Strawberry Plants - Help!

[AmyRose]

Hi All,

Just ordered 12 strawberry plants from Mr F. Despatch says from Jan 11

What do i do with them when they arrive? the bed is prepared but its a tad cold out there

I dont have a greenhouse but have a spare room i could keep them in til its time for them to go outside? (When would the best time for this be North East England?)

do i need to give them a good watering or just leave them as they come?

Much appreciated!

[hailtryfan]

Hi All,

Just ordered 12 strawberry plants from Mr F. Despatch says from Jan 11

What do i do with them when they arrive? the bed is prepared but its a tad cold out there

I dont have a greenhouse but have a spare room i could keep them in til its time for them to go outside? (When would the best time for this be North East England?)

do i need to give them a good watering or just leave them as they come?

Much appreciated!

Strawberry plants are very hardy so they should shrug off all but the nastiest of winter weather. However, the plants you are being sent will probably be raised undercover so they will need hardening off before you plant them out.

Put them on a windowsill in an unheated room for a day or two, then outside under cloches or a cold frame for a week before finally planting them out in their permanent position.

If they are dry water them, but don't soak them.

hope that helps

[Aberdeenplotter]

Hi All,

time for them to go outside? (When would the best time for this be North East England?)

do i need to give them a good watering or just leave them as they come?

Much appreciated!

If the plants look dehydrated on arrival, then get them into water for a while.
Then if you can't get them into the ground, plant them up in pots with a good general purpose compost. A bright windowsill should be ok but watch you don't get them scorched behind the glass as the sun can become quite fierce quite quickly as spring approaches.

In the meantime, give the area you intend planting them in a fork over. This helps drainage and as the soil dries out, it will warm up quicker. Do no harm to cover the ground with polythene or fleece after forking over as that also will help warm the soil up quicker.

[AmyRose]

Wonderful thank you both!

[northepaul]

pot them up if they're very small, depending on the variety, pop them in an unheated greenhouse (French ones seem a bit tenderer.). Plant out when the weather is slightly warmer, March-ish