Fill your chosen container with a soilless potting mix and then add the plants. Place the container in a spot with plenty of light; ideally it should get at least eight hours of sun a day for good fruit production, although alpine strawberries can do well with as little as six hours of sun.
Do strawberries grow well in pots?
Strawberries grown in June will give you a main crop in early summer for about two weeks. I like to use a slow-release organic fertilizer when I plant, but you can also use an organic liquid fertilizer every two to three weeks during the growing season (read the package directions for specific instructions). The best pots for strawberries are urn-shaped, with holes in the sides in varying areas. A fun trick I use is to employ a DIY watering tube that will help direct water to the center of the pot, where it's needed to grow those juicy berries.
Because they can be planted relatively close together, they produce a lot of fruit in a small space. Some strawberry varieties produce runners that look pretty when they cascade down the side of the pot, but they deplete the plant of energy, reducing yields.
How do you care for potted strawberry plants?
Your plants will also appreciate regular feeding with a high potash liquid feed as soon as the first flowers appear; a brand sold for feeding tomato plants will work perfectly for this purpose. Your strawberry plants should be spaced at least 60 cm apart, so plant only 1 or 2 plants per container. Fortunately, there is no problem growing these beautiful plants in pots, which means you can enjoy these gourmet delights for a period of months right outside your door. The transplants will immediately look lush and pretty in pots, but you'll have to wait for the bare root crowns to establish and produce leaves.
If you're not sure what the pH of your potting soil is, it's fairly easy to do a soil pH test at home. Cover the drainage holes with terracotta shards or a mesh to slow drainage and fill the bottom of the pot with a pre-fertilized, soilless substrate amended with compost or a slow-release fertilizer such as 10-10-10.
