BerriesRosaceae
Strawberries.
Cool seasonPerennialDeer favorite
At a glance
The spec sheet.
- Direct sow / out
- Early spring
- Germ
- Grown from crowns or runners
- Days to harvest
- Fruit year 2 (June-bearing)
- Spacing
- 12" apart, rows 24"
- Depth
- Crown at soil surface
- Square-foot
- 1 per square
- Qty target
- 25 plants = 15–20 lbs annually.
Plant
Best NJ varieties: Earliglow (early June-bearing), Jewel, Allstar. Slightly acidic soil (pH 5.5–6.5).
Care
Mulch heavily with straw to keep fruit off soil. Pinch first-year flowers on June-bearers to build strong crowns. Renew bed every 3 years.
Harvest
Pick fully red — sugars develop last day on the plant. Pick every 1–2 days at peak.
Jam, freezer whole, freezer sliced with sugar, pie filling, syrup.
Companion planting
What strawberries likes, and doesn’t.
Good neighbors
Do NOT plant strawberries in any bed that has held nightshades, melons, okra, mint, or bramble fruits within the last 5 years — verticillium wilt persists.