In mid-August, the last remontant varieties of strawberries and wild strawberries, growing in open ground. Many gardeners miss the fact that after harvesting it is necessary to continue to care for the plant, otherwise next year the fruits may become smaller, and the bushes may be infected with pests and diseases.
Strawberries after harvesting what to do with the bush
Knowing when to prune strawberries after harvest is fairly simple as there is a second wave of fresh foliage growth. Old greenery fades. Sometimes redness of the cuttings is observed, which indicates the bush’s desire to get rid of the leaves on its own. To help the plant, gardeners remove them. Typically, strawberries are pruned no later than July 20th. Otherwise, negative consequences for the kidneys are possible (damage during plant care, disease).
Strawberries begin to actively produce whiskers in August. The first two rosettes (the shoots with which it reproduces) can be left, the rest can be cut off. The remaining rosettes are buried in drops without cutting the tendrils that connect them to the mother bush.
At the moment when all the strawberries are harvested, pruning of leaves and tendrils is done using pruners or scissors. This is necessary to prepare the plant for winter: it will not waste its energy on feeding the foliage and will provide itself with a supply of microelements to survive the cold.
Beginning gardeners often ask about when to prune strawberries after fruiting. It would be right to start cleaning on the second or third day, especially if the plant is sick. This tactic will help reduce the risk of the occurrence or spread of infection of healthy plants by various diseases.
It is considered correct to prune as close to the base of the bush as possible, since disease spores can persist even on cuttings. The tool must have sharp and clean blades so as not to cause the spread of infections. Do not tear off the tendrils and leaves with your hands - this can damage the roots.
How to mow strawberries in summer and why you need to do it
If novice gardeners doubt whether they need to prune strawberries after harvesting, then experienced gardeners are confident in the need for the procedure.
Pruning strawberries after fruiting is a special mowing method, which has its own characteristics:
- a high increase in yield is possible if you mow the foliage on the second or third day after harvesting in order to prevent the spread of possible diseases throughout the area;
- mowing and cleaning up the removed leaves will help protect the plant and the entire plantation from pests and diseases;
- Immediately after mowing, the bushes are fertilized and watered.
Young plants do better with special attention carry out individual pruning with scissors or pruning shears. Bushes from three years old can be treated with a scythe or a trimmer with a fishing line (you need to work at low speed), especially if you do not intend to get new shoots from them for propagation. Mown three- and four-year-old strawberries after harvest will certainly delight you with healthy fruits in the next season.
Processing strawberries after harvest
Both during the period of ripening of berries and after harvesting, it is important that the soil in the garden bed is constantly moist - this will ensure the rapid growth of young foliage. Knowing what to do with your strawberries after harvest will help increase the plant's fruit production the following season.
After cutting, you need to use warm water to irrigate the bushes. Water at sunset or in the morning to avoid sunburn. After irrigation, the soil is loosened and mulched. If you constantly water strawberries, despite the lack of fruits, then by spring they will produce much more flower buds.
What to do with strawberries after fruiting: protection from insects
Every experienced gardener knows how to treat strawberries after trimming the leaves to protect them from insects. The first plant prevention is carried out during the growing season before flowering. When all the strawberries have been harvested, processing after fruiting is carried out again, no later than mid-August.
Usually, the drug "Aktelikom" is used to protect plants (15-20 ml per 10 liters of water, if there are a lot of pests, the procedure can be repeated after 8-10 days). The product will effectively cope with the strawberry transparent mite that eats young leaves. Spraying with iodine solution (5-10 drops per 10 liters of water) will protect you from weevils.
Treatment of strawberries after harvest against pests includes complex fertilizer with urea in the proportion of 30 g per 10 liters of liquid or infusion: 2 tbsp. l. nitroammophoska, 10 liters of water and 1 cup of ash.
Many people are interested in how to feed strawberries after trimming the leaves without using expensive products. Nettle is used for this. It is poured into a bucket of water and left for a week. Water the bushes after harvesting, mowing and at the stage of bush formation to protect it from pests.
Processing strawberries after fruiting: disease prevention
After harvesting, as well as to reduce disease incidence, it is better to use Fitosporin (against fungal diseases in the proportion of 1 tablespoon of liquid solution per 10 liters of water per 2 sq.m. area) or Fitop (prepared similarly).
How to feed strawberries after harvest
Complex fertilizer with mineral substances ("Shungite", "Elegy", Bui fertilizers "For strawberries", etc.) is considered universal. However, feeding with organic matter also gives good result. Therefore, having chosen how to fertilize strawberries after harvesting: manure or legume siderites, start cultivating the land.
How to process strawberries after fruiting and pruning:
- remove weeds and loosen the soil;
- water the beds with organic matter dissolved in water (mullein, horse manure);
- mulch the area with peat or pine needles;
- water through mulch.
How to treat strawberries after pruning to form flower buds
You can use universal fertilizers (for example, Ammofoska, Nutriflex S), which are available in an assortment in any specialized store. Typically, the solution is made in the proportion of 10 grams of product to 10 liters of water. But you can feed the berries with a combination of nitrogen substances and ammonium nitrate.
Strawberry leaves live for about two months. When they wither, various spots appear on them: faded white, red and even scarlet. These are signs of aging foliage and the development of a variety of diseases on it.
There is no point in thinking about whether it is necessary to cut strawberries after fruiting, since it is the cutting of strawberry (strawberry) leaves that helps protect future fruits from diseases.
Pruning and processing strawberries after fruiting
Knowing how strawberries are processed after harvest is very important. After 3-4 years of growing berries in one place, it is necessary to fertilize the soil with compost, rotted manure, and mulch the soil with sawdust and ash. This will help cover the strawberry roots visible from the soil. For those who are interested in how to care for strawberries after harvesting, it is worth noting that mulching and hilling will ensure good root development.
Bottom line
Using tips on how to properly process strawberries after harvest will help you protect the plant from infections and prepare it for winter. Keep an eye on the bushes, provide them with proper care and prune them after fruiting, as a result, you will have a large and abundant harvest next year.
Each garden crop has its own characteristics of care, and a zealous owner observes them so that the garden pleases with a bountiful harvest. Strawberry beds in the summer are strewn with juicy berries, but caring for berry bushes does not end with picking the fruits: abandoned plantings without proper treatment will winter worse and the yield will decrease. In the fall, you need to trim the plant, feed it, and improve its health, because autumn period very important for laying down all the factors of productivity. Well-groomed strawberries will survive the winter well in the most extreme cold, and in the summer they will produce a lot of ripe berries.
How to care for strawberries after fruiting
Standard care is not limited to simple weeding and loosening the beds: the gardener must also take care of removing old and withered shoots, moistening the soil and mulching it, fertilizing using a variety of means, sanitary treatment etc.
In addition, there may be features different varieties garden strawberries (this is how the berry is called in botany, which we all call “strawberries”), regional differences - the care scheme always takes into account the timing of the onset of cold weather.
Strawberry shoots, called mustaches, sometimes grow in such numbers that you can’t even raise your hand to simply remove them all. But you still have to thin out the young shoots. They leave the healthiest, strong shoots, sufficiently developed to begin independent life. They are separated from the mother bush and transplanted to a new bed.
The remaining antennae are removed. If this is not done, the growing shoots will interfere with the formation of the generative sphere of the plant, drawing moisture from the soil and nutrients. As a result, the entire bush may weaken significantly, and the yield will decrease. You can only remove a mustache with a sharp one. garden tool, adjacent to the soil as tightly as possible - a garden knife is best suited for this. They cut off the shoots just above the soil.
It is unacceptable to pull out the antennae with your hands: with such removal, the root suffers. With partial loss of the root system, there is a high risk that the strawberry bush will dry out.
The intensity of irrigation depends on weather conditions and the amount of precipitation. In rainy weather with a large amount of atmospheric moisture, watering is not necessary. It is more useful in such conditions to loosen the soil in order to speed up evaporation. excess moisture from the ground. Removing a couple of the lowest leaves will also help to prevent the spread of rot: they not only rot themselves when lying on wet soil, but also slow down the removal of moisture.
The drier and hotter the weather, the more abundantly the bushes need to be watered. Strawberry beds are watered only in the morning or late afternoon: the lower the sun, the better the moisture is absorbed by the soil and the plant develops. For bushes, it is best for the beds to be moderately moist at all times: waterlogging causes rotting of the root system, but dry soil also has a bad effect on strawberries. This crop needs the soil to be wet by 5 cm, then the roots will be watered.
Bottom watering is used, directly under the plant. Moistening under the sun's rays harms strawberries, as does overhead watering: drops of water on the leaves of garden strawberries form a kind of lens, causing sunburn.
Best used for moisturizing rainwater collected in a tank. If applicable tap water, it must settle before watering in an open container so that the chlorine evaporates.
Not all owners can be present at the dacha every day, especially when the summer holidays are over. In such cases, installing a reservoir that collects precipitation and distributes rain moisture over the beds will help. A larger container is placed higher, one or more holes are drilled in the bottom and “droppers” are made for watering by connecting tubes. These tubes, placed next to the strawberry beds, will constantly supply moisture to the soil.
In the fall until September, watering is abundant or normal, after which water once a week until the onset of cold weather.
Feeding and fertilizing are often combined with thinning strawberry plantings and removing excess growth. This is explained by the fact that during fruiting the plant depletes its strength, and before winter you need to feed the bushes so that they bloom in the spring. Loosening must be carried out regularly; it accompanies watering the plants: loosened soil accepts moisture more easily and releases its excess more easily.
Loosening is carried out both between the rows and around the bushes. Do it carefully, as strawberries have fragile roots. When the soil in the garden is loosened, the plant breathes and feeds better. It is advisable to slightly hill up the roots of the bushes during loosening; this strengthens the root system and improves its nutrition.
Before depositing folk remedies the soil is loosened and watered. The optimal amount of wood ash is 50 g per bush. It is used along with potassium fertilizers, since there is little of it in the ash, no more than 5%, but this substance is rich in microelements. Humus is poured under the bushes; it must be fresh, not dried out.
For greater benefits and improved absorption of all useful substances contained in fertilizers, they are combined with yeast. Add to soil and herbal infusions with yeast, using green mown grass, weeds, nettles, etc.
There is such a thing as a green manure crop - that is, plants that are grown and at a certain point of maturity (not necessarily full) mowed so that the green part fertilizes other plants. When growing some crops, green manure is simply plowed or dug into the ground, and in the case of strawberry beds, it is watered with this infusion.
To prepare a nutrient solution, take a bag of dry yeast, half a glass of sugar and dissolve it in a three-liter jar. Place mowed grass (fresh, 5 buckets) in a barrel or other large container, add a shovel of chicken droppings, and the same amount of wood ash and soil. Pour in the yeast starter (must be warm) and leave for a day. Introduced into the aisle
Add to complex fertilizers jam instead of sugar, and instead of yeast you can use black rye bread (dried), soaking it with the addition of chicken droppings.
During the post-harvest period, it is optimal to use the following mineral fertilizers for strawberries:
- ammonium nitrate;
- superphosphate;
- potassium sulfate.
On a bucket warm water you need 15 g of potassium sulfate, the same calculation for ammonium nitrate, superphosphate dissolves 50 g per bucket. On square meter Strawberry beds require a liter of fertilizer.
When talking about what is healthier - natural or mineral products - you need to remember that the more varied the strawberry diet, the better it grows and bears fruit. And to find out the specific needs of the berries, it is necessary to determine the composition of the soil.
Starts at the end of August and ends in the last ten days of September.
At the end of fruiting, strawberry plantings are treated to protect against pests and diseases. Before starting treatment, each bush must be inspected to detect signs of insects or pathogens.
The most common diseases of strawberries:
- powdery mildew;
- gray and black rot;
- spotting.
The most common pests are:
- spider and strawberry mites;
- strawberry weevil.
Preventive treatment is carried out:
- colloidal sulfur – 100 g/bucket of water, wet the surface;
- copper chloroxide – 45-50 g/bucket, surface wetting;
- karbofos - 70 g/bucket, treat the leaves above and below, as well as the soil.
All parts of the plant showing signs of disease or the presence of a pest in any form are removed and destroyed (burned). The same needs to be done with old mulch: all pathogenic organisms and fungi hide in straw or other covering material.
Regardless of the quality of care, the amount of fertilizer and the diligence of the gardener, strawberries bear fruit for no more than five years. A sign of fading and degeneration of the berry is small fruits, a low stem, then a complete absence of fruiting.
These strawberry beds need updating. Therefore, after a five-year-old bush has been harvested, the plant is cut off completely, leaving no more than three centimeters of bristles above the soil. Before this, dried plants are completely removed.
Pruning strawberries and caring for them after harvest: video
Remontant strawberries have a long fruiting period and high productivity, so they need more nutrients than regular varieties. After the last harvest of the season is harvested, the plant needs complete rest after careful but careful weeding, fertilizing and moistening the soil.
Digging of repair beds is done long before frost, while still in the warmth of the last summer or first autumn days. This will ensure the normal functioning of soil microorganisms and earthworms. In addition, its future pollinators - bumblebees and wild bees. By disturbing them just before winter, the gardener deprives beneficial insects chance to survive until spring.
Old leaves of remontant varieties of this berry crop are removed, and the tops and those children that will not be replanted are cut off. Those tendrils that, due to the lateness of time, no longer have time to take root, are also removed. In the fall, they pinch off late blooms from remontant strawberries: such flowers will draw a lot of strength from the “mother,” and she will still need them when she comes out of hibernation.
Preparations for winter begin before the onset of cold weather, so you need to look at the weather forecast. In rainy autumn additional watering not required. The soil from a hole 5 cm deep does not crumble - a sign of good moisture. If the soil pours out from a handful, per square meter of strawberry beds in the last ten days of October you will need 1-2 buckets of water at room temperature.
You should not ignore it, this is a significant part of the guarantee of a good harvest next year. If there is enough moisture in the soil, then water the plants late autumn no need, if it’s not enough, then around the end of October you can pour a couple of buckets of water per square meter of soil.
At the end of watering, it is advisable to tuck a little moistened soil onto the roots of the plant where they are visible, i.e. not completely covered with soil. When the thermometer shows sub-zero temperatures, it’s time to think about mulch.
Some gardeners advise mulching with straw - a dense covering retains heat well. The disadvantage is that such a warm shelter can also be favored by small rodents who use the sweet roots and stems of strawberries as food. Therefore, if as winter shelter straw has been selected, it is worth placing rodent baits with pesticides on the beds.
Others recommend coniferous spruce branches. By itself, it will not protect against frost, but it is an excellent snow retainer. Therefore, it should only be used when there is a guarantee of a snowy winter. On bare ground, spruce branches will not protect from the cold; the bushes will suffer from frost.
Caring for strawberries after harvest: video
After harvesting the strawberries, you need to carry out simple agrotechnical measures necessary for entering winter and normal wintering. Timely weeding, watering and sanitation ensure good harvest and plant health.
Midsummer is a hot time for harvesting strawberries (garden strawberries). It would seem that after picking these delicious berries, you can forget about caring for strawberry bushes until the next season, that is, until spring. However, this opinion is erroneous, since already this year, after fruiting, flower buds of the next year’s harvest begin to form on garden strawberries. Therefore, after picking the berries, strawberries should be properly cared for. We recommend studying how to water and what to feed strawberries after fruiting in July, August and September in our article.
After harvesting, caring for strawberries includes the following procedures:
- regular watering;
- weeding;
- loosening and hilling;
- feeding;
- removal of mustaches and dried leaves.
Weeding and loosening
After fruiting, the strawberry beds should first be cleared of weeds. If the soil was covered with mulch, it should be removed, as pests and diseases can accumulate in old straw or sawdust.
To allow air to reach the roots, the soil around the bushes must be loosened. This should be done carefully to avoid damaging the roots.
After weeding and loosening, the strawberries are watered and hilled, covering the new growing roots with soil. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the heart of the plant is not covered with soil.
Watering strawberries in July
Many gardeners are interested in - Do I need to water strawberries in July?. The watering procedure must be carried out. The frequency and abundance of watering depends on the weather. In dry and warm weather, strawberries are watered at least once every 5-7 days in July. If it's cool outside and it's raining, there's no need to water the strawberry beds.
Attention! The soil should not be allowed to dry out. If there is no precipitation in warm weather, use approximately two buckets of water for each square meter of bed.
Trimming tendrils and leaves
About 2-3 days after harvesting, remove old dried leaves from the strawberry bushes, as well as those that have red, tan or white spots. These are dying leaves that take away nutrition from the plant. They should be removed using pruning shears or sharp scissors.
Along with the leaves, unnecessary strawberry mustaches are also removed. For propagation, you can leave the most productive and powerful rosette, which is located immediately next to the mother plant.
Attention! When removing leaves and tendrils, be careful not to damage the hearts and new leaves.
Old foliage is often infected with various diseases and pests, so be sure to remove it.
How to feed strawberries after fruiting
In July, after trimming leaves and tendrils on strawberry bushes, the plants need nitrogen, which will stimulate the growth of new foliage. Can choose:
- Nitramfoska or nitrophoska. Any fertilizer is diluted at the rate of 1-2 tbsp. spoons per 10 liters of water. If you only use nitrophoska, add a glass of wood ash, which contains many trace elements, to the solution.
- Ammofoska. Fertilizer contains a large number of microelements. You can prepare a solution from it (for 10 liters of water - Matchbox fertilizing) or use dry. Dry fertilizer is scattered around strawberry bushes at the rate of 20 grams (matchbox) per 1 square meter. meter of planting, after which the beds are watered.
In the second half of July - early August, mullein or bird droppings will be a good fertilizer for strawberries. They cannot be added fresh, as they can burn the roots of the plants. It is recommended to use solutions:
- chicken droppings dilute 1:15 and water the bushes with it so that the solution does not get on the foliage;
- mullein dilute 1:10, leave for 24 hours and use as directed.
Chicken droppings and mullein can be enriched with mineral fertilizers by adding to the solution wood ash(per 10 liters – 1 liter of ash).
Attention! Strawberries do not like chlorine, so potassium chloride and other fertilizers containing this element cannot be applied to strawberries. Otherwise, the plants will grow and bear fruit worse.
Caring for strawberries in August
Watering
The last month of summer is often hot, so be sure to water your strawberry beds about twice a week. If the foliage begins to dry out and wilt, the plants do not have enough moisture.
Around mid-August, the soil around the strawberries can be covered with mulch. First, the beds are watered abundantly (per 1 sq. m - 15 liters of water). You can use humus as mulch, spreading it in a layer of 2-3 cm. Such mulch will become a good top dressing and at the same time protect the soil from drying out. Strawberries can be watered less often.
Tillage of soil and bushes
Do not forget to promptly remove weeds from strawberry beds, which not only prevent strawberries from growing, but also take away nutrition from the soil.
If the leaves on your strawberries are still drying out and turning yellow, continue trimming them. Each bush should have at least 3-4 healthy young leaves.
Trim the newly appeared mustaches, and transplant those left for propagation to a new bed.
What to feed strawberries in August
In the last month of summer, there is no need for foliage to actively grow, so fertilizers containing large amounts of nitrogen are not used.
If you didn't feed your strawberries with mullein or bird droppings in July, do it in August. Bird droppings dilute 1:20, and mullein - 1:10. One watering can (10 liters) will be enough to feed 12 bushes.
In August, it is recommended to feed strawberries with potassium and phosphorus. These elements are part of Fasco fertilizer. Fertilizers Agricola, Ryazanochka, Rubin are produced especially for strawberries, which are used according to the instructions supplied with them.
After watering and fertilizing, do not forget to carefully loosen and hill up the strawberry bushes.
Treatment against pests and diseases
It is imperative to carry out preventive treatment of strawberries against various pests and diseases. To do this, water the soil with a weak solution of manganese and spray the foliage.
Strawberry leaves should be inspected regularly:
- Brown spots on leaves may be a sign of viral diseases. Treat the plantings with Bordeaux mixture.
- Damage to young leaves often signals that there is an earth mite in the strawberry bed. Use Actellik, collodide sulfur solution or Titovia Jet to destroy it.
- If the berries are rotting before harvest, perhaps the plants are affected by a fungus. When all the berries have been collected, the foliage should be sprayed with a solution of copper oxychloride.
Caring for strawberries in September
In the first month of autumn, strawberries are prepared for wintering. If after harvesting the strawberries were properly cared for, flowers will still form on the plants. They should be picked off, since there will be no more berries, and the flowering will take away the strength from the plant. You also need to trim off new tendrils and withered foliage.
Do I need to water strawberries in the fall?
If the weather is dry, strawberry beds are watered 1-2 times a month in September. About 10 liters of water are consumed for every square meter. Since autumn is already cool, frequent watering can lead to the development of fungal diseases. Therefore, it is better to water strawberries rarely, but abundantly.
Before covering the plantings in October, water-recharging irrigation is carried out.
What to feed strawberries in September
To survive the cold winter, plants need strength, for which they are fed with phosphate fertilizers. You can use superphosphate (50 grams) and wood ash (1 cup), which are diluted in a bucket of water.
Plants before winter can be "warmed" using cow manure or chicken manure for this:
- cow dung diluted in water (1:10), add wood ash (1 cup) and pour one and a half liters under each plant;
- chicken droppings diluted in water 1:15, after which each bush is fed with a liter of solution.
Mulching
In September, the soil on the strawberry bed is covered with mulch (if this was not done in August). Dry crushed grass, pine needles, straw, leaf humus, and sawdust can be used as mulch. The layer of mulch should be about 5 cm.
You can cover the soil under the plants with a spandboard.
Shelter for the winter
Only weakened plants that have not received the necessary nutrition need additional shelter for the winter. Bushes cover at a temperature of about -3 degrees and dry weather. In this case, the covering material will remain dry. For shelter, you can use dry potato tops, leaves, spruce branches, straw, raspberry branches.
When to cover strawberries for the winter depends on the climate of the region. It could be October or November when light frosts set in.
If all the activities were carried out when caring for strawberries after fruiting in July, August and September, next year the strawberries will thank their owners with a good harvest.
In the second half of summer, all the berries from the strawberry beds have already been collected, but we must not forget about the plants. The quality of care for strawberries after fruiting will determine how good the harvest will be next year.
At the end of July or beginning of August, caring for strawberries consists of several activities:
1. Trimming. Usually, a month after picking the berries, the strawberry leaves are mowed, and all the mustache is removed, if not required. planting material for propagation or rejuvenation of strawberries. Pruning of old leaves is done for the purpose of prevention various diseases. It is recommended to cut the leaves by hand with pruners or scissors to avoid damaging the growing point, and the young leaves in the center can be left.
After clearing the beds of yus leaves, the strawberry plantation looks neat, you can evaluate the condition of the hearts and the density of the planting. You cannot delay pruning until the end of August or carry it out in September; by autumn the plants must grow new leaves, which will go into winter. There is also no need to rush into pruning strawberries, since the bushes, left without protection from the sun, will suffer from the summer heat.
2. Mustache removal When planting strawberries of the first and second year, they do so regularly all summer long. To propagate strawberries, whiskers are left on three-year-old plants. 1 or 2 mustaches are left from each bush, and there should be two rosettes on them; the remaining length is removed, since only the first rosettes are the strongest. To root, the rosettes on the mustache are pressed to the ground or directly into buried cups.
3.After trimming the strawberries, the beds are cleared of mulch . Mulching for strawberries is done in the first half of summer to maintain moisture in the soil, protect against weeds, and the berries on the litter ripen clean. After removing the old mulch, the soil between the strawberry bushes is deeply loosened, the bushes are hilled up a little, but the center of the hearts is not covered.
4. Fertilizer for strawberries after pruning is necessary to give impetus to the growth of new greenery. Fertilizing strawberries with complex mineral fertilizer can be done simultaneously with loosening; for this, fertilizer is scattered on the bed at a rate of 20 grams per 1 sq.m. and with loosening they are buried deep into the ground. To fertilize strawberries, you cannot use fertilizers that contain chlorine, for example, potassium chloride.
Can be replaced mineral fertilizer organic fertilizers. Strawberries quickly begin to grow after watering with an infusion of chicken manure; for this it is diluted 1:15.
At the end of August or September, strawberry beds are mulched with compost humus; this layer of mulch is necessary not only for nutrition, but also for protection from the first frosts, and will also cover exposed roots.
5. After pruning, strawberries are regularly watered generously once a week. if the weather is hot and dry. It is useful to water the strawberry beds 1-2 times with a pink solution of potassium permanganate; this will prevent diseases and additionally feed the plants.
6. After picking the berries and trimming the leaves, strawberries must be treated for diseases and pests . The drugs Actellik, Fufafon or Fitoverm will help get rid of a complex of pests. When powdery mildew spray with a solution containing Topaz.
To get a good harvest of selected strawberries in the future, they need to be properly processed after harvesting in the present. Namely: cut off the mustache and extra leaves, or even mow them down; spray for diseases; fill with fertilizers, carry out moisture charging irrigation.
When the bushes bear fruit, they need restoration. But the plants continue to be depleted due to the runners and old leaves, somewhere withered and beaten by rain or hail. Therefore, on the plantation of the second or third year, they must be removed with a pruner. If this is done immediately after picking the berries, then the young bushes will have enough time to:
- have time to increase the green mass;
- accumulate nutrients;
- go into the winter with a reserve of energy for the next harvest.
Removing whiskers and old strawberry leaves
Sockets that are unnecessary but have already taken root should also be removed. If you like a particularly productive bush, its rosettes can be transplanted to a new ridge.
On five-year-old, especially infected plantations, complete mowing is allowed. This does not mean that you need to take your scythe and go to the berry patch. Simply use sharp pruning shears to remove all above-ground parts of the plants, leaving petioles 5 cm wide and without affecting the dense and green “heart” at the base of the roots.
If the plantation was infected with fungal infections, then experienced gardeners after mowing, they “walk” over the plants and the ground around them, and also blowtorch. This must be done quickly, without lingering on each bush for more than 1 second.
It is better for beginners not to resort to such extreme methods, but to lay out new beds in a timely manner.
New tendrils that grow in the future continue to be regularly removed, but new growing leaves are no longer touched.
Processing strawberries after fruiting
When everything unnecessary has been removed from the beds - leaves, tendrils, weeds, the ground must be disinfected copper sulfate or diluted potassium permanganate. The color of the solution should be crimson. This must be done, trying not to get it on the plants, but to be sure, it is better to lightly water it after treatment. clean water from a watering can with a sprayer.
After a day or two, strawberries need to be fed with one of the mineral complexes:
- Nitrophoska;
- Ammophoska;
- Azofoska.
These fertilizers are suitable if time is not lost - no later than the end of July. If it happens in August, then 
nitrogen fertilizers are excluded and then mixed for feeding:
- superphosphate;
- potassium sulfate;
- ash.
Fertilizers can be applied either dry during the next loosening of the soil, or in dissolved form.
Until the end of summer, you need to continue to remove new tendrils, leaving healthy leaves; weed, loosen and water. You can cover the soil between the bushes and between the rows with a layer of mulch. Then there will be no need for loosening, watering will be reduced, and weed growth will weaken.
Treatment for pests and diseases after harvest
Biological products are used to treat and prevent fungal diseases:
- Fitosporin-M. A microbiological agent that quickly spreads through the vessels of plants instantly affects the causative agents of many bacterial and fungal diseases.
- Alirin-B. Used for the treatment and prevention of gray rot, rust, scab, powdery mildew, root rot, etc. In addition, it can reduce soil toxicity.
- Verticillin. The biological insecticide is most effective against the complex of aphids, whiteflies and thrips.
After treatment with microbiological substances, the fruits can be removed without waiting for a certain period of time.
From chemicals The most effective against pests are:
It should be remembered that after treating with insecticides, you need to wait two weeks and only then remove the fruits. Therefore, it is better to use them before setting berries and after harvesting.
Folk remedies
Accessible, inexpensive, environmentally friendly, safe for plants and humans components have long been used by gardeners to process strawberries during the entire growing season.
Powdery mildew
The fungus appears as a white coating on all above-ground parts of the plant, oppressing the bush and reducing winter hardiness. It spreads quickly throughout the entire area of plantings. The disease appears at increased rates of nitrogen fertilizers, high humidity and soil temperature.
You can fight it with:
- Soap-salt solution. Take 40-50 g of both per bucket of water. Treatment is carried out weekly.
- Whey (yogurt or kefir). For 9 liters of water, 1 liter of fermented milk product. Treatment – once every 5-7 days.
- Mustards. Water or spray with a solution of mustard (2 tbsp) in water (10 l).
- Horsetail. Take 100 g of herb per liter of water, let it brew for a day, then bring it to a temperature of 60 degrees over low heat and cool. Dilute with water 4 times and spray strawberries once a week for a month.
Mustard solution for processing strawberries
Gray rot
Towards the end of summer, when the temperature drops and the humidity, on the contrary, increases, gray rot becomes more active.
Berries that come into contact with the soil are the first to become infected. They become covered with a gray fluffy coating and smell like mold. The disease spreads very quickly and can kill most harvest.
Iodine is popularly considered the most effective remedy in the fight against gray mold. It (1 ml) is diluted in water (5 l) and sprayed on green berries after harvesting.
Iodine to save strawberries from gray rot
In addition to iodine, you can use the following recipe:
- a glass of ash;
- a glass of chalk;
- a teaspoon of copper sulfate;
- a bucket of water.
Everything is mixed and processed before flowering and after harvesting the berries.
When the garlic arrows appear (0.5 kg), they are broken out, cut, and poured hot water(3 l), infuse for two days. By diluting with water, bring the volume to 10 liters and water the strawberries.
brown spot
It appears as light dotted spots with a dark border, progresses with high humidity, starting with old leaves.
If a disease is detected, they should be cut out immediately. Traditional methods the struggles are:
These solutions should be sprayed on the leaves and soil.
White spot
The disease virus penetrates the leaf plate and actively develops with excess moisture. If small white spots appear, you should immediately remove the mulch, if any, the tendrils, all old leaves and give potassium fertilizer. You can spray it with ash or iodine solution.
Fusarium wilt
The disease most often manifests itself on weakened bushes, with sharp temperature fluctuations, and a lack of minerals. First, the root is affected and only then the leaves - they wither, dry out and die.
Wilting strawberry bush
Since symptoms can be detected when the root is already diseased, the plant is removed and burned. Nearby bushes and soil are treated for prevention with iodine, ash or garlic solution.
Crop rotation helps prevent fusurium and verticillium wilt, as well as fungal infections and rot.
In addition, you need to remember that strawberries do not like low-lying areas, thick bushes, excess nitrogen and moisture. Best of all fructifies on southern slopes.
The strawberry cycle in the garden
While it is quite easy to get rid of pests, it is much more difficult to get rid of bacterial diseases and all kinds of rot. Crop rotation when planting a plantation significantly increases the chances of having time to escape viruses. Since strawberries bear fruit well without rejuvenating measures for only three years, four-year-old bushes should be removed and burned after harvesting.
Considering that the best predecessors of strawberries are garlic and onions, the berry plant is laid as follows:
Do you follow the rules of crop rotation when growing strawberries?
YesNo
- 0 ridge – winter garlic;
- 1 ridge – strawberries of the 1st year of fruiting;
- 2nd ridge – strawberries of the 2nd year of fruiting;
- 3rd row – strawberries of the 3rd year of fruiting;
- 4th row - strawberries of the 4th year of fruiting.
(The ridges are taken conditionally - it can be one hundred square meters or a hectare).
At the end of July - beginning of August, the garlic is harvested, the zero bed is filled with fertilizers and dug up. Fresh rosettes taken from two-year-old bushes are placed on it.
The rosettes for planting are those that are located first to the mother bush. IN as a last resort, if there is a shortage of material, you can take the second one.
The fourth ridge is cleared (the old bushes are burned). Winter garlic is planted on it in the fall.
Next year the strawberry looks like this:
- on the zero ridge - bushes 1 year old;
- on the first - bushes 2 years old;
- on the second - bushes 3 years old;
- on the third - bushes 4 years old;
- on the fourth - garlic.
Now in August the third ridge will be vacated, the garlic will “move” onto it, and new rosettes will be placed in its place. Thus, the strawberry plant can constantly occupy the same part of the plot, but if desired, it can “walk” throughout the entire garden.
The main thing is that its predecessors are not tomatoes and potatoes, since they have the same diseases as strawberries.
Properly planned crop rotation allows you to obtain stable harvests from year to year.
Winter shelters for berries
If bushes of the second, third and fourth years of life can winter without shelter (provided there is sufficient snow cover), then the new plantings need to be insulated. It is also necessary to insure rare varieties and new products, the endurance of which is still unknown.
To prevent plants from rotting away, they need to be covered after daylight hours have been established. subzero temperature. Usually this is the end of October - beginning of November, plus or minus ten days. You can cover:
- spruce branches;
- dry leaves (from the forest);
- stems of sunflower, corn, reeds;
- white non-woven fabric.
Shelter of a young strawberry bush with spruce branches
In addition, shields are installed near the ridges perpendicular to the prevailing winds for snow retention.
If you carry out all the activities for processing strawberries after harvesting: properly trim them, fertilize them, water them and cover them, then they will “thank” the gardener with large, aromatic berries in large quantities.
