Growing Strawberries

Florida strawberries can be planted in home gardens beginning in the fall and enjoyed through the winter and spring.

Currently 'Camarosa,' 'Sweet Charlie,' and 'Festival' varieties are recommended for Florida home gardens. All varieties produce berries for fresh eating or freezing. 'Camarosa' is best for North Florida, 'Festival' for Central.

Growing Conditions

In order to flower and produce fruit, strawberries need temperatures between 50° and 80° (F) and less than fourteen hours of daylight. In Florida, these conditions occur throughout the fall, winter, and spring.

Strawberries in Florida are planted in September to early November and flowering and fruit continue through to April or May. Fruit set will not be constant, but will have two or three cycles, and can be interrupted by freezes.

Site & Planting

Strawberries should be grown in a full-sun location with at least eight hours of direct sunlight. You can plant strawberries in rows in raised beds or in planter boxes, pots, or other containers. Just make sure your planting spot has good drainage.

Before planting, mix in two pounds of a fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium per ten feet of soil.

Use transplants for planting; bareroot transplants are the most common, but you may also find plug (container) transplants in plastic trays or pots at garden centers.

Many growers plant strawberries in raised beds with black plastic mulch for weed control and keeping soil off the berries. Set your transplants through slits in the mulch. Make sure you do not cover the crowns of the transplants.

Freeze Protection

Temperatures below 32° F will damage the fruit and flowers of strawberry plants, but the crowns and leaves will survive to temperatures in the low twenties if they have been acclimated to cool weather.

If a freeze comes along, covering plants with old sheets or blankets, or a commercial row cover, during the afternoon and keeping them covered all night should help protect the plants. Anchor the coverings so that the wind does not blow them off the plants.

Disease & Pests

Using healthy transplants is one of the best defense strategies for keeping diseases and pests from destroying your strawberries. Purchase you plants from reputable nurseries or garden centers.

Most diseases on leaves, flowers, or fruits can be controlled with fungicides for home garden use. Make sure the label specifies for use on strawberries and follow all label directions. Be sure to also remove dead and diseased leaves from the plants to reduce infection.

Powdery mildew can be controlled with applications of sulfur. Make sure temperatures are cooler than 80° F before applying sulfur, or it will cause fruit and foliage burn.

Insects on strawberry plants will change with the season. Caterpillars are found early in the season; aphids and thrips later. Spider mites are a persistent pest--look for them around December.

Nematodes and soilborne diseases can cause problems if you plant your strawberries in the same spot each year. Switch around your planting areas, and avoid planting strawberries in spaces where tomatoes, eggplant, or other vegetables susceptible to verticillium wilt have just been grown.

Harvesting

Strawberries are ready to harvest when three-quarters of the berry's surface is red. Once the fruit is completely red, it rots quickly, so be sure to harvest regularly--every two to four days.