Spring fever: strawberries

It's all Home Depot's fault. Well, I suppose if I am going to blame it on Home Depot, my brother shares some of the blame too. He's the reason I stepped foot into Home Depot. And of course, being me, I had to check out the garden section. And of course, being almost spring, there were tons of plants there. I walked all around the store. No orchids dying of thirst that needs rescuing. Check. What's this? Strawberry plants in a bag? Interesting. And thereon after, I could not get the image and its possibilities out of my head. I have conquered maiden hair fern, thriving now in its third or fourth year, surviving a buzz cut after a pot upgrade. Now, a new challenge lies ahead: making a productive strawberry patch/basket. A worthy cause considering just how disappointing most store-bought strawberries are. They are the epitome of false advertising. Think lady in red from afar, only to find it diseased and puckery up close. I forgot just how sweet and delicious strawberries can be until I had some the size of quail eggs in China. It struck me that natural strawberries are not supposed to be the size of a ping-pong ball or bigger. The better quality to select is sweetness, sorely lacking in most commercial strawberries (the only place I can think of to get that quality are farmers markets, if not then organic).

...all to justify my current obsession with strawberries. =)

At least I learned a few things about them. The most surprising: they are perennials, being fairly productive up to 3-4 years. I thought they were annuals. They certainly looked like it.

They are divided into three, or for the purpose of awesome California, two strains: June bearing and ever bearing (the other name for ever bearing is day neutral). For June bearing berries, the plants produce one big crop in June, good for jams, preserves, etc. Ever bearing or day neutral (so called because fruit bearing is independent on day length) produces pretty much continuously from early summer till frost or October for CA.

50 plants will produce enough berries for a family of four.

Cultivars good for SoCal:
Chandler (June bearing): large, juicy, flavorful.
Sequoia (June bearing): long fruiting season, flavorful and productive.
Seascape (ever bearing): large, flavorful

Can be purchased by bundles. ~$8-10/25-30 plants. Buy in Nov-January.

Do not bury the crown.

Require consistent watering. Fertilize using 10-10-10 fertilizer. Once before flowering starts, once more after fruiting is over, or before overwintering. Organic material. Slightly acidic. Or use tomato fertilizer.

So my plan for this year: plant between 10-20 plants in a basket and see what comes for it. Currently, I'm collecting my plants. I have six Eversweets and one Chandler (shh...L doesn't know about the latter).

Also allow me to recommend a few nurseries that I love.
First and foremost: City Farmer's Nursery Owned by family who lives on the acre and a half of nursery. They are incredibly knowledgeable and experienced with which varieties work in local areas. They also support organic farming and hydroponics. The place itself is amazing. They have fish, rabbits, chickens, doves, llamas, horse, geese, bees. They have what I would like to have in the future. All on 1 1/2 acres. I feel peaceful just walking around. They are also happy to order things for you.

Walter Andersen: 2 locations in SD. Again, family owned, I think. Incredibly knowledgeable and helpful staff. Ask them anything. They have quality plants and gardening tools. Plus, visit the Poway location, and they have an awesome track of miniature trains. They also have a rewards program called Hedge Funds. A little bit like what REI has.

Armstrong: Better than Home Depot? I don't know too much about them to say the truth, but they do have a large variety of plants.

There will be more posts, pictures included, about my strawberry project.