Hello, So lately I have been finding life stressful with the pandemic and feeling lonely/ I live alone and we are starting a lockdown due to the pandemic so it will be another summer spent at home. I thought it be a good idea to start some new hobbies. I thought maybe I would learn to garden. I would like to try growing some strawberries this year. I have never had a garden before. I have 30 Oak Beauty bulbs. I was thinking on planting them in a raised garden bed. I am wondering how big and deep of a bed I would need to plant them? Thanks in advance
There is no specific depth needed for a raised bed, that's just done to your liking (strawberries can even just be planted in the normal ground). As far as size of the bed, the package the plants come in should give a recommended spacing between plants.. go off that, but make it a bit bigger so there's space if you want to plant other stuff too...
The main thing about growing strawberries is to protect them from birds and pests that like them just as much as we do and to water and feed them regularly. I was always told to avoid wetting the crown or fruit when watering so as not to promote disease. When the fruit starts to grow you might want to put some straw around the plants to keep it clean.
Hello, For sure make the space a bit bigger because the strawberries will produce runners and spread. Straw around them and water the ground not the plant itself. A bit of sheep manure mixed in with the soil will give them a good start as well. If you have more than you can eat fresh they can be froze or even canned in mason jars. In America there is a book from Ball ( mason jar brand) called The Ball Blue Book of Canning and Preserving. It is a great guide. It will keep you busy all summer with not only berries but lots of other things! Dean
