500+ Strawberry Plants, Almost No Fruit – Heatwave Damage or Something I Did Wrong?

sujsuj

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some advice and also wondering how this year's season has been for other strawberry growers.

Last year I had fewer than 50 strawberry plants, and they produced an excellent crop. Encouraged by that success, I expanded to more than 500 plants this year. I put in a huge amount of work preparing the beds, protecting the fruit from birds, weeding, feeding and generally looking after them, so I'm extremely disappointed with the results.

This year I have four plots:

• Three plots are in full sun, and the plants have now become very dried up after the prolonged hot, dry weather.
• One plot is in partial shade, and the plants there still look much healthier and greener.

The strange thing is that none of the plots have many flowers or fruit now. The shaded plants look healthier, but they still aren't producing much.

Because of the hosepipe ban and the dry weather, I haven't really been able to water them properly and, to be honest, I've stopped spending much time on them over the last three weeks because it felt like I was fighting a losing battle.

I'm wondering:

• Has this been a particularly bad year for strawberries in general because of the heatwave and prolonged dry weather?
• Have other growers seen similarly poor yields this year?
• Is it likely that the hot weather caused the plants to stop flowering or abort the fruit?
• If we finally get some decent rain, is there any realistic chance of getting another crop this year, or is the season effectively over?

I don't actually know the exact variety. They may be June-bearing, but I'm not certain. Last year, at around this time, my original 50 plants were still giving me a really good harvest, which makes this year's result even more disappointing.

Finally, should I keep looking after all 500+ plants and expect them to recover for next year, or is this season telling me that I've done something fundamentally wrong?

I've attached some photos of both the sunny beds and the healthier shaded bed. I'd really appreciate any thoughts from experienced growers, especially if you've had a similar experience this year.

Thanks in advance.

itsthelittlethings

Pests? Lack of water?

teaselMay

They're really not happy are they. The difference between the shaded and full sun patch shows what quite a lot of the problem is. I wouldn't give up on even the worst looking plants though. They're very resilient. Once it cools they may well recover and grow ready for next year's crop. More water and shade netting might help next year

I took over an allotment at the start of may and there was a 3 years neglected strawberry patch. You can imagine how dense it had become. Even the clumps of strawberry plants that were dug out and then not replanted for 6 weeks and those that ended up left naked in a bucket in the sun (they were distributed to various people) have started to recover. I'm going to end up with 100s of plants too.

I haven't however had many strawberries, but for a different reason. Trail camera shows nightly scrumping from a fox family and a badger. More than happy to share with them. I'm going to make a small area that's fenced so that my share is safe unless they're desperate.

Dustyevsky

I have 3 varieties, 2-3 years old, and they all fruited here in Devon during June. It was a good year. I didn't water them much, they were in full sun all day, and no fertiliser was applied on our sandy soil.

Those are the facts. I'd expect the plants to decline now. If I planted out runners, I'd not expect them to crop much next year. Maybe your plants need to become more established?

teaselMay

Looking at the photos in daylight the soil looks as though it's quite heavily watered

Are you perhaps over watering and or feeding?

carly

It's been too hot and dry around here for much fruit, although I have a good crop of plums. No apples though on a young tree. I'm wondering what you would have done with a good crop from 500 plants?? I've never grown more than 30 plants and even then it was a big job processing them all as they ripened.

Slinky

We had a lower crop this year as we'd replaced our existing plants with some second year old runners. Same variety. I'm expecting a better crop from them next year. We had masses last year. We're under a hosepipe ban so are having to water every second day from cans just to stop the plants dying. We feed with well rotted manure in the Autumn.

teaselMay

Chaps were talking at the allotment today. Some of the most beautifully muck fertilised and tended soil has produced the worst crops, beds that were fed produced far fewer than those just watered. Strawberries like poor soil.

sujsuj

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82073912#Comment_82073912

Got hosepipe ban now

sujsuj

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82073926#Comment_82073926

Five years ago, I bought just four strawberry plants from a local nursery. Those original plants gradually multiplied through runners and eventually became around 50 plants.

This year, I dug up the four original mother plants and carefully separated each one into at least 50 new plants. Combined with all the runners produced by the other plants, my strawberry patch has grown to ~650 plants, spread across four plots.

It's amazing to think that everything started with just four nursery-bought strawberry plants. Through natural propagation, careful division of the mother plants, and transplanting runners each year, they have multiplied into a thriving collection of over 650 healthy plants.

Not sure if the way plants propagated reason for low yield..?

sujsuj

The difference between the strawberry plants growing in direct sunlight and those growing in the shade has been remarkable.

Before the heatwave, the plants in direct sunlight were thriving—they were vigorous, healthy, and growing much better than the plants in the shade, which were struggling and showing very little growth.

However, after the heatwave, the situation completely reversed. The plants in direct sunlight have now dried up and are under stress, while the plants growing in the shade have coped much better and are looking healthier. The heatwave clearly showed how quickly extreme temperatures can change growing conditions and affect plant health.