Strawberries under a fruit tree?

[wara]

Hi all

I'm new to this forum, but think it's a fantastic source of info. I've learned loads in the last week just reading through the threads. However, I have one query which is still unanswered.

Last November, I got 3 bare rooted fruit trees (plum, cherry and apple) and put them in the centre of large pots (about 60cm wide at the top, and 60cm high).

These look quite bare, and I am wondering if I can put strawberry plants around the rim of the pots to trail over the sides - thereby giving me 2 lots of fruit from each pot!

Can I do this or am I being too greedy?

What about any other plants if not strawberries?

Thanks in advance.

Wara

[FB.]

I don't see why not to grow something under the trees (I have all kinds of things under my apples - including some strawberries), but consider a few things....

Strawberries can be quite vigorous, so they might steal quite a bit of the fruit trees water and nutrients.
The strawberries will need replacing every few years.
When replacing the strawberries, you may damage or irritate the tree roots and cause one or more new tree shoots (root suckers) to sprout up from the rootstock below the ground, which can be difficult to control. But you might get the odd root sucker anyway, so you'd never know whether it was root damage or just nature that caused it.


I prefer alpine strawberries for underplanting. So long as there is adequate moisture, they are tolerant of shady places that don't get much sun, or even places that get no direct sun, so long as they have adequate ambient light - such as a North-facing wall.

[Lottieval]

FB are your trees mature ones in the ground or in pots? When looking for advice on planting new fruit trees I thought I read somewhere that even if planted out in grass it was best to have a circle of clear soil around them. Last year, when trying to find out what my three, over 40 yr old trees were, I was advised to clear the ground around the trunks as they all were a bit tired and producing small apples. Don't know if this helps Wara but I'd be inclined not to give hem any competition.

[FB.]

The main reason for leaving a bare area of ground around the trunk - even when set in grass - is so that strimmer-like tools don't "whip" the bark of the tree trunk and cause wounds that can affect sapflow or allow infection to get in.
Long and thick grass around the trunk base can also cause above-ground roots to start forming in the dark, damp, low-air environment. It has been reported that these roots can find their way into the ground and then the dwarfing effect of the rootstock is lost as the tree produces it's own (vigorous) roots.
If you don't mind a bit of regular snipping with shears, then you can grow short grass right up to the trunk. But to grow apple trees in grass, you really need at least rootstock MM106 for bushes, although in fertile soil, M26 is adequate for bushes.

Small apples sound as if the tree is trying to produce too much fruit. It happens with some varieties and can cause them to biennial bear their fruit. If possible, you could try snipping off perhaps up to half of the small small fruits after the June drop to leave two apples per cluster (or one cooker per cluster). Perhaps try a bit more feeding and watering - but not too much or they'll grow instead of fruit.

[FB.]

Here's a pic of some above-ground roots on my "Discovery" bush that is set in my lawn. The strong grass is very thick and makes the tree trunk look quite thin, but the trunk is probably 1.5 inches diameter and the whole "bush" about 7ft tall.
Strawberries won't be quite as dense as this long grass, so are unlikely to cause above-ground roots to form. The roots can be snipped off.


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[wara]

Interesting point about the rooting out. As it happens, I put a layer of bark over the soil to help prevent the pots drying out, and had little roots coming out from the trunk of my apple tree above the soil line just like your picture. So now I've removed the bark from around the immediate base of the tree to let the light get to it (I think it's grafted a bit too low).

So you've helped me with two issues already. I think I'm going to enjoy this forum!!

Many thanks FB.

Wara

[bluemoon]

At my previous home I had strawberries around the base of a large Bramley, they grew fine, but birds roosted in the tree so the berries were always covered in bird poo.