Strawberries are fun plants to have in your vegetable garden. If you are familiar with growing veggies and berries, you must know how crucial planting your crops at the proper time can be. Knowing when to plant strawberries in zone 7 will give you plenty of healthy fruits between the spring and summer. If you don’t know where to start, don’t worry. This essential guide has everything you need. Here, we’ll go over everything you need to know to take care of your strawberries when living in zone 7.
When to Plant Strawberries in Zone 7
For starters, let’s give you a concise (but precise) answer to your doubts. For best results, plant your strawberries from mid-December to early April. Take the sun, temperatures, and soil conditions into account. Indeed, these plants perform best at temperatures between 60 and 80F.
You will have to cover your plants at temperatures lower than 50F to protect them from colder temperatures. Even if you plant them too early: don’t worry. With adequate protection from frost, your plants will do fine.
However, you must also ensure that your strawberry plants receive at least six hours of sunlight per day. Choose a sunny location to plant them. The soil must also be adequate for your strawberries to thrive: carry out a pH test and ensure your ground is between 5.5. and 6.8. Otherwise, you may have to add amendments to adjust the soil conditions. For instance, if the soil is too acidic, add some limestone. On the contrary, to increase acidity, add sulfur. You can find both of them at your favorite garden center or nursery.
Selecting a Variety for Zone 7
You may not know about this, but there are more than 200 varieties of strawberry: you have plenty of species from which select one that most suits your taste and your soil conditions. For instance, you can go for plants that will give you larger fruits or others that will produce juicier berries. Besides your taste, selecting the suitable variety also has a lot to do with your hardiness zone.
For those living in zone 7, we recommend getting AC Wendy strawberries. If you can plant them under full sun, these plants will perform well in almost any soil. Plus, they produce strawberries that ripen early, which is handy if you are looking for plenty of harvests.
But if you can’t provide your strawberries plants with full sun, don’t worry. You can pick a variety like Apline Alexandria and place it under shady areas. While these plants bear smaller fruits, the prize will be a sweeter taste! For a unique look (and interesting taste), you can also think about planting the Alpine Yellow Wonder. If you have never seen yellow strawberries before, this is a great chance to grow them in your garden. This variety does well under full sun and in most conditions when growing in zone 7.
If you are trying to get more abundant harvests, the Berries Galore Pink Hybrid variety might be your solution. This plant produces a medium-sized fruit paler than your standard strawberry image. However, that doesn’t take out any of the flavors of these delicious fruits. Plus, this species is incredibly prolific, meaning your can taste ripe fruits in as little as every three days when they are in season.
If you can give your plants what they need to thrive, consider planting more than one variety: it will provide you with an ongoing supply of ripe fruits and extend the harvesting season.
Taking Care of Your Strawberry Plants
Strawberries need proper care to prevent rotting and molding. Plus, you might have to keep an eye for birds and pests that might attack and ruin all of the hard work you put into growing healthy plants. Prepare the soil adequately and protect your strawberries against low temperatures to keep the roots healthy.
To prevent birds from attacking and eating your delicious strawberries, get deterrents: you can use shiny CDs or empty cans to repel the birds from getting anywhere near your strawberries. Alternatively, you can also build a net structure to keep your plants free from pests and limit attacks from birds.
When to Plant Strawberries in Zone 7: Conclusion
Hopefully, this essential guide helped you understand better when to plant strawberries in your hardiness zone and what to do to ensure healthy crops.