Operation "Table Top Strawberry"

[Shortie]

Hi everyone

I have my strawbs in the ground at the mo and they're lovely and healthy and flowering.

Enter two puppies... .... ....

They've not touched the strawbs yet, but most of my bulbs have been deflowered just before they've opened their lovely display, so I'm guessing when the fruit appears I have no hope of keeping any.

We thought Fruit cage but where they are I think it'd be more hassel than it's worth, so I'm thinking a 'Table Top' type system. But it's opened up a whole host of questions...

- Anyone ever moved flowering strawb plants before and any advice on the best way (other than moving as much soil with them)

Anyone else do table top strawbs? I guess they'll need more watering and better soil as they can't hunt for their themselves in growbags/pots, but anything else I need to think of and what do you do with the plants over winter?

Cheers as always
Shortie

[peanut]

Hi Shortie,

I've just lifted some Strawberries which were in flower and they seem fine.

This year i'm growing mine in growbags on one of those Wilko 4 tier mini greenhouses (without the cover). About 10 in each bag.
I've put funnels into the bags so I can water more easily when the foliage takes over.

According to the Ken Muir fruit book with the table top method you just lift the bags off and put somewhere out of the way over winter.
I'm going to sit mine on bricks in a corner out of the way!

[smallblueplanet]

That sounds a good idea peanut, are the 4 tier mini g/h's actually strong enough to support 4 growbags?

Is this the easiest way to grow strawbs? I'd like to try some, but they seem a bit of a faff!

Just nipped upstairs and taken a piccy of the old boys 'strawberry table' - seems to have metal hoops & netting over it too. (Thanks to Edgar!)

[peanut]

That sounds a good idea peanut, are the 4 tier mini g/h's actually strong enough to support 4 growbags?

Is this the easiest way to grow strawbs? I'd like to try some, but they seem a bit of a faff!

Just nipped upstairs and taken a piccy of the old boys 'strawberry table' - seems to have metal hoops & netting over it too. (Thanks to Edgar!)

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Hi SBP,

Yes it is, but it has to be the Wilko 4 tier Greenhouse not the 4 tier staging, I have both and the staging wouldn't be sturdy enough.

The good thing about it is it's just deep enough so you can stagger the growbags....top one at the back then put the rest slightly further forward.

I'm pleased with it so far and even the plants on the bottom shelf at the back are growing well.

[Shortie]

Ooo glad they moved okay when in flower. Looks like I have a job planned for the weekend then other than the lottie. Yeeaaa

[janeyo]

Hi can you not get some of that 3 foot chicken wire on a role and stake it round the strawbs as a temp measure? It works to keep my chickens off the bits I don't want them in. And is quite sturdy.

janeyo

[Shortie]

I was thinking initially of chicken wire, but I think the dogs would flatten it in the spce of a few minutes...

[janeyo]

Hi the stuff we have on a roll is quite sturdy, it would have to be a big dog (pony lol) to flatten it. It's not bendy at all more like a mesh, just a bit floppy if you don't stake it often enough.

janeyo

[JennieAtkinson]

I had some strawberry plants in a growbag last year on the floor in the tunnel, but I moved them onto the staging in the tunnel a couple of weeks ago in an attempt to beat the slugs. They seem to be doing fine, but the biggest problem is watering, not getting the water to them, but the weight of the bag after watering. It is making the staging sag a little.

[Shortie]

Ah yes, thank you Jennie, I knew there was another thought that was trying to escape from my brain, about the benefit of table top stawbs... I *should* get more than a handful of strawbs that aren't eaten by slugs if I do

AsI find a mass of the critters que'ing on the legs of the stand to have a munch, lol