I have just received a catalogue which says they sell frozen Strawberry Plants which you plant out in May to July. Has anyone tried popping a few plants into the freezer?
Is this the way that commercial growers extend their seasons?
I have quite a few runners so thought I might sacrifice a few and give it a whirl.
The plants that are sold for planting out late spring to early summer are *cold-stored* which I took to mean stored at a low temperture to check growth until planting time. These will give a small crop in the first year. Id be very surprised if the plants were actually frozen. Why dont you ask them how they store them.
I will email them but I doubt they will tell me the exact temperatrue they use expect it is a trade secret I have two options the fridge and the freezer. I will try both. Worst thing I can do it to kill a few runners. The catalogue says frozen rather than chilled.
I have found on Marshalls website that they keep theirs at -1.8 c which might be rather difficult to achieve. Freezer too cold fridge not cold enough.