A clear answer to the questions - why and when to cut strawberries after harvesting - no. The opinions of gardeners on this subject are different. Someone is for, someone is categorically against it. Why prune leaves? Why do this if it seems to be known that the foliage feeds the root? Like, the more foliage, the stronger the bush. Yes, this, of course, is correct. But ... Harvested - get ready for the next! It sounds like a slogan for a gardener. So, care for strawberries, processing it after harvesting is the preparation of the plantation for the new season. And pruning strawberry leaves is one of the stages of this care.
We all love this berry. In spring, a lot of effort is spent on strawberry care before and during flowering, during the formation, ripening of berries. We want more strawberries. To make them larger, juicier, tastier. So, just after the harvest, you need to make every effort to improve, increase it next year. After harvesting, strawberries need special care. This is the most crucial time for her and for us.
Why trim a mustache from a strawberry
Surely, during the harvest, you noticed that strawberries (strawberries) give a lot of mustache. Of course, it depends on the variety. Some varieties form a lot of whiskers, some a little, can even be generally beardless.
Collected all the berries - carefully inspect the entire plantation. It is necessary to loosen the beds of garden strawberries, weed them from weeds, and remove the mustache.
Mustache is required for strawberries to breed. If you do not want to get young rosettes, new plants for reproduction, you must immediately pick them off after the appearance.
Usually on one bush there are several mustaches. We collect them in one bunch and cut them as close as possible to the base of the bush. By the way, this procedure for cutting mustaches will have to be repeated more than once per season. If we start, do not do it on time, then the plant will spend all its strength on the growth of mustaches, sockets and the future harvest will get less. Strawberries will lay fewer flower buds, which means there will not be many berries, they will become smaller.
Anything extra for the future crop needs to be cut.
In addition, this is necessary so that strawberries do not thicken, since thickened plantings are more difficult to care for.
When you need to feed, fertilize
Some gardeners do wrong by feeding strawberries strenuously before harvesting. This leads to the fact that she is greatly affected by gray rot, this is, firstly. Secondly, although the berries become large, they are watery, less sweet, have a shorter harvest period.
Early in the spring before flowering, we fertilize with nitrogen fertilizers. But, remember, the main fertilizer should be after the harvest. This is fertilizing with full mineral fertilizer and organic matter. Many make manure under strawberries. This, of course, is good - manure not only nourishes the plants, but also looks after the root system of strawberries.
Hilling strawberries
The fact is that strawberries - a berry plant - are perennials. Over time, it builds up the airy root system and begins, as it were, to bulge out of the ground. Every year, especially after 3-4 years of cultivation in one place, we are forced to sprinkle mulch, earth, compost, rotted manure into the aisles, thus covering the roots of strawberries. Mulching, hilling helps the roots to develop well.
Causes, timing of leaf pruning
The laying of fruit buds near strawberries (garden strawberries) occurs in June (Krasnodar Territory) - July (middle lane) after harvesting. By this time, the first pruning of mustaches and leaves should be timed.
The fact is that a strawberry leaf lives only 60-70 days - 2-2.5 months. And after that, various spots appear on the leaves - whitish, rusty, red. These are signs of leaf aging, the development of various diseases on them.
That is, to cut leaves from strawberries (strawberries) is necessary in order to protect the future crop from disease.
Trim leaves or mustaches with pruners or scissors. Tools should be sharp. Do not tear them off with your hands - this can damage the root system. The plant, instead of increasing leaf mass, will recover for a long time.
The process of chlorophyll production is stopped 2-2.5 months after the collection of berries - even in healthy plants, the leaves may turn red.
Tip: reddened leaves should be removed to prevent pests that remain on them from calmly overwintering. Treat the plantation with pest preparations. It was only necessary to do this much earlier: the picture was taken in the month of September. There is a danger that young leaves after pruning will not have time to grow - bare bushes may not survive the frosty winter.
So, a month and a half after picking berries, we inspect the plantation of strawberries (strawberries) and remove all the leaves with spots, holes, without forgetting to cut the peduncles. We leave only young leaves.
When to do it? In the Kuban, this is the end of June-beginning of July, in the middle lane - the first half of August. I won’t say the exact date - it’s not so important. Most importantly, calculate the timing so that in the winter your strawberries go away with already grown young leaves.
How to prune strawberries if plants are affected by diseases, pests
If the strawberry bushes are affected by a tick, the leaves are very spotted, it is necessary to remove all leaves, even young ones. Trimming leaves with signs of disease should be as close as possible to the base of the bush, as disease spores can persist on petioles. Try not to affect the heart of the bush when pruning - the plant will be able to recover faster. By doing this pruning, you will not harm the bush, as strawberries very quickly build up green mass. Having cut off old leaves, you will immediately see where you can loosen the ground, where you need to remove weeds.
Of course, removing all the leaves from the strawberries, you will not get rid of all pests and diseases. They will remain on the stumps of leaves, the ground. Simply, such a bed is easier to treat with drugs from diseases and pests. Such processing is more efficient.
Now you can feed the "younger" bed. At this time, as I already said, fruit buds are laid - the basis of the future harvest, so do not forget to periodically water your strawberries. And if there is no rain, keep the soil moist.
Top dressing, watering at this time are required. It was at this time that strawberries would increase leaf mass, which in winter, covered with snow, would protect the root system from freezing. That is, the more leaves your bushes leave in the winter, the better they will winter. And from this your crop will increase.
If during the harvest season you notice berries affected by gray rot, then after finishing fruiting strawberries need processing. Treat the entire plantation with some kind of fungicide - it may be Bordeaux liquid, Topaz or Horus.
Is it possible to mow all strawberry leaves
Not so long ago, walking along its summer street, I saw that friends were mowing leaves of strawberries oblique. They have a large berry plot - several hundred square meters - as they consider, they cannot do without a braid. At first I thought that in this way they decided to get rid of the old strawberries, they say, it's time to plant a new plantation. But it turned out that this is not so. The owner of the summer house said that they mow strawberry leaves every year of the week three to four after the last harvest. And this year, some circumstances prevented them from doing it on time and they mowed in mid-August. Harvest strawberries, according to them, they have good all the time, it is less sick.
If you have a large plantation and it is older than 3-4 years, then you can follow the example of my friends.
There is another reason for the complete cutting of strawberry leaves with an oblique or secateurs (scissors) - this is a strong defeat of plantings by diseases and pests. After complete cutting (mowing) of the leaves, the plantation should be treated with any fungicide or pest preparation. Be sure to feed your strawberry - help her grow leaf mass faster.
Mowing on young healthy plantings of strawberries is not necessary, it depletes the bushes and you yourself are deprived of the crop.
How to care, than to process strawberry beds after pruning or mowing
I will repeat a little, but it is very important.
- Lift the ground around the bushes.
- Remove the weeds.
- Cultivate a plantation from diseases and pests.
- Feed with mineral and organic fertilizers.
- Water regularly if there is no rain during this period.
- It is very important that the land on the bed is wet all the time - this is necessary for the growth of young foliage.
That's all the simple rules. Now you know how and when to prune strawberries (garden strawberries) after harvesting, how to process it. A good harvest next year is provided to you!