Topic: Weeds in strawberries

[caroline7758]

My strawberry patch, which gave me a great harvest this year, is now full of grass. Should I dig up and move the plants, try to get the grass out, or rely on runners for next year?

[Tee Gee]

Basically the choice is up to you!

My tuppence worth would be;

Count your runners then dig out a similar amount of plants and bin them,thoroughly fettle this area by removing the weed/ grass then deep dig it and add loads of organic matter, then plant out your runners.

Next year this area should be relatively weed free ( subject to yor weeding regime)   

In the remaining area you could try removing as much grass/ weeds as you can and leave till this time next year.

Then next year take runners and repeat the above.

In this way you can have a bit of an annual rotation system like the pundits advocate of renewing your plants every two to three years.

Best of luck!

[caroline7758]

Thanks, TeeGee.  I thought I had weeded well before putting the strawberries in , but you know how it goes...!  (Well, maybe not you as I'm sure you are a lot more meticulous then me!)

[Deb P]

My current strawberry patch got overgrown in June, and I cleared it in July. However, where some grass set seed, there are patches of new fluffy grass growing! It hoes off easily but is pretty persistant...

Since I've made a new patch next door to the old one, the 'old' plants are rejuvenating, fruiting late and throwing out runners like mad so I'm going to keep those for new plants and move them as soon as I've decided where to put them....

[Digeroo]

I keep weeding mine and mulching to reduce the weeds.  Grass likes light so putting something on top will doom it unless it is couch.   Your description of fluffy grass does not sound like couch.

My runners are in pots between the plants and I keep them well watered and fed, and they keep down the weeds as well  and keep the moisture in.   

For me it dandelions they are very persistent and difficult to dig out without disturbing the strawbs.

[jimc]

Seeing you have your strawberries already established, I would persist with the weeding regime. otherwise you will lose another year setting up your new crop.

[pigeonseed]

Mine get a lot of weeds in between too, inspite of weeding before planting - couch grass and dandelions, dock as well. I just get them out a few times a year the best I can. My main worry is that they harbour snails and slugs.
Strawberry plants are pretty tough old things - I found a few growing in the couch grass and brambles on an allotment which had been unused for about 30 years! They produced lovely strawberries once replanted.

I think Tee Gees advice sounds spot on too.

[antipodes]

I spent a good bit of time yesterday weeding my strawbs!! They do tend to get overgrown. I wouldn't dig them out, just really get to the weeds with a small planting trowel and then put down newspaper over the weedy bits and cover that with dry grass or straw or some other mulch. I just planted 3 runners too so hopefully a better crop next year :-)

[caroline7758]

Glad to hear I'm not the only one! I spent about 3 hours weeding the patch and potting up runners yesterday. It looks a lot better but I'm under no illusion that it's weed-free! I also found quite a few runners which had rooted in the soil, possibly from last year, so I'm thinking I might need to thin them out a bit. Then I need to find some mulching material!

[Deb P]

I've been given some large sheets of cardboard, so I'm planning to use that to cover the ground around my new strawberry plants and will manure on top to keep it in place when I get a delivery. Hopefully that will prove to be a good idea and reduce the weeds...

[jimc]

Strawberry plants typically last about 3-4 years here in Oz. So if I have some going a bit old, woody and straggly, I will leave one of the runners near to the old plant then remove the older plant once the new one is established.
Unfortunately it is usual that you have to get them all out at some time and replace. However I am trying hard this time to do as I mentioned above because with the originals in the wild they didn't have anyone there to tend to them as much as we do today. I grow heirlooms so hope they aren't too far removed from the wild source.

[Obelixx]

I try and renew my bed every 3 years by potting on runners and then planting in a new bed with lots of garden compost.    This year the new pla,ts are in a space at the end of my permanent currant bushes bed which is going to be mulched with chipped bark as I'm fed up of weeding under them.  If there's enough, the strawberries will get mulched too but otherwise it's just a case of regular hoeing between them, like the rest of the veggie patch.

Thinking of sowing my first ever green manure this year just to try and reduce the spring weeding and clearing load.  Otherwise I'll be putting down cardboard to block the light.

[antipodes]

A plot holder next to me mulched his strawbs with chipped bark and I admit they were enviably weed free and he got a smashing crop...

[Paul.and.Lynda]

We planted our strawberries in well rotted horse manure and it kept weeds down and produced a bumper crop of strawberries.
We are so impressed that we are building another raised bed for next year and getting 50 more strawberry plants.
The wife is getting ready for jam making next year lol
Paul 

[George the Pigman]

Well mine are full of grass as well - but I had a fine crop this year. Ideally you should have a mixture of 1, 2 and 3 year old plants in the same bed then in the 4 year bin the 3 year old ones and replace them with new babies (from runners). Then repeat this every year. It is difficult to get it weed free but as long as you hoe down the weeds it doesn't seem to matter too much to the yield that they are still there as roots. Mulching with bark is a good idea!

[Digeroo]

Interesting to hear they like wood chips and manure.  I have a good source of a mixture of the two,  will give it a try as a mulch.  I tend to use it on paths, and have to say that were the strawberries are next to the paths they are looking very bonny.

I thought you needed a new bed for the new runners because they rather deplete the soil. I suppose if you feed enough it will do.  My four year bed is now brassicas.   

Mine are rather full of stinging nettles and dead nettles and having weeded a few weeks ago I now have another full house of it.  And will all the feeding it looks very bonny.