The flavour of a homegrown strawberry “hits different” and you’re in for a big surprise if you’ve only ever eaten supermarket ones. Homegrown strawberries are softer, sweeter and packed with flavour, especially when picked sun-warm and straight from the plant. The good news is, if you’re gardening in a warm zone north of Sydney, now’s the perfect time to grow strawberries and get a patch started. In cooler areas, it’s worth holding off until late winter or early spring. But for everyone else, let’s get into it!
How to start
When starting your first patch, it’s best to buy certified disease-free runners from a reputable nursery – it’s worth asking for this specifically to avoid introducing anything nasty into your garden. For warm zones such as Brisbane, varieties like Rubygem, Red Rhapsody and Redlands Joy are reliable performers. In cooler southern areas, look to Tioga, Melba, Sugarbaby and the classic Red Gauntlet.
Choose a sunny, open spot with well-drained soil. Before planting, work in well-rotted compost, a handful of blood and bone per square metre and a fistful of sulphate of potash. Mound the soil slightly to improve drainage, then plant runners about 30cm apart, making sure the crown (the central growing point) sits just above the soil surface. If you bury it there is a risk that it may rot. Leave it too high and it can dry out.
Refreshing an existing strawberry patch
If you planted strawberries last season, give the plants a tidy-up with hedge shears to remove old, tatty foliage, then follow up with a feed and a good watering. If your plants are two or three years old, they’ve essentially done their dash. Mother plants don’t produce well beyond this point. Instead, select the healthiest young runners from summer, replant them and start fresh, ideally in a new patch of ground to avoid disease build-up.
The mulch matters when you grow strawberries
Once planted, lay a generous layer of The Garden Family Sugar Cane Mulch around the plants. Mulch does triple duty here: it conserves moisture, suppresses weeds and keeps developing fruit off the soil, where it would quickly spoil.
No space? Grow strawberries in pots
Strawberries are outstanding container plants. Large black plastic pots are ideal, they absorb warmth and help keep roots from getting too cold over winter. Use a premium quality potting mix, ideally one carrying the Australian Standards red tick, with added organic fertiliser and you’re set.
Keeping strawberries productive
Water consistently (more frequently in pots) and give plants a weekly liquid feed of fish emulsion and seaweed extract. Do this faithfully and you can expect your first harvest in around 10–12 weeks, with plants continuing to produce well into spring.
If runners appear during peak fruiting, snip them off promptly so the plant puts its energy into fruit, not spreading.
Get the kids to help with the picking. You may not get many strawberries to the kitchen, but the smiles are worth it!
