Want to stay within your grocery budget and buy hearty, healthy, chemical-free fruits and veggies? Stop short circuiting at the produce section; you can grow fresh, organic strawberries in your very own home, year-round!
Strawberries have always been a gardener’s best friend. They’re easy; the plants grow quickly and produce lots of delicious fruit without needing a whole lot of space. Best of all, they can do their thing from an indoor container just as well as they can outside. All you need is a strawberry pot, the right potting mix, and the actual plant.
Start by making the best purchase of your life; an organic strawberry plant from your local nursery. Make sure to soak the plant in water for an hour before planting it in a pot. Otherwise, it may not survive the repotting process.
Oh, and about that pot- you want it to have drainage holes. This way water will run through the potted soil much like it runs through normal earth; you won’t have to worry about any strawberry flooding.
Fill the pot with soil and stick your plant in the middle. Pack the dirt all together so that your strawberry plant stands firmly in the pot with its roots pointed straight down. The soil level should be at a point where the roots are completely submerged and dirt is just touching the plant where it begins to become green (this is called the collar of the plant). The soil should run just about two inches below the rim of the pot.
She’s ready for her first watering! Be generous; the initial waterings not only hydrate the plant but help to set the soil in its new position, offering the plant’s roots support.
Finally, the most important part: location, location, location. Your indoor strawberry plant needs to sit in a spot where it will enjoy at least six hours of sun per day.
Once you’ve done the hard part, all that’s left is careful maintenance. Don’t over water your strawberry plant; place your finger in the dirt around the plant to ensure that it gets an inch or two inches of water. The soil should stay moist, but not wet, and you want to make sure you water in the morning or during the day to prevent disease.
You’ll also want to turn your plants 180 degrees every couple weeks to make sure that they are evenly exposed to sunlight.
If you follow these steps carefully, your strawberries are likely to ripen in early- to mid-spring. Before you know it, you’ll be enjoying your own refreshing, delicious spring harvest!
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(h/t): living traditionally, featured image credit: fanciest space