Stwa-beees! Yum!

[Iarwain]

We have strawberries! I picked the first batch (other than a couple here and there) on Wed. and got about three pints. Today I went back out and got seven pints! Yum yum! :yum

Times like this make me soooo happy I planted that patch! I may even have saved enough from the vultures-disguised-as-children to even make a batch of preserves. They descended upon them and started cramming their mouths as soon as they could. :) Can't complain about a healthy snack like that.

Ah. Gardening can be so satisfying :D

[Iarwain]

What variety do you grow? Are they the everbearing kind that will give you another crop near autumn?


I forget the specific variety (it may be Tribute, but I'm not sure. It's beena couple years since I planted them), but they aren't Junebearers (single crop in June) and they aren't traditional everbearers (crop in June and again in August) either. They are the third type called "day-neutral". Day-neutral berries are truly everbearing all summer long. They are heaviest in June but keep on fruiting consistently until fall. There's another little upswing in August but they never stop in between. That's good for us, since we mostly want them for snacking on.

AND I didn't get any preserves made. The last four pints got polished off for breakfast this morning. Oh well, we'll try again later in the week.

[Iarwain]

I put in about 100 plants two years ago. The first year you pick off all the blossoms until July to give them time to get established and then let them set fruit. You'll have ripe berries by August, although not in the huge numbers I'm getting now. Second year and later you just let 'em go crazy!

With Junebearers you pick off all the blossoms and then have to wait until the second year to harvest.