The practice of removing flowers or flower buds from newly planted strawberries, often called deblossoming, is a fundamental technique in successful cultivation. This maintenance task is performed in the first year to ensure the long-term health and maximum productivity of the strawberry patch. By sacrificing the potential for an initial, small harvest, growers are making an investment that directly influences the size and abundance of future yields. This early intervention ensures the plant focuses its limited resources on structural development rather than immediate reproduction.
Establishing Plant Vigor by Removing Flowers
The primary purpose of deblossoming is to redirect the plant’s energy away from reproduction and toward building a robust physical structure. A newly planted strawberry crown must first dedicate itself to developing an expansive root system and a strong, centralized crown. Producing flowers and developing fruit is a metabolically demanding process.
If flowers are permitted to mature into berries during the first season, the plant diverts energy to fruit production. This resource diversion results in a smaller, weaker root system, making it less capable of absorbing water and nutrients. Consequently, the plant produces fewer runners, which are vegetative offshoots needed to establish a dense, productive patch. A well-established plant is better prepared to survive winter and will yield a substantially larger crop in the second year and beyond.
Identifying the Right Time for Removal
Gardeners must begin monitoring new plants for flower buds immediately after planting, regardless of whether the stock is bare-root or potted. The ideal moment for removal is as soon as the bud becomes visible, typically appearing as a tight cluster of small green growth emerging from the center of the crown. Removing the bud at this nascent stage conserves the maximum amount of energy for the plant’s structural development.
The goal is to remove the flower before it opens and before the plant commits resources to the reproductive cycle. Monitoring should be done regularly, perhaps once a week, as the plants begin to actively grow in the spring and early summer.
Techniques for Deblossoming Strawberry Plants
Deblossoming uses two main methods: pinching or cutting, depending on the scale of the operation and personal preference. The instruction for both techniques is to remove the entire flower stalk (pedicel) without causing injury to the central crown. Damage to the crown can inhibit future growth and compromise the plant’s overall health.
For small-scale gardening, pinching is the most common method. This involves using the thumb and forefinger to gently snap the flower stalk just below the bud or cluster of buds. The stalk tissue is often tender enough to break cleanly, which is less disruptive than tearing.
When managing a larger number of plants or working with tougher stalks, cutting with small, sharp shears or snips is recommended. If using tools, maintain sanitation by periodically wiping the blades with an alcohol solution. Sterilizing the tools reduces the risk of transmitting diseases between plants.
Flower Removal Strategies for Different Strawberry Types
The deblossoming strategy depends on the specific fruiting habit of the strawberry variety. Strawberries are broadly categorized into three types: June-bearing, everbearing, and day-neutral, each requiring a different approach to maximize yield.
June-Bearing Varieties
Traditional June-bearing varieties produce one large flush of fruit annually. All flowers must be removed for the entire first growing season until the plant enters dormancy. This allows June-bearers to focus exclusively on developing a robust root system and producing runners necessary to fill out the patch for the next year’s crop.
Everbearing and Day-Neutral Varieties
Everbearing and day-neutral varieties produce multiple smaller harvests throughout the season. For these types, the removal of the first flush of flowers is recommended for the initial four to eight weeks after planting.
After this initial establishment period strengthens the plant’s structure, subsequent flowers that appear later in the season may be left to develop. This allows the gardener to enjoy a modest fall harvest in the first year while prioritizing the plant’s long-term health.