Strawberries from seed?

[Gast]

Hi all,

 

Need advice from strawberry growers. I planted maybe 75 plants last spring and we enjoyed maybe 5 types, a mix of June bearing and everbearing. Only about a dozen came back, probably because I'm a terrible Fall gardener and they should have been straw mulched? Anyway, I was looking through Johnny's and they have strawberry seed and plants. Questions:

 

1. They say 120 days to fruiting to grow them from seed, so I'd need to start them in cool grow room in Jan/Feb. Has anyone done this and what were your results?

 

2. Strawberries are listed as "Perennials", are they REALLY? Our local small strawberry farm replants every year for their June bearing. Why would they do that if they were reliably perennial? Or are they what I call a "half perennial", which means they MIGHT come back but don't count on it for real results?

 

Thanks for input!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't find the right solution from the internet.

References:

https://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1439435/

[JudithD]

I can only answer question no. 2, since I will be starting to grow strawberries from seed next year. But my strawberries have always delivered on their promise.

 

First year: reasonable harvest

Second year: bumper harvest, like 25 lbs from 9 plants

Third year: poor harvest, time to replant new ones

 

All is dependable on the variety and your climate zone, of course.

[Charly]

Hi William,

I've grown strawberries from seed and I can tell you: it's a very precise business. The seeds are tiny and young seedlings quite vulnerable. I've decided to no longer grow them from seed, but always just take the new sprouts from the mother plant. Of course only from the ones you've deemed 'best', in the season before. (I put a stick near the ones I loved best. Other wise later in the season I'm lost )

 

And indeed. Strawberries should be real hardy perennials. They do come back every year. Straw will help them, but is not a necessity. The reason local strawberry farms replant in June is because the strawberry plants produce less after their 2nd or 3rd year. So renewing the beds is essential if you grow strawberries for a living - or just want to have the best crop.

[deGoedeAarde]

Almost every F1 strawberry is day -neutral = everbearing. This is not all preferable, harvesting is limited to one year! The plant will exhausted after the season and fail to survive properly next spring. Also important to know is that the total amount of strawberries will practicaly the same as regular plants (spreading over a longer period).

Seeds can be expensive as well. But is easy when you follow the next steps. Don't sow the seeds before the end of februar. The best results I've got is using Vermiculiet. These days available at "Hornbach" or Wellkoop. The package explains very well how to proceed. In short use the plastic box you get when ordering chinese food. The one with a lit. take the vermiculiet, put the vermiculiet in a strainer and watter it under the watertap. This gives the Vermiculiet the exact amount of moisture. Put the vermiculiet in the box, Flatten the vermiculiet but don't press it. Spread the seeds on the surface (don't push the seeds in the vermiculiet) and close the lit. Please the box in a light place in the house (the window ledge would be perfect) and just wait. Vermiculiet is a natural and sterile product. Another advantage: when replanting the little seedlings the roots stays undamaged. Good luck with the stawberries from seeds

 

Almost every F1 seeds comes from this grower (same varieties under many names from various suppliers

http://www.abz-strawberry.nl/en

 

A very interesting (and reliable) supplier: https://www.seemnemaailm.ee/index.php?lang=en&CID=21