not taking off from the mustache, where it will continue to grow and develop.
After strawberry seedlings grow it can be transplanted to a new place. This is best done in late July, early August. Two weeks before the planned day of disembarkation, the mustache must be cut so that all sockets learn to eat from their own root system. During this time, the bushes will grow stronger, take root well and prepare for winter frosts.
How to propagate strawberries using seeds
Few people know that strawberries can be grown from seeds, of course, this is a very painstaking and time-consuming task. Only non-hybrid varieties are suitable for this method, usually they have small berries. Initially, you need to get the seeds. To do this, you need to collect beautiful ripe berries and remove the upper skin from them. Then dry it thoroughly. Dry seeds are well separated from the remnants of berries, they just need to be wiped.
To accelerate the growth of the seeds must be soaked in advance. To do this, take a small plastic container with a lid and a cloth. Holes need to be made in the lid so that the seeds breathe. The cloth should be wet and laid in a container, put seeds on it and cover with a damp cloth from above. The container should be covered and put in a warm place for 2 days. Then the container must be rearranged in the refrigerator for 2 weeks to stratify the seeds. It is important to ensure that the rags are always wet.
While the seeds germinate, you need to prepare the soil. It should be friable, but without fertilizer. Ordinary land from the dacha is perfect, you need to mix it with forest soil and add a little sand. The resulting mixture must be decontaminated. To do this, put it in a well-heated oven for 20 minutes. In order for the beneficial substances to appear in the soil and make it come to life, it is necessary to wait 2 weeks and only then sow the seeds.
The container must be filled with earth, a little tamped and moistened with water. Seeds must be laid out very carefully, slightly pushing into the ground. To do this, a toothpick or tweezers will go. It is not necessary to cover the seeds with soil, they will sprout well. The container is covered with a lid (with holes) and placed in a warm place. Drops of water will appear on the lid, which will moisten the soil. If there are too many drops, the container must be ventilated. If the cover is moisture free, then the soil needs watering. It is important to follow this moment!
When the third leaf grows near the seedlings, it must be dived into separate plastic or peat pots measuring 5 × 5 cm. Make holes in the bottom and remember to put drainage (piles, nutshells, polystyrene foam), and only then the ground.
The soil needs to be moistened a little, make a small hole and plant strawberries. When there are 6 or more leaves on seedlings, it can be planted in open ground - this is approximately in mid-May. Further seedlings must be looked after, as usual.
How to breed strawberries by dividing a bush
Propagation of strawberries by dividing the bush is suitable for those varieties that do not let tendrils. You can only share adult bushes, at least 3-4 years old. During this period, their root system is well developed, and shoots are highly branched. It is better to plant bushes in the spring. For this, the most lush and beautiful plants are selected. They need to be dug up and each bush, using a knife, divided into several.
It is important that each plant has one intact horn and at least 3 leaves. After which the resulting plant is transplanted to a new place. Strawberries can be planted immediately in the open ground, it will need to be watered daily, and taken care of as usual.
You can plant new bushes in a greenhouse (it is better to install it in the shade) and cover it well with foil. After the plants get stronger, they should be transplanted to an open area of land. Landing is important in August. Plants take root well in the cold and will be ready for winter frosts.
Dear amateur gardeners, there are many ways to propagate strawberries. This amazing berry should be in every summer cottage in order to delight with its wonderful aroma and unique taste. It is important not to be afraid to experiment and do not get upset if something doesn’t work out, the main thing is to make efforts!
