Strawberries are popular with adults and children alike. If you follow a few tips and advice, they can be planted in almost any garden. However, some people are a little confused when the question arises whether the tasty red fruit is actually a nut?
Fruit or nut?
From a botanical point of view, strawberries belong to the so-called collective nut fruits. Because the yellow-green "dots" that you find on a strawberry are actually small nuts, i.e. seeds. These seeds are surrounded by woody fruit walls. The actual red pulp, which tastes so aromatic, is actually the domed flower base. This is generally mistaken for a fruit. Because of this, many experts call the delicious strawberry a dummy fruit.
Sowing the seeds
To grow strawberries successfully, you need:
- Strawberry seeds
- Sowing trays
- Sowing soil
- Maybe some labels
- Indoor greenhouse
- Pricking stick
- Pots made of organic material
First, you put enough seed compost in the intended seed trays. Then the strawberry seeds are carefully distributed on the ground, gently pressed and very carefully covered with just a little soil. This should also be pressed lightly, making sure that the seeds remain in the soil. If necessary, the seed trays can now be provided with a labeled label and carefully poured. The best way to do this
Seed trays now on the windowsill in an indoor greenhouse. Ideally, the temperature there is between 16 and 18 degrees Celsius. In order to avoid any mold growth, the ventilation slots must be opened for some time on sunny days. Then you have to be patient, because strawberries naturally germinate very slowly. After about six to eight weeks, the seedlings are usually about two centimeters high. At this point they can be triggered very carefully with the help of a pricking stick. The best thing to do is to place the plants individually in a pot made of organic material. This means that no repotting is necessary later when planting out, as the pots decompose themselves.The right location
Before you plant your grown seedlings in the garden, an ideal location must be found for them. This should ideally have the following attributes:
- Neutral to slightly acidic garden soil
- Nutrient-rich, well-drained garden soil
- Full sun, without shade
Exposing the plants
They are planted in the garden as soon as the young strawberry plants have several larger leaves, have strong growth and the weather allows it. So ideally there should be a warm, sunny climate. As a rule, planting takes place from May to August. However, this varies depending on the variety. When planting in the garden soil, care should be taken that the soil in the organic pots is evenly moist. Then you put the "pupils" in a previously dug hole, carefully push them in and put earth on top. then
the soil around the plant is pressed firmly and watered well. A planting distance of 20 to 30 centimeters should be observed in the row. The delicious fruits can be harvested from around June, depending on the variety.Optimal care
The strawberry plants should generally be kept weed-free. If there are longer periods of dryness in summer or if the soil has dried out, it must be watered. Ideally, the soil is generally kept moist. When watering, make sure that neither the fruits, nor the leaves or the "heart" of the plants come into contact with water. It is also recommended to remove the tendrils early.
Fertilize
An organic fertilizer is recommended for strawberries. In general, potassium and phosphorus should be fertilized with emphasis. The first application of fertilizer starts when budding begins, about three weeks after planting. A second fertilization takes place in August or September. This should be done after the harvest but before the buds are formed for the next year. Here, about 50 to 70 grams per square meter of organic berry fertilizer are carefully incorporated.
Propagate your own plants
Strawberries can easily be propagated yourself. Only the shoots have to be cultivated for this. These are initially not removed after the harvest. If they are then about 40 centimeters long, they can be used individually and thus grow.
Easy wintering
In preparation for winter, all leaves are first removed so that no pathogens or fungi form. The heart of the plant must not be damaged. When the soil has been loosened and fertilized, you can put a blanket of spruce rice or protective fleece over the plants.
Possible diseases
Strawberry plants can suffer from a variety of diseases, including:
- Rhizome rot
- Focal spot disease
- Red root rot
- Gray mold rot
- mildew
- Violet blotch disease
- Mold growth
Some diseases, such as mold growth, can be prevented by not watering the plants too often. It is always helpful to keep a close eye on the strawberries and, in an emergency, to contact a specialist shop. There are some products to fix the most diverse
Diseases offered.Pests: danger to strawberry plants
In addition to various diseases, animal pests often affect the strawberry plants. These include:
- Snails
- Groundworms
- Wireworms
- Aphids
- Strawberry Blossom Piercer (Beetle)
- Strawberry beetle
If it is not possible to remove the pests, a visit to a specialist shop is also recommended. There you can find a wide variety of pesticides to combat undesirable pests.
With a little patience for your own harvest
With proper care and a little patience, it is entirely possible to grow strong and healthy strawberry plants that will produce a variety of flowers. However, you should keep an eye on the plants so that you can act quickly in the event of a disease or pest infestation.
A knowledge gap and its background
The Latin name for the strawberry is Fragaria vesca, which means something like edible fragrance.
Berries are fruits whose seeds are embedded in the juicy pulp of a fruit. Like the grape, for example. In the case of the strawberry, however, the fruits can be recognized as small yellow-brown seeds on the outer skin of the fruits. They are nuts, each of which comes from its own ovary or its own ovule has emerged. Seen in this way, the strawberry is a collection of many individual nuts. These clusters are called aggregate crops. Raspberries and blackberries are also included. If you bite the nuts, it cracks a bit too.
What the red strawberry is to us, which we consume with devotion, is nothing more than the fleshy, fully grown flower axis of the strawberry plant. It is the white pulp of the flower base, which is colored from the edge by vegetable, red dyes as it ripens. The small green wreath of five leaves on the strawberry fruit is nothing more than the sepals of the original strawberry blossom.
No strawberries and no peanuts
The fact that the strawberry is a nut also explains why people who are allergic to nuts are often allergic to strawberries. Speaking of nuts: The confusion of languages goes even further! Just as strawberries are not berries, from a botanical point of view peanuts are not nuts, but legumes and are therefore related to peas and beans.