i planted strawberrys this spring.Iam pinching off the flowers to get a bigger crop next year.My question is two fold.(1)Should i leave the runners alone or should i cut them off.(2)When i do get berrys should i keep them in the refriegator & how long will my berry keep after i pick them. |
Runners are usually removed to maintain the proper spacing between the plants. You might keep the first runner from each plant if you used a very wide spacing and need more plants in the bed, or to transplant later. Berries should not be picked until they are ripe so that the taste is optimum, then they should be eaten right away. If there are more than you can eat, they can be frozen or made into jam. They do not keep long at all once they are ripe, only a day or so. Refrigeration will help them hold a little longer, but it also dries them out. (Wrapping them in say plastic in the fridge with only make them ripen faster.) |