DIY Home Improvement Forum banner

Winterizing stawberry plants

8K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Little Wytche 
#1 ·
Any suggestions on what I should do to winterize new strawberry plants? I bought 3 dozen plants last year and lost all but a few through the winter, Those have run and I now have quite a few new plants that I do not want to loose when winter sets in. Any suggestions on what I should do? Winters here get into the teens and for several weeks will be in single digits with ground freeze to about 12". It is sandy soil and we don't usually have snow that lasts more than a day or two.
 
#7 · (Edited)
More extreme winter climate here. We use styrofoam covers (usually marketed for rose plants) pinned down. One of the issues we've had using hay or other quickly decomosing mulch (like lawn clippings) is plant burn as hay usually starts decomposing pretty fast as soon as it gets wet, hay is also notorious for tons of weed seeds. Cheap disposable styrofoam coolers also work well, especially those with nylon rope handles - as they come with handles already set to pin down. Wash them in the spring and stack somewhere not exposed to light. Can use them over and over. You can also easily cut out the bottom which is the top as you invert them to cover your plants, use some plexiglass and sealant and poke or drill a few holes a few inches up from the soil (air), and then pin the old styrofoam cut out back. This way in the spring you remove the pinned top, and they double as cold frames to get your plants in the growing mood and producing fruit a little sooner then your neighbors' strawberry plants!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top