Rules and features of transplanting strawberries in the fall
Over time, many gardeners notice that the strawberry crop has decreased dramatically. Therefore, everyone is concerned about the question of why this is happening, and whether it is necessary to transplant strawberry bushes in this situation. In this article, we will consider in detail the main reasons, rules and methods for transplanting a berry crop in the autumn.
Reasons and goals of transplantation
A feature of the strawberry bush is that every year it actively grows. If in the first year there is only one horn, then in the next season there will already be 2-3 horns. It is in this quantity that the bush has a good yield, where there are a large number of large fruits. In the third year, the bush grows to the presence of 6-9 horns, while the yield decreases significantly.
We can say that strawberries can actively develop and bring a good harvest in one area without replanting for three years, after which it is imperative to carry out transplantation activities.
There are varieties of berries that bear fruit for more than three years, but this will happen if you properly care for the bushes and regularly feed the plants with special additives. Some gardeners do not transplant strawberries even at 4-5 years of age, using small berries when making jam.
Experienced summer residents recommend replanting strawberries in the fall:
- strawberry harvest will be next year;
- if the transplant is done correctly and on time, the strawberry root system will actively develop, thereby providing the plant with enough nutrients.
Ways
There are several ways to propagate strawberry bushes, consider the most popular of them.
The division of the bush
At the time of harvesting the strawberry crop, you should choose a bush, which will later be used for division. After harvesting, the selected bush must be spudded using compost or humus.
After such a procedure, the root system will begin to actively develop, and by autumn the planting material will be ready for transplantation.
- An adult overgrown plant is dug out along with the ground. You need to act very carefully so as not to damage the root system.
- After you need to remove all the old leaves and shoots, as well as get rid of the clod of earth.
- The prepared bush is placed in a large container with water.
- When the plant is slightly soaked, you can begin to separate the horns from each other.
- If you still have horns that have not separated from the main stem on their own, they should be cut with a knife.
- For each separated horn, dry leaves, peduncles and the old root system must be removed. On one division, two young stems and only light roots should remain.
- In order for the seedlings to take root better in a new place, the root system should be treated with a disinfectant, which can be purchased at a specialized store. There is an old proven method using clay-dung mash.To prepare it, you need clay, manure and water in a ratio of 3 to 1, and you need to take enough liquid to end up with the consistency of thickened sour cream.
- At this stage, the seedlings are ready for planting in open ground.
The above propagation method is mainly used for remontant strawberries, because this kind of culture practically does not form a mustache.
Mustache breeding
It's a different way to reproduce which is also used by gardeners.
- First of all, all flower stalks are removed from the bush, leaving only new rosettes, which should be buried in the ground and lightly poured with liquid.
- Sockets should be watered once a day, but if the weather is hot, then the number of watering activities should be increased, the soil should always be slightly moist.
- After 1-1.5 months, 5-7 true leaves will already appear on the new plant. Now you can cut the rosette from the main stem with a pruner. The plant is ready to be transplanted to a new location.
Site selection and soil preparation for planting
Before transplanting strawberry bushes, you need to decide on a place for transplantation.
The selected site must have certain indicators:
- sunshine;
- wind protection;
- the surface of the soil should be perfectly flat or with a slight slope;
- groundwater should be located at a level of at least 1 meter.
It is strictly forbidden to plant strawberries in lowlands or swampy areas, constant moisture and insufficient sunlight will lead to the death of seedlings.
It is recommended to plant shrubs in areas where carrots, beets, legumes, herbs or radishes were previously grown.Areas where potatoes, cabbage, cucumbers or tomatoes were previously grown should not be taken into account.
To get a good strawberry harvest, you need to prepare the soil before planting seedlings:
- the site should be freed from weeds and other available crops;
- the soil is dug up in such a way that the depth of digging is equal to the length of the shovel bayonet;
- a certain amount of additives must be introduced per 1 square meter of soil: manure (2-3 kg), superphosphate (30-50 g), humus (6-8 kg), peat (20 kg), potash fertilizers (10-15 g), ammonium nitrate (10-20 g);
- after fertilizing, the soil is sprinkled with ash and leveled with a rake;
- the bed needs to be dug up again and watered with enough water.
Timing and selection of seedlings
In central Russia, it is necessary to transplant berry bushes from August 1 to September 15, but in the southern regions of the country, transplantation can also be performed in the last days of September. This period is the most favorable for the normal acclimatization of the plant. Due to the fact that it rains constantly in autumn, you will not need to spend time and effort on watering activities. The temperature and humidity of the air will be ideal for the normal development of the plant.
Autumn planting of garden strawberries is divided into 3 types:
- early - from August 15 to September 15;
- medium - the last days of September and the beginning of October;
- late - 30 days before the first frost.
To choose the optimal time for transplanting strawberry bushes, it is necessary to take into account the main cycles of crop development. Most varieties of strawberries sprout tendrils at the beginning of the summer period, full rooting of the plant occurs in the middle of the summer season, and buds form in early autumn.Such nuances will help in the future to determine the time of planting strawberries.
When transplanting remontant crop varieties, you will have to sacrifice a second harvest, because the timing of re-fruiting and the formation of new plants often coincide.
How to transplant?
In order to properly transplant strawberry seedlings, the propagation method of the bush should be taken into account.
Let us consider in more detail the transplantation of strawberry seedlings, which was propagated by mustaches.
- In the previously prepared soil, holes are dug to the size of the root system of the plant.
- The wells should be watered with a sufficient amount of liquid.
- The dug seedlings must be placed in the hole so that the growing point of the bush is at ground level. If you deepen the seedlings too deep, they will begin to rot. But it’s also not worth baring, frosts will destroy the root system of seedlings, which will later lead to the death of the plant.
- The soil is mulched with straw or sawdust.
Sequential steps for transplanting divided strawberry bushes:
- selection of a new site, and preparation of beds for planting;
- digging holes for the size of seedlings;
- abundant watering of the holes;
- you need to install a bush in the prepared hole and sprinkle it a little with earth, while the growth point of the plant should be at the level of the soil surface, and the roots are extended in a vertical position;
- plentiful watering of planted shrubs is carried out;
- mulching.
Aftercare
When the strawberry transplant is completed, it is necessary to take care of these plants, to get a rich strawberry harvest in the future.
- After the first watering, you need to loosen the soil around the seedlings.
- For 7 days, it is worth observing the transplanted strawberry bushes.If there is a dried seedling, then it should be removed, and a new one should be planted in the same place.
- 30 days after the first loosening of the soil, the procedure must be repeated.
- If the weather is dry, then watering activities are carried out once a week with warm, settled liquid.
- It happens that the seedlings begin to bloom, in this situation the flower stalks need to be eliminated.
- Before the onset of the first frost, the bed should be insulated. Coniferous branches can be used as insulation.
- In the spring, as soon as the soil warms up, the mulch can be removed.
The main mistakes and advice of gardeners
Using the advice of professionals, you can transplant strawberries as correctly as possible.
- If you live in the northern regions of Russia (Urals, Siberia), then it is better to leave the transplantation of strawberry bushes in the spring. In such areas, frosts come too early, so planted seedlings in the fall will not have time to take root.
- When using seedlings purchased from a specialized store, the root system should be disinfected before planting. For this purpose, it is necessary to lower the bush into hot water for 15-20 minutes (+50 degrees), and then immediately lower it into cold water and hold for about 10 minutes.
- Old bushes should not be transplanted to a new place, such a plant will not be able to take root normally in new conditions.
- After planting the seedlings, it must be watered with warm water (at least +15 degrees).
- Strawberry bushes during transplantation should be located at a distance of 25 centimeters, while the distance between the beds should not be less than 80 centimeters.
- You should not use superphosphate as a fertilizer if you have acidic soil. In this case, it will not bring any positive effect.
- There is the easiest option for transplanting strawberry bushes to a new site where the plant does not need to be propagated. Such events are held in late August or early September (2 weeks after the final harvest) or in spring (when the bush has not yet formed flower stalks).
- It is allowed to transplant flowering seedlings of strawberries, but in this case it should be transplanted along with a clod of earth. If you expose the root system, then it will not take root well in a new place, and in the future the plant will begin to hurt and die.
An excellent way to transplant strawberries is shown in the following video.