Strawberry plants require annual maintenance, often involving cutting back, but the exact method depends entirely on the variety. This yearly process, known as renovation or pruning, is mandatory for maximizing fruit production and maintaining the health of the patch over multiple seasons. The two main categories—June-bearing and everbearing or day-neutral—each demand a different approach to trimming because of their distinct fruiting cycles. Understanding your plant type is the first step in providing the correct care.
Renovation for June-Bearing Varieties
June-bearing strawberries require the most aggressive cutting back, a restorative process called renovation that occurs immediately after the single annual harvest ends, typically in mid-summer. The purpose of renovation is to stimulate a flush of new, healthy foliage and prepare the plant for the development of next season’s fruit buds, which form in the late summer and fall. This process also helps manage disease pressure by removing old, potentially infected leaves.
The first step in renovation is to mow or cut the foliage down, leaving the plant crowns—the compressed stem where leaves and flowers emerge—undamaged. This cut should be made about one to three inches above the crown to remove the majority of the old leaves without harming the growth point. Removing the older leaves allows sunlight to penetrate the patch and encourages the growth of a younger, more photosynthetically efficient set of leaves.
Following the foliage cut, the patch must be thinned to prevent overcrowding, a common issue with these aggressive runner-producing plants. Rows should be narrowed to strips about eight to twelve inches wide using a hoe or tiller, removing excess plants from the aisleway. Within the remaining row, plants should be spaced about six to nine inches apart, prioritizing the removal of older, weaker mother plants and retaining the vigorous, younger runner plants. This thinning ensures better air circulation and light penetration, which are necessary for energy production and disease control.
Maintenance for Everbearing and Day-Neutral Types
Everbearing and day-neutral varieties are treated differently than their June-bearing counterparts because they produce fruit continuously throughout the season. These plants are not subjected to severe mid-summer renovation, as this would eliminate the ongoing harvest. Instead, their maintenance focuses on continuous, lighter pruning throughout the growing season.
The primary trimming task is the constant removal of runners, which are the horizontal stems that produce new daughter plants. Unlike June-bearing types, where some runners are allowed to root to renew the patch, everbearing and day-neutral runners should be clipped immediately upon sighting. Removing these runners directs the plant’s energy toward producing flowers and fruit, maximizing the continuous yield instead of vegetative reproduction.
Maintenance also involves removing old, yellowed, or diseased leaves using hand pruners or scissors. This light trimming maintains good airflow around the plants and helps prevent the spread of fungal diseases like leaf spot and mildew. Because these plants are continually fruiting, they have higher nutrient demands and require more frequent, light feeding throughout the season to sustain their production cycle.
Essential Post-Trimming Care
Immediate care after renovation or heavy pruning is important for the strawberry plants’ recovery and next season’s productivity. Following the cutting back of June-bearing varieties, apply a balanced granular fertilizer, such as a 10-10-10 blend. This application, typically around five pounds per 100 feet of row, encourages the rapid regrowth of leaves and supports the initiation of flower buds for the following year.
Thorough watering is necessary immediately after any significant trimming, especially the aggressive renovation of June-bearing plants. Deep irrigation supports the recovery process and helps the newly applied fertilizer move down into the root zone. Plants require approximately one to two inches of water per week during this period of regrowth to ensure the development of the new leaf canopy.
As the season progresses, preparing the exposed crowns for winter is the final step in post-trimming care. Once the plants have entered dormancy in late fall and the soil temperature drops consistently below 40°F, apply a protective layer of clean straw mulch. This four to six-inch layer of straw insulates the crowns from cold temperatures and prevents freeze-thaw cycles that can cause the plants to heave out of the soil.