Strawberries...alternative to straw mulching?

[Martin H]

Woodchips. Good idea! I think I'll try that this year, I've got some spare.

[Nicos]

Do you find you still have problems with slugs with the woodchip?

[Mr Bones]

So far it seems slugs aren't very keen on woodchips. I have heard that woodlice can be a problem too but again, we've not noticed them.

[Kier]

woodchips seem like a good idea , I have started mulching blueberries with them strawberries are my next thought

[1Bee]

Excellent. I needed a bucket of woodchip for the buddleia, but now I can buy a bag and use the rest....

[Nicos]

OK...looks like I'll be giving the wood chippings a go!(I can make those for free!)
Thanks for your advice peeps!

[Bigmallly]

Looks like we're going back to Eden.

[veggiechicken]

So far it seems slugs aren't very keen on woodchips. I have heard that woodlice can be a problem too but again, we've not noticed them.

I used a bag of bark chip under strawbs once - never again. It was crawling with woodlice and they burrowed into the strawbs.
Fresh woodchip may be different to the bagged stuff you can buy. Maybe woodlice prefer some woods to others
So many questions, so few strawberries

[1Bee]

Darnit.... *eyes drawing board resentfully*

[vixylix]

^^^snap 1Bee - I already have enough problems with woodlice without encouraging them!

[veggiechicken]

Don't panic you two! It was bagged chipped bark that you buy at a GC. May have been infested before I bought it?

[Nicos]

The weeds I removed were actually helping to support the plants, but were drawing water and nutrients from the soil.
The plants never thrived....so by removing to competition I've exposed the soil to the drying effects of the sun and wind.
I'm going to go ahead with fresh hazel branch chippings...they are large and dry rather than bark, so maybe less attractive to chuggypigs?
Will let you know how it goes on

[vixylix]

Mine's from my garden though VC and the garden is definitely already infested

[1Bee]

And I would have to buy a bag...

[Welsh76]

For my strawberry bed I did the following..

1. I pegged a weed fabric down and cut X's where I was going to plant my strawberries

2. Planted my strawberries through the X's in the weed fabric

3. I put a small layer of straw down over the top of the fabric

4. I then put a fine straw-coloured netting over the top of the straw (making some incisions in the netting to poke the strawberry plant through)

5. I then fashioned a small circular wire with the ends used as pegs to compress the net down tight to the weed mat around the crown of the strawberry plant to let it grow uninhibited

The combination of all of that was to hopefully suppress the weeds, retain as much moisture as possible, keep the slugs off but also give it a good aesthetic look with the contrast of the green foliage and red strawberries against the straw background. The small netting over the top of the straw was to stop it all blowing away!!!

I may need another net over all of it to stop the birds but I'll make that decision later in the year.