Planting and caring for strawberries in July
After fruiting, strawberry plants remain active for a long time. It is during this period that they accumulate in themselves the useful components necessary for wintering. If you organize high-quality and complete care for strawberries after harvesting (usually this happens in July), then next year you can get an increase of 30-40% to the usual number of berries. Well-fed bushes will be able to relax and gain strength during the winter, and next year they will please the gardener with sweet and juicy fruits.
Landing
The lunar calendar says that it is better to plant strawberries in the summer. The optimal days for planting are the middle of July. During this period, it is recommended to prepare the soil, as well as check the acidity of the soil (it should be moderate). If necessary, the acidity can be reduced with flour or slaked lime.
Seedlings should also be prepared and inspected. They must be healthy in appearance, have well-developed roots. Leaves and stems should be free of any signs of pests or diseases. After planting, seedlings need to be watered for the first 10 days so that they take root better. This is necessary for the full development of culture. In the future, watering is carried out less frequently.
If the plants were grown in peat cups, then you do not need to remove them from there. You can directly bury strawberries in the ground with them. This will provide the bushes with additional nourishment.
The easiest way to plant is a single-line method with a distance between bushes of 30 cm, and between rows - 60 cm. Do not plant strawberries too densely, as this will negatively affect its productivity.
Gardeners say that the best time for landing is evening or morning hours. During the day, it is recommended to refuse such a procedure, since the sun creates a high temperature, and this negatively affects the survival rate of the sprouts.
Watering and feeding
To get good yields, it is important to properly care for strawberries. As already mentioned, after landing in July, it must be watered without fail. The abundance and frequency of watering depend on the weather. In warm weather (including very hot days) it is necessary to water each plant once every 6 days. If it is cool outside, then the amount of watering is reduced. Under no circumstances should the soil be allowed to dry out. If there was no precipitation for a long time, then about 10 liters of water should be poured onto each bush at a time.
In order for strawberries to grow well, the first dressings must be applied immediately after planting the bushes. Experts recommend fertilizing the crop using nitrogen-based preparations, which will stimulate the growth of new foliage. To do this, you can choose nitroammophoska or ammophoska. In the second half of July, you can fertilize the crop with organic ingredients, such as bird droppings or mullein. It is not recommended to bring them into the ground fresh. It is necessary to dilute them in water in a ratio of 1: 10.
Strawberries love nutritious soil, but they do not tolerate chlorine. Therefore, any fertilizer based on this element is forbidden to be applied to the site, otherwise the plant will not bear fruit well.
Bush rejuvenation
One of the important agrotechnical measures is the rejuvenation of plants. Immediately after the harvest is harvested, it is necessary to rejuvenate all the bushes. To do this, you need to trim and remove the extra mustache. It is also desirable during this period to remove all weeds from the site. Affected and unhealthy sprouts should also be harvested and burned.
Pruning is done by removing the leaves with scissors. Another option is to comb out the bushes with a rake. Experts do not advise picking plants with your hands, as this can cause damage to the roots. But if there is no other way, then when cutting off the mustache, it is necessary to support the bush with the other hand. This must be done as carefully as possible.
On large beds, you can mow strawberries, which will save time on removing old bushes and tendrils. This will also make it possible to get rid of crop diseases and provide good ventilation, which will help the roots gain strength. It is recommended to mow strawberries when their age reaches 3 years. This has a rejuvenating effect and also ensures that next year you will get a big harvest.
It is important to remember that only old bushes can be mowed, young shoots should not be touched.
Mustache removal
If strawberries are not planned to be planted in the future, then it is necessary to trim the mustache a week after harvesting. This is usually done on the twentieth of July, but the timing may change depending on the weather in the growing area. You can understand that the mustache must be removed by looking at the young greenery on the plants after harvesting.
Sometimes you have to trim the mustache several times after fruiting.At the same time, experts note that if strawberries are mowing, then trimming of the mustache is not necessary.
Until the mustache is removed, it is necessary to water the beds well for 2-3 days. This will make the process easier. The procedure is recommended to be performed on the second or third day after watering. It is best to do this on a cloudy day. It is permissible to carry out the procedure in other conditions. The main thing is that there is no strong heat outside.
It is not necessary to delay the trimming of the mustache so that the plants after the procedure can restore their strength and prepare for the winter. During the event, it is also important to remove all damaged bushes that show signs of disease or rot.
Prevention from diseases and pests
The end of July is the best time to help the culture protect itself from diseases and insects. To do this, it is treated with a solution of potassium permanganate of a small concentration. Both the soil and the bushes themselves are sprayed. After carrying out such a procedure, it is recommended to examine the plants for the presence of viral pathologies and, if necessary, treat them with a Bordeaux mixture. Damaged sprouts are best taken out of the garden or burned.
To prevent the occurrence of pathologies in the future, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures. Some infectious diseases can be carried by the wind, as well as during rain with water. This increases the risk of disease of healthy bushes located on the site. Therefore, inspect the beds, removing old and diseased shoots, should be throughout the season.
It is also worth taking measures to prevent root rot. To do this, it is necessary to control soil moisture. If rot appears on the bushes, they can be treated with Fitosporin.
You can also treat the site with odorous mixtures that will prevent the appearance of insects. To do this, you can use an infusion of garlic or tobacco. A good solution would be to plant odorous plants near the crop bed.
Harvesting
Harvesting should not be delayed, as the berries may overripe, which will negatively affect their appearance and taste. Also, an overripe berry with an abundance of water can begin to rot, as a result of which various pests will appear on it. They can be transferred to other bushes, damaging them, so it is recommended to harvest the crop as soon as it ripens.
It is necessary to do this only 10-15 days for the entire season, since it is during this period that the berry will ripen quickly. You should not wait until all the berries are ripe, you need to collect them as they are “ready”. In order to prevent the appearance of rot on the fruits during the ripening period, it is recommended to lay a clean cloth or put fresh cut grass under the bushes, which will prevent strawberries from contacting the ground. It will also help retain moisture in the soil longer and prevent weeds from appearing.
gardening tips
As is clear from the above, the process of growing strawberries is complicated only at first glance. To get a bountiful harvest of this delicious berry, you just need to follow all the recommendations of experienced gardeners.
- Landing can be done at the end of May, in July and at the end of August.
- Reproduction should be done using young and healthy bushes that were purchased from trusted sellers. You can also display them yourself.
- Strawberries can be treated with chemicals only before flowering and after harvesting.If it is necessary to carry out activities during the period of fruiting and flowering, then only organic fertilizers can be used, which are poured directly under the root.
- All work with strawberries in the garden is carried out only in the absence of the sun in the sky (in the early morning or evening).
- Trimming of the antennae is carried out only with sharp secateurs or scissors. Tools must first be disinfected with a concentrated solution of potassium permanganate.
- It is important to periodically loosen the soil and maintain the necessary moisture in the area.
- It is recommended to add compost to the beds at least once a year. This will help maintain the nutrient composition of the soil.
- For the winter, the bushes are provided with good shelter so that they do not freeze and do not get sick.
After harvesting, it is necessary to mulch the beds to protect both the bushes themselves and the soil from freezing. Pine needles or grass are used as mulch. You can also use straw. The mulch layer should be 10 cm.
When carrying out such events, it is necessary to ensure that weakened bushes are especially carefully covered. Mulching is done in dry weather, when the temperature is within +7°C. There are no specific dates for shelter, as it depends on the weather conditions in a particular area.
The technology for planting strawberries in July is shown in the following video.