Growing Strawberries using Hydroponics
Growing Strawberries using Hydroponics
Growing Strawberries using Hydroponics
This time of year is synonymous with growing sweet, ripe and succulent strawberries. In my opinion it probably the most liked fruit in the UK. So, it is certainly mine and I have already started the ball rolling by buying some bare rooted plants from the famous Scottish fruit growers “Ken Muir“. Strawberries come in a few different varieties, which are Early Midsummer, Midsummer, Late Summer, and perpetual.
So ,I am growing some mid and late summer varieties for a little variation. I must confess that I will be splitting the growing methods this year. Bare rooted plants should be planted as soon as the arrive from the growers. Subsequently, then I planted the bare roots on arrival in individual three inch pot. The pots were squeezed into a space in my heated greenhouse. Since then they have now started good growth and are at the moment outside hardening off.
This year however will be a bit different. So I will wash the roots off and grow six plants using the hydroponic system. of course the rest will be planted out using the more conventional soil method in a wooden crate.
Quicker fruiting expected in Hydroponic system
According to my reading then strawberries will produce fruit much quicker when grown hydraulically. I am looking forward to my experiment and am also thinking that the fruit will be kept cleaner and free from the dreaded slugs. So, The ones grown in the wooden crate will require protection from the fruit being splashed. like all my experiments the I will keep the readers of my blogs informed.
Excitedly, I believe that strawberries can be grown throughout the year using a heated facility along with lighting equipment. So, I should have enough room in my heated greenhouse to try this out. I can root cuttings the the many runners that strawberries produce in any growing season.
Although, it looks like the strawberries require any special attention then it is worth a mention about the plants crown. So, when planting strawberries you must not plant them too deeply. The plants have a crown which must protrude above the growing medium whichever method of growing that may be used. Consequently, if planted too deeply then the strawberries can become susceptible to root rot and botrytis and quickly die off.
Finally, growing pots and air pumps can be purchased online or collected from your Hydrostore Wakefield branch.