Strawberry plants use vegetative reproduction to create genetically identical clones of themselves. These horizontal, above-ground stems are known scientifically as stolons, but are commonly called runners. Allowing runners to grow unchecked diverts significant energy from the mother plant, often resulting in a reduced harvest of smaller berries. The decision to cut a runner is a trade-off between maximizing the current season’s fruit yield and gaining new plants. Understanding precisely where to sever this connection is key to successfully managing your strawberry patch.
Identifying Strawberry Runners and Their Purpose
Runners are easily identified as long, thin, leafless stems that emerge from the crown of the parent plant. As they extend away, they develop nodes that form small plantlets called daughter plants. These daughter plants are exact replicas of the original strawberry, making runners a popular and free method of propagation.
Managing these runners serves two distinct purposes: maintenance or propagation. Cutting the runners early ensures the mother plant directs all its energy into developing larger, sweeter fruit. Alternatively, allowing a few runners to establish themselves expands your patch and rejuvenates aging strawberry beds.
The Crucial Cut: Where to Sever the Runner Stem
The precise location of the cut depends entirely on whether the goal is to eliminate the runner for maintenance or to harvest a new plant for propagation. Regardless of the purpose, using clean, sharp tools is always recommended. This ensures a swift, clean cut and minimizes the risk of transmitting disease between plants. Sharp gardening shears or a clean pair of scissors are appropriate for this task.
Maintenance Cut
If the aim is to remove the runner to boost the mother plant’s fruit production, the cut should be made as close as possible to the base of the main plant. Sever the stolon approximately one-half to one inch away from the mother plant’s crown. Leaving this small stub helps to prevent inadvertently damaging the mother plant’s central growing point.
Propagation Cut
When the goal is propagation, the runner must be cut in two places to fully separate the new daughter plant. The first cut is made on the runner stem about one inch away from the mother plant, similar to the maintenance cut. The second, more precise cut is made on the opposite side of the daughter plant. This leaves a small, one-inch “tail” of the runner attached to the new plantlet’s crown. This tail provides a handle for transplanting and reduces the chance of disturbing the newly formed roots.
Deciding the Runner’s Fate: Maintenance or Propagation
The timing of the cut is directly linked to the desired outcome for the runner. For maintenance, runners should be pruned as soon as they are observed, typically during the peak growing season. This ensures that the mother plant’s resources are conserved for fruit development. If a runner is removed early, it should simply be discarded.
If propagation is the objective, the daughter plant must be allowed to develop independently before the connection is cut. The runner should only be severed from the mother plant once the daughter plant has established its own root system. This usually occurs after the plantlet has developed at least three to four true leaves and has been rooted in the soil for four to six weeks.
Severing the runner prematurely will deprive the daughter plant of the necessary nutrients and moisture it receives from the mother plant, which can significantly reduce its survival rate. Once the daughter plant is fully rooted and separated, it can be transplanted to a new location. This strategic use of runners ensures a continuous and healthy cycle of growth and harvest in the strawberry patch.