by johnah on November 23, 2020
Mulch For Strawberries – Learn How To Mulch Strawberries In The Garden
The first thing you need to do when planting strawberries in your garden is to make sure they are protected from frost. You can use straw bales or even old tires (you will have to cut them down).
Make sure the bale or tire is big enough so it covers all the strawberry plants and cover them well. If there is any snow on top of the ground, then you won’t get frost protection.
You can also plant some fresh mulch around the strawberry plants. There are many different types of mulches available.
Some are made out of leaves, flowers, grass clippings or other organic materials such as sawdust or pine needles. Other kinds include composted manure and animal waste (don’t forget to wash it before using!).
When you have finished watering your strawberries, place some mulch around them. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect; the goal is just to provide a little bit of protection from frost.
When you’re ready to harvest your strawberries, take care of them for at least one week after their last rain. Then, remove the berries and store them in airtight containers until you are ready to eat them!
How To Mulch Strawberries With Wood Chips?
When you are determining what kind of mulch to use around your garden, wood chips are a great option. They can maintain moisture and hold onto the soil so that wind or heavy rains won’t wash it away; they also encourage worms and other insects to enter into your garden for the first time. While some types of wood can potentially have an effect on your plants, cedar and pine are both soft enough that they won’t cause any kind of damage.
If you have an upcoming storm with heavy rainfall or high winds, it’s best to cover your plants with wood chips to help them hold on tight to their soil. You can also use wood chips to deter pests.
Most slugs and snails won’t cross over the wood chips, which means they’ll be out of your garden for good. Wood chips are also great for adding nutrients to the soil.
Mulch For Strawberries With Grass Clippings?
While grass clippings don’t offer the same protection that wood chips do, they do add nutrients to your soil. If you have a lot of grass clippings, this is an excellent way to get rid of them if you do not have a compost pile. Additionally, grass clippings are less likely to cause your plants to rot because they do not contain as much moisture. If you do decide to use grass clippings or other green mulches, be sure that you do not wait until there is a lot of rain or your plants may become too wet and rot.
You want to apply the mulch in at least 1″ layer over the soil around the plants. If you have a lot of grass clippings and other organic materials, you can add a thinner layer (1″) over the soil so that it holds the moisture in.
Then, cover that with a thicker layer (2-3″) of wood chips as a protective barrier. This will allow your plants to be well hydrated and fed while keeping them safe from pests and the weather.
Mulching around your garden is an important step to ensuring the success of your garden. It helps to maintain the moisture in the soil and keeps out harmful weeds.
Whether you choose to use wood chips, grass clippings, or another organic material, mulching is an essential step in keeping your garden lush and green all year long.
Sources & references used in this article:
Effect of different mulches on the yield and quality of’Oso Grande’strawberry (Fragaria× ananassa). by GI Hassan, AK Godara, K Jitender… – Indian Journal of …, 2000 – cabdirect.org
Effect of mulching on growth, fruit yield and quality of strawberry (Fragaria× ananassa Duch.). by A Angrej, GS Gaur – Asian Journal of Horticulture, 2007 – cabdirect.org
Sprinkling to reduce heat stressing of strawberry plants. by JL Chesness, HJ Braud Jr – Agric. Engng., 1970 – cabdirect.org
Light Reflected from Red Mulch to Ripening Strawberries Affects Aroma, Sugar and Organic Acid Concentrations¶ by MJ Kasperbauer, JH Loughrin… – Photochemistry and …, 2001 – Wiley Online Library
Response of strawberries to mulching with plastic. by BD Thompson – Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural …, 1960 – cabdirect.org
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