Seeing your first fragrant strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) blossoms is exciting, but don’t rush ahead just yet. If you’ve planted a June-bearing strawberry variety, your plants will yield better results if you skip the first-year harvest. By pruning off the strawberry blooms before they have a chance to produce fruit, you will allow all the plant’s energy to go into establishing its root system. In addition, you can use these tips on how to grow and care for a strawberry plant to help keep your plant healthy and happy for years to come.

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You have the choice of three types of strawberries for your home garden: June-bearing, which produce a large crop once a year; ever-bearing, which produce two crops each year; and day neutral, which bear strawberries all summer long. Which variety you select can depend on your goals and your growing season. For example, June-bearing strawberries grow well in areas with cold winters, where they can go dormant and store up energy, but can tolerate heat better than any other strawberry variety, making them perfect for climates like Oklahoma that freeze in the winter but have hot summers. In contrast, ever-bearing strawberries won’t produce fruit if it gets hotter than 85 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Once you’ve selected your strawberry type, they can be planted in the spring and should flower in early summer. However, don’t give in to the temptation to be impatient. If you do let your plants produce strawberries their first year, they are likely to be small, dry, and bland. It’s worth the wait for the luscious, juicy strawberries you’re expecting.

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First, you’ll want to watch for your strawberry plant’s small white blossoms, which are most likely to start appearing in early May. To get the best results, you’ll want to keep checking your plant every week or so through July to make sure you catch and remove all the flowers. It takes only four weeks for June-bearing strawberries to go from flowers to ready-to-pick strawberries, so if you forget to watch your plants, you may end up with some unexpected fruit. 

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Once your strawberry plant starts blooming, it’s pruning time. If you’ve never pruned in your garden before, you can check out these mistakes to avoid when pruning your plants. Strawberry flowers are delicate, so you can simply pinch them off. However, you can also use pruning shears, such as the Fiskars Bypass Pruning Shears or the GrowIt 8.5″ Professional Titanium Bypass Pruning Shears from Amazon. In addition, you can snip any leaves that have discoloration, such as yellowing, at the same time. You’ll want to be sure to throw away your pruned leaves far away from your strawberries, as the discoloration can be a sign of disease. 

By using this pruning trick in your plant’s first year, you’ll be able to grow healthy, beautiful strawberries. And if you want inspiration on more delicious fruit to grow alongside them, here are 15 berry-producing bushes that are perfect for your yard.

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