Processing strawberries after harvest in August. Strawberries after harvest, what to do after the end of the harvest season

  • 04.03.2020

Strawberries are the leader among berry crops, requiring increased attention... The goal of grooming is to get tasty, large, aromatic berries, but you need to start thinking about the future harvest immediately after you finish picking berries this year. This is a crucial time, and one of the important aspects of grooming is trimming the mustache.

Gardeners, especially beginners, find it difficult to deal with this issue - some believe that this should be done before July 20, others not earlier than August, and still others believe that it is not necessary to remove the leaves.

So all the same, do you need to trim the strawberries, or not, and when to do it?

Let's weigh all the pros and cons

Each of us knows that strawberries have many mustaches. Of course, all varieties are different. There are those who have few mustaches, and there are those who have no mustaches at all. After the last berry is picked from the plantation, you must not forget your way here until next summer.

Strawberries propagate with a mustache, so the berry bush will not suffer from pruning. The "green mass" will be quickly restored, and possibly even more than before. But, despite this, there are skeptics who consider this procedure pointless, useless and even harmful to the plant. Here are just a few of their reasons.

  1. Strawberry leaves, like any other plant, participate in the process of photosynthesis, due to them, its respiration is carried out. By depriving the bush of such important organs, we deprive the strawberry of "oxygen", which means that the bush will meet the winter unprepared.
  2. There is no point in trimming the leaves in order to get rid of pests and fungal spores, since the leaves still crumble to the ground from the leaves, calmly winter there and are taken in the spring for their previous work.

You have probably noticed more than once that strawberry leaves look healthy only for the first two months, then they turn red, stains, "rust" and other signs of dying appear on them. Such aged leaves must be removed in a timely manner in order to enable young green leaves to grow.

Whether pruning is part of your plans, or not, it is imperative to fight pests and harmful bacteria. For this, the soil is sprayed with special preparations or sprinkled with ash.

So, having weighed all the pros and cons, we will nevertheless make a choice in favor of pruning, but before starting work, let's find out how to do it correctly.

Getting started pruning

There is no exact timeframe for when to trim. It all depends on the weather conditions of the area, the characteristics of the variety and many other factors. You need to understand that after this procedure, enough time must pass for new shoots to grow and get stronger before the onset of cold weather.

Most often, the mustache is trimmed after harvest, in the Krasnodar Territory, for example, this is done in June, in middle lane Russia in July, in some regions - in early August. At least a month should pass from the end of the berry collection, but you should not delay it either, otherwise the bushes will not overwinter. As practice shows, late pruning reduces the yield by 30-35%. Sometimes pruning is delayed until a disease, such as brown spot, has been eradicated. It should be noted that it is not easy to deal with it, it is worth considering whether it may be more expedient to replace the bushes with other, healthy ones, especially if the degree of damage is more than 50%.

The weather should be dry and warm, but not hot, the best time for this - morning or evening.

It is better to treat the tool before work with any disinfectant; secateurs or scissors should be sharp. It is strictly forbidden to tear off the mustache with your hands, you can damage the root.

They remove not only darkened, dry and pest-damaged mustaches, but also absolutely healthy ones. The leaves can be cut to the very base, but the "growth point" must be preserved, otherwise new shoots will not appear. If you planted the bushes this year, then it will be enough to get rid of the yellow and dry leaves.

First of all, they get rid of sluggish, drooping leaves; in older plants, all leaves can be completely removed. Strong, green tendrils with healthy rosettes leave, if buried in, they will give roots. If the propagation of strawberries is not included in your plans, you need to remove everything, as thickening will negatively affect the yield.

If the color of the leaves on your site has changed, they turned red, orange and spots appeared on them, they must be removed. So you will protect yourself on next year from the invasion of pests. Target autumn pruning- help the plant over the winter. Summer pruning is carried out in order to rejuvenate the bushes, this is done so that they are better blown by the wind and illuminated by the sun.

Can the leaves be cut?

Some summer residents, especially if the strawberry plantations are large, prefer to take a scythe and mow the leaves with a scythe. Are they doing the right thing? Experienced gardeners believe that if a plantation was planted three to four years ago, then this way you can use it. It is also appropriate to use a braid if your planting is neglected, and there are more than enough diseases and pests on it. In this case, after mowing the leaves, the area is sprayed with a fungicide or other special preparation. In order for the leaves to grow as quickly as possible, the strawberries will need to be fed.

If the planting is young, the bushes are green, there are no signs of disease, then by mowing the bushes, you can cause their depletion, which will not affect the best way on the next harvest.

Pruning repair strawberries

Care, including pruning, for remontant varieties is the same as for ordinary ones. "Thinning" must be competent, because what more green the mass you remove, the larger the berries will be next year. But you need to cut off not at the very root, up to 9 stems should remain on a two-year-old bush, only then sweet and juicy fruits will ripen on it. The mustache is removed at the same time as picking the berries. Before the onset of cold weather, old, diseased bushes are removed from the site.

How to prune diseased bushes

If there are pests on the site, for example, a strawberry mite, the leaves are covered with spots, there are holes on them, all leaf plates are removed to the base of the leaf, even young ones. The thing is that the petiole is the place where disease spores feel comfortable, but you can't touch the heart of the bush, otherwise the bush will hurt for a long time. Of course, pathogenic microbes will remain on the leaves of the leaves, on the ground. But it will be much easier to treat a plantation with trimmed bushes with chemicals.

When bushes grow on the plantation, planted in different years, then the pruning begins with the young, the old are pruned last. This sequence is very important, it eliminates the possibility of infection of healthy bushes with strawberry mites, which are easily transferred from one bush to another with tools or clothing.

What to do with damaged parts of plants? They are collected, taken from the site, buried or burned.


Further care

Care after harvesting is to prepare the bushes for the cold and fruiting for the next year.

When the excess leaves and whiskers are removed, the weeds are pulled out and removed from the site. The land on the site should be loosened, watered with a pink solution of manganese. By the way, a manganese solution will be appropriate if you are replanting a not entirely healthy bush, or if you are planting a healthy plant where diseased bushes used to grow.

After that, top dressing is applied (mineral or organic fertilizers) and the soil around the "rejuvenated" bushes is covered with wood ash. If possible, add manure. First, strawberries are watered every day, or every two days, so that moisture is present on the site. With the appearance of young foliage, there will be no need for such an amount of moisture, but the earth should not dry out.

The better you take care of the bushes, the more berries they will reward you with. Bushes with enough leaves will be covered with snow, which means their roots will not die from frost. Thus, the more young leaves have time to grow before winter, the stronger the root will be in spring, which means more berries will ripen on each bush.

If your area has cold winters, the bush will need to be sprinkled with needles, walnut leaves or covered with covering material.

It so happens that when picking berries, we notice gray rot on them. Do not forget, after the harvest is harvested, to treat all the bushes with Bordeaux mixture or another fungicide.

Pruning after harvest will have a positive effect on the quality and quantity of berries. This will strengthen her immunity. And if you have remontant varieties planted on your site, then you will enjoy not one, but two harvests of tasty, aromatic and healthy berries. Take care of this amazing berry correctly, and this culture will thank you with a rich harvest of juicy, aromatic, tasty and healthy berries.

Berry crops after fruiting need care, Victoria is no exception. What steps need to be taken to ensure next year's yield? Let's figure it out.

After harvest

So the last berries have been collected. Now you need to remove the weeds and loosen the ground near the bushes. The loosened soil is covered with mullein or horse manure for fertilization. The first antennae, not even adherent, are placed on top of the manure. The rest - do not touch, since an adult mustache can take root if cork roots grow. If they do not take root before winter, then in the spring they are removed.

Summer residents ask: "How to handle Victoria in the fall?" It is necessary to clear weeds from the aisles between the beds. Pour chips, sawdust, branches onto the resulting paths. Such mulching will retain moisture in the soil and prevent weeds from multiplying, which interfere with the strengthening of young bushes. The sooner the beds are weeded, the better the new bushes will be able to harden and grow. Manure will not only fertilize the soil, but also maintain the necessary moisture.

Crop care in October

How to handle Victoria in the fall, namely in October? At this time, it is carried out in a layer of 5 cm. Sawdust or peat are best suited for these purposes. In the future, the beds are covered with spruce branches. In the fall, the soil is also prepared for planting Victoria in the spring. To do this, in the middle of the season, the land is plowed 30 cm, but not loosened. In this form, they are left for the winter.

How to handle Victoria in the fall if the weather is warm, dry? In this case, it is recommended to shed the culture well: the soil should be soaked by 30 cm or more. If flowers appear on the plant during warm days, then they need to be removed. The aisles are dug, and the beds are sprinkled with manure, Kemir fertilizer and a layer of ash.

Victoria can be fed with humus. To do this, in a deciduous forest, they remove and discard upper layer with dry, non-decayed leaves, then take deciduous humus and bring it under the culture. The result is always overwhelming.

How to treat Victoria after fruiting from pests and diseases? To prevent the development of diseases and the reproduction of pests, Victoria is sprayed with Fitosporin. A solution of water with copper oxychloride saves from the appearance of gray rot, and water with potassium permanganate or colloidal sulfur from powdery mildew. There are ready-made preparations for processing Victoria after harvesting - "Aktara", "Intavir", "Zeon", "Karate".

In November

How to handle victoria for the winter? This is the most pressing question at the end of the fall season. Repaired varieties are covered with a film. In November, snow catchers are placed, as well as traps for small rodents. At the end of autumn, the beds can be covered with needles, and in the spring they can be shaken off from the base of the bushes to quickly warm up the earth. When the snow falls, it is thrown onto the area where the victoria grows and compacted.

If berries are grown in open ground, then their roots are sensitive to frost, since they are located shallow. In the northern regions and those places where severe frosts are observed, the beds should be covered with straw or brushwood. "Insulation" is not crushed, so as not to obstruct the access of air. The lack of oxygen leads to the development of fungal diseases. For shelter, you can also use burlap, matting or wadded canvas. You can not use tarpaulin for insulation, as under it Victoria is pretending and rotting.

Simple care, prevention of pest breeding, shelter of the beds for the winter will ensure a good harvest next summer. The more we take care of the plants, the tastier and better the berries grow.

After the collection of berries is over, the first stage of preparing the bushes for winter. There is no single opinion among gardeners whether it is necessary to prune strawberry leaves during this period. Some consider this procedure, carried out after the harvest, mandatory, others - destructive. If you are in doubt about whether to prune old foliage on strawberry bushes, read this article and find out the gardener's recommendations from the video.

After fruiting is complete, old strawberry leaves fade and die off, gradually ceasing to be of benefit to the plant. In parallel, young foliage grows on the bushes, which is responsible for photosynthesis. At the same time, fruit buds are laid, which will yield the next year. You need to take care of its quality and quantity right away, without postponing this matter until the spring.

Proponents of post-harvest strawberry pruning make the following arguments:

  1. After cutting the foliage, nutrients circulate only along the roots and are not spent on green mass. The root system becomes more powerful, accumulates vitamins and minerals, and this has a positive effect on the berries.
  2. The procedure increases the resistance of plants to cold weather.
  3. Removing foliage is a rejuvenation and healing of the bush. Pruning relieves strawberries from pests and fungal diseases that can spread to young leaves.
Damaged leaves can be removed after harvest

But the procedure also has significant disadvantages:

  1. Due to the pruning of the green mass, the bush develops much longer. In this case, you can forget about the early harvest.
  2. Many pests that lived on the leaves fall into the soil. There they winter calmly, practically without fear of frost. It is better if the cold catches insects on the foliage.
  3. Fruit buds are destroyed along with the leaves. Only those that appear in the spring will give a crop.

Taking into account all the advantages and disadvantages of the procedure, a compromise will be the best option. Experienced gardeners recommend pruning only diseased, damaged leaves. If there are no signs of ailments or traces of pests on them, it is better to leave the beds intact. It is also definitely worth removing dried leaves or those that are covered with spots. Therefore, after the harvest is harvested, you need to carefully examine the bushes and make a decision that is suitable in your case.

Attention! Pruning is not necessary for young plants, but only for those that are at least 2 years old.

Correct pruning of strawberries and other post-harvest procedures

There is no exact time frame for planning the procedure. The most common pruning is in early August. If the variety of garden strawberries is not remontant, then by this time the culture usually completely completes fruiting. For pruning, choose a dry morning or evening when there is no strong sun or rain.

Attention! Pruning remontant varieties Is, in fact, thinning: the removal of stems, leaves, and tendrils that thicken the bush.

When shortening the leaves, you need to do this not at the root, but leave the stems 10 cm long. For these purposes, it is best to take a pruner or sharp scissors. It is not recommended to mow greens, even if the strawberry plantation is very large. After all, this can damage young foliage. It is better not to touch the bushes at all or remove old and diseased leaves selectively, manually.


It is necessary to loosen the ground around the bushes

Very carefully, right under the root, you need to cut off the antennae. You cannot cut them off with your hands - take the same scissors or secateurs. Otherwise, you risk damaging not only the bush, but also its roots. For propagation of the variety, you can leave the first rosette. Remove the rest so that the plant does not waste energy on them.

Attention! After the procedure carried out after harvesting, strawberries do not need additional pruning for the winter.

After rejuvenating and revitalizing the bushes, loosen the soil to a depth of 10 cm. Avoid areas near the roots - work in the aisles. Spill the bushes with potassium permanganate solution. If you notice signs of disease, use Bordeaux mixture or another fungicide.

Be sure to feed garden strawberries... For these purposes, the following are suitable:

  • biohumus;
  • pieces of dry manure;
  • compost;
  • ash (but not in combination with fresh manure);
  • ammophoska;
  • complex mineral dressing.

Don't fertilize strawberries with chlorine - she doesn't like that. Don't forget about watering. At first, moisten the garden bed about every other day. This way the young foliage will grow back faster, which means your garden strawberries will be protected from frost.

Care for strawberries after harvest: video

There is no unequivocal answer to the questions - why and when to cut strawberries after harvest. Gardeners have different opinions on this matter. Someone is for, someone is categorically against. Why prune the leaves? Why do this if you know that the foliage feeds the root? Like, the more foliage, the stronger the bush. Yes, this, of course, is correct. But ... Harvested - get ready for the next one! Sounds like a slogan for a gardener. So, processing it after harvesting is preparing the plantation for the new season. And pruning strawberry leaves is one of the stages of this care.

We all love this berry. In spring, a lot of energy is spent on caring for strawberries before and during flowering, during the formation, ripening of berries. We want more strawberries. To make them larger, juicier, tastier. So, just after the harvest, you need to make every effort to improve, to increase it next year. Strawberries need special care after harvest. This is the most important time for her and for us.

Why trim a strawberry mustache

Surely, you already noticed during the harvest that strawberries (strawberries) give a lot of whiskers. Of course it depends on the variety. Some varieties form a lot of whiskers, some a little, they may even be generally beardless.

Collected all the berries - carefully examine the entire plantation. It is necessary to loosen the beds of garden strawberries, weed them from weeds, remove the mustache.

Strawberries need whiskers for reproduction. If you do not want to get young rosettes, new plants for propagation, then you must immediately pick them off after they appear.

Usually there are several mustaches on one bush. We collect them in one bunch and cut them as close as possible to the base of the bush. By the way, this procedure for trimming the mustache will have to be repeated more than once a season. If we start, we do not do it on time, then the plant will spend all its strength on the growth of whiskers, rosettes and the future harvest will get less. Strawberries will lay less flower buds, which means that there will not be many berries, they will become smaller.

All that is superfluous for the future harvest must be cut off.

In addition, this is necessary so that the strawberries do not thicken, since thickened plantings are more difficult to care for.

When you need to feed, fertilize

Some gardeners do the wrong thing by heavily feeding strawberries before harvesting. This leads to the fact that it is strongly affected by gray rot, this is, firstly. Secondly, although the berries become large, they are watery, less sweet, and have a shorter collection period.

In early spring, before flowering, we apply nitrogen fertilizers. But remember, the main fertilization should be after harvest. This is a top dressing with full mineral fertilizer and organic matter. Many put manure under the strawberries. This, of course, is good - the manure not only nourishes the plants, but also takes care of the strawberry root system.

Hilling strawberries

The fact is that strawberries are a perennial berry plant. Over time, it builds up an aerial root system and begins, as it were, to bulge out of the ground. We have to annually, especially after 3-4 years of cultivation in one place, pour mulch, soil, compost, rotted manure into the aisles, thus covering the roots of strawberries. Mulching helps the roots develop well.

Reasons, timing of leaf trimming

The laying of fruit buds in strawberries (garden strawberries) occurs in June (Krasnodar Territory) - July (middle strip) after harvesting. It is by this time that the first trimming of the mustache and leaves must be timed.

The fact is that a strawberry leaf lives only 60-70 days - 2-2.5 months. And after that, various spots appear on the leaves - whitish, rusty, red. These are signs of leaf aging, the development of various diseases on them.

That is, cutting off the leaves of strawberries (strawberries) is necessary in order to protect the future harvest from diseases.

Trim leaves or whiskers with pruning shears or scissors. Tools must be sharp. Do not pry them off by hand - this can damage the root system. The plant, instead of building up the leaf mass, will recover its strength for a long time.

The chlorophyll production process stops 2-2.5 months after picking the berries - even in healthy plants, the leaves may turn red.

Tip: reddened leaves should be removed so as not to let the pests remaining on them calmly overwinter. Treat the plantation with pest drugs. Only it had to be done much earlier: the picture was taken in September. There is a danger that the young leaves after pruning will not have time to grow - the bare bushes may not survive the frosty winter.

So, a month and a half after picking the berries, we inspect the strawberry plantation (garden strawberry) and remove all the leaves with specks, holes, not forgetting to cut the peduncles. We leave only young leaves.

When to do it? In the Kuban, this is the end of June-beginning of July, in the middle lane - the first half of August. I will not say the exact date - it is not so important. Most importantly, calculate the timing so that in winter your strawberry leaves with young leaves that have already grown.

How to prune strawberries if plants are affected by diseases, pests

If the strawberry bushes are affected by a mite, there is a strong spotting on the leaves, it is necessary to remove all the leaves, even the young ones. Leaves with signs of disease should be cut off as close to the base of the bush as possible, since disease spores can persist on the petioles. Try not to touch the heart of the bush when pruning - the plant will be able to recover faster. By doing such pruning, you will not harm the bush, since strawberries very quickly build up green mass. By cutting off old leaves, you will immediately see where you can loosen the ground, where you need to remove weeds.

Of course, removing all the leaves from the strawberries will not eliminate all pests and diseases. They will remain on the stumps of leaves, on the ground. Simply, it is easier to treat such a bed with drugs for diseases and pests. This processing is more efficient.

Now you can feed the "rejuvenated" bed. At this time, as I already said, fruit buds are laid - the basis of the future harvest, so do not forget to periodically water your strawberries. And if it doesn't rain, keep the soil moist.

Top dressing is required at this time. It is at this time that the strawberries will increase the leaf mass, which in winter, covered with snow, will protect the root system from freezing. That is, the more foliage your bushes leave in the winter, the better they will overwinter. And from this, your harvest will increase.

If during the harvest period you notice berries affected by gray rot, then after the end of fruiting, strawberries need processing. Treat the entire plantation with some kind of fungicide - this can be Topaz or Horus.

Is it possible to mow all strawberry leaves

Not so long ago, walking along my summer cottage street, I saw friends mowing strawberry leaves with a scythe. They have a large berry plot - several hundred square meters - they believe that they cannot do without a scythe. At first I thought that in this way they decided to get rid of the old strawberries, they say, it's time to start a new plantation. But it turned out that it was not so. The owner of the dacha said that they mow the leaves of the strawberries every year, three to four weeks after the last harvest. And this year, some circumstances prevented them from doing it on time and they mowed in mid-August. The strawberry harvest, according to them, is good all the time, it is less sick.

If you have a large plantation and it is over 3-4 years old, then you can follow the example of my friends.

There is another reason for completely cutting off the leaves of strawberries with an oblique or pruning shears (scissors) - this is a strong damage to plantings by diseases and pests. After complete cutting (mowing) of the leaves, the plantation should be treated with any fungicide or pest preparation. Be sure to feed your strawberry - help it grow faster.

It is not necessary to mow on young healthy plantings of strawberries, this depletes the bushes and you deprive yourself of the harvest.

How to care, how to treat strawberry beds after pruning or mowing

I will repeat a little, but this is very important.

  • Loosen the soil around the bushes.
  • Remove weeds.
  • Treat the plantation from diseases and pests.
  • Feed with mineral and organic fertilizers.
  • Water regularly if it doesn't rain during this period.
  • It is very important that the soil in the garden bed is moist all the time - this is necessary for the growth of young foliage.

That's all the simple rules. Now you know how and when to prune strawberries (garden strawberries) after harvest, and how to process them. Good harvest next year is guaranteed for you!

After fruiting, strawberry plants remain active for a long time - it is during this period that the next year's harvest is laid. If the care of strawberries after harvesting is thorough and complete, then next year you can feel an increase in harvest of up to 30%. Rested bushes that have received additional nutrition will give more tasty, juicy, sweet berries. Care for garden strawberries (strawberries) after fruiting continues throughout the summer in July and August.

Care for strawberries in July after harvest

In July, after fruiting, it is imperative to trim the whiskers, remove dry foliage, weed the beds, feed the plants, water and huddle. You do not need to trim or mow all the strawberry foliage in July. You only need to remove unnecessary leaves and mustaches. But if a nematode is found on strawberries, the bushes should be dug up and destroyed without regret. Spraying will save you from strawberry mites. Timely feeding and watering will help the plants to recuperate and stock up on new ones.

Pruning strawberries after harvest

Immediately after harvesting, we advise you to weed the beds, removing all weeds. At the same time, you can remove part of the whiskers, especially those that crawl out of the garden bed, and also cut out all dried leaves and leaf blades starting to turn red.

I advise you to burn the cut leaves as soon as possible. They do not need to be put into compost, and you should not make a layer of mulch or covering material out of them. There may be diseases or pests on the leaves.

Immediately after you remove all the more unnecessary leaves, you must also get rid of the old layer of mulch, if there was one. Then you can start loosening the soil, watering and fertilizing.

How to prune strawberries correctly

You can remove the leaves by combing them out with a rake, mowing or cutting with a garden knife or scissors. I strongly advise against tearing off the leaves: by pulling the leaf, you can pull out the bush or part of it, disrupting the root system. The damaged bush will take a long time to recover, hurt, and the harvest for the next season will decrease.

The best option for those who have small plots is to remove unnecessary leaf blades with sharp garden shears or pruning shears. You can mow the leaves, but try not to damage the sockets and healthy leaf mass.

Post-harvest strawberry processing

When working with garden strawberries, I advise you to pay attention to the leaves more often. If you notice that some have become corrugated, then most likely they were attacked strawberry mite ... If found, the plants must be treated with any approved acaricidal (anti-mite) drugs, strictly following the instructions on the package.

Sometimes the central leaves of a strawberry plant suddenly begin to turn yellow, their petioles noticeably thicken, become shorter. This means only one thing - the bushes were struck nematode ... It is difficult to get rid of it, it is much easier to remove the bushes from the site, and spill the soil where they grew with boiling water.

Loosening strawberries after harvest

Try to loosen only the aisles, I do not advise you to climb close to the bushes, so as not to damage the root system. In the aisles, you can deepen the tip of the hoe by 7-8 cm, this is quite enough. After loosening the row spacing, you can spud the bushes with fresh soil by 2 cm.

First of all, try to huddle those bushes in which the root system is bare for some reason (usually in plants of 2-3 years old), while the soil should not fall into the center of the bush.

Feeding strawberries after harvest

In July, it is successful to use a mixture of complex and mineral fertilizers for feeding. Consumption rate: 20-25 g per 1 m². When using nitroammophos, it is scattered over the soil surface, both dry and dissolved.

How to fertilize strawberries

Dry mineral fertilizers for strawberries must be applied in a certain order:

  1. loosen the soil
  2. pour - a bucket of water for 1 m²,
  3. scatter fertilizer over the surface,
  4. sprinkle with dry soil on top.

Also, dry mineral fertilizers can be dissolved in water (0.5 tbsp. L. Per 1 l of water) and watered with them on the soil under the bushes of earth, spending 2-3 liters per 1 m² of soil.

Attention!

You cannot apply fertilizers containing chlorine, such as potassium chloride, under garden strawberries. Strawberry reacts very badly to chlorine: there may be a slowdown in growth or deterioration in fruiting.


Photo: Phosphate-potassium water-soluble fertilizer Monopotassium phosphate for fertilizing fruit and berry and other crops

Feeding strawberries after harvesting chicken droppings

In July, you can enrich with strawberries and organics. Towards the end of the month, it is permissible to feed the strawberries with chicken droppings diluted 15 times with water. Add dissolved in water chicken droppings it is possible only under the plants, it is impossible to get on the foliage - this can cause severe burns.

In general, try to water and fertilize in the evening or early in the morning.

Watering strawberries after harvest

Watering is combined with top dressing. 2-3 days after feeding, if there is no rain, you can water the strawberries again by pouring 2 buckets per 1 m² and mulch the surface with a 2-3 cm layer of humus. Humus has a very good effect on the soil: it prevents the formation of a crust, does not allow to evaporate moisture, slows down the growth of weeds and improves the structure of the soil substrate.

How often to water strawberries

Throughout the season and until its end, on a strawberry plantation, the soil must be kept in a slightly moist state, not allowing the earthen coma to dry out. Watering should be carried out in accordance with the weather outside the window. If it is cool and it rains, then there is no need to water the plants. If it is dry and hot, then watering is necessary and at least once a week.

For 1 m² of strawberry beds, 2 buckets of water are consumed. When watering, it is advisable to use water that has settled during the day, which the sun warmed up to room temperature.

Diy drip irrigation of strawberries

The ideal irrigation option is drip irrigation: both water is saved and precious time. The optimal solution for do-it-yourself drip irrigation is to install a tank under the roof. Place it on a small elevation and take a few droppers away from it directly into the beds. To prevent leaves or large debris from the roof from getting inside, which can clog the holes of the droppers, the surface of the tank must be covered with a plastic mesh with the smallest holes. Water will pass through the holes, but debris and leaves will not.

Post-harvest strawberry care in August

The second stage of caring for garden strawberries after fruiting occurs in August. At this time, you need to continue removing dry foliage, watering, feeding, removing whiskers. It's also time to start preparing plants for winter period.

Pruning strawberries in August

In August, you need to cut off all dried and starting to turn red leaves on strawberries. First of all, pay attention early varieties, then switch to mid-season and finally cut off the leaves of the late varieties.

Strawberry processing in August

In August, you can carry out preventive treatments against fungal infection (fungicides) and against ticks (acaricidal drugs). Use only approved drugs that are updated annually.

To fight infection, you can use a more gentle one for environment 1% lime solution and copper sulfate... It will prevent the appearance of rot and spotting on plants.

Feeding strawberries in August

To increase the immunity and winter hardiness of plants in August, you can repeat some top dressing. I do not recommend using nitrogen fertilizers in August, excessive growth activity in autumn is useless for strawberries.

You can use a solution of potassium salt (1 tsp per 1 m²) and a solution of superphosphate in the same volume. Superphosphate in cold water it does not dissolve very well, so it is better to use water heated to 35-40 ° C.

Watering strawberries in August

Around the middle of the month, you can loosen the soil on a strawberry bed, water it at the rate of 1.5 buckets per 1 m² and mulch the surface with a layer of humus of 2-3 cm. During the month, it is also worth remembering about additional watering, you should not allow long and strong drying out of the soil ...

Strawberry shelter for the winter

At the end of the month, I advise you to start preparing for the winter period. For these purposes, you need to stock up on covering material, for example, straw or buy a non-woven covering material such as spunbond.