Strawberries in Hanging Baskets – Halton Area Grasp Gardeners

Janet Padiak – Halton Grasp Gardener

June 26, 2025

The Secret to Rising Nice Strawberries in Planters and Hanging Baskets

Strawberries are one of many best delights for the gardener. Straight from the plant, they’re aromatic and luscious. However strawberries are inclined to break from pests—bugs, slugs, and foraging wildlife—so what’s an natural gardener to do?

Why Select Hanging Baskets?

One technique is to develop the berries in hanging baskets. Advantages embody:

The peak of the basket retains them out of attain of typical pests similar to aphids, spider mites and crawling slugs.
Hanging vegetation are much less accessible to mice, squirrels (often) and raccoons; the result’s that there’s minimal lack of ripening berries to those opportunistic foragers.
There’s free air circulation across the vegetation and this reduces potential for fungal illnesses similar to anthracnose and botrytis gray mould.
It’s simple to place the hampers in full solar (6–8+ hours per day) to get one of the best crop.
Harvesting berries is easy—simply attain out your hand to choose.

Basket Dimension and Setup

These baskets get heavy when saturated and filled with berries, in order that they have to be substantial. Wire baskets hung with metallic chains are greatest; they are often 30 cm (12”) to 40 cm (16”) in diameter and about 20 cm (8”) at their most depth. The basket liners needs to be porous in order that extra moisture will drain—strawberries hate moist ft. Coco fiber or burlap works properly. You should definitely grasp the vegetation from a bracket or hook that’s well-anchored.

How Many Crops per Basket?

For 30 cm baskets, plan for 4 vegetation (across the edges).
For 40 cm baskets, plan for six–8 vegetation (5 across the edges and the remaining within the center).

Watering and Feeding

You will discover that, throughout summer time’s warmth, the hampers will want day by day watering if there isn’t any vital rain. When the climate is cooler, each second day might be ample.

To find out when to water:

Gently carry from the underside of the basket to really feel the load.
Use the “finger test”: insert your finger into the soil 3 cm (1”) deep. In case your finger is dry on the tip, the planter wants water.

To maintain the plant producing massive berries all summer time, start fertilizing each 2 weeks in July utilizing a balanced fertilizer similar to that formulated for tomatoes.

Managing Runners

The vegetation will produce runners that may grasp superbly over the sting of the hampers. Go away these runners as they’ll produce berries, however when the runners produce three and 4 tiers, clip the underside runners off to direct the vitality into fruit formation.

Soil and Selection Choice

The containers can use any good high quality business container soil. Select day-neutral strawberries, which proceed to bloom and fruit properly into September, relatively than June-bearing strawberries, which stop flowering by July.

Rising Strawberries from Seed

One in every of gardening’s greatest saved secrets and techniques is how simple it’s to develop strawberries from seed. Seeds sown in early March (‘Delizz’ is one such selection) will start to fruit by late June. These vegetation typically survive the winter and can be utilized the following 12 months, or new vegetation might be grown from seed.

Closing Suggestions

Whereas strawberries like free-draining soil, baskets shouldn’t dry out. Constant watering and balanced feeding will guarantee vigorous development and steady manufacturing.

Nothing appears extra stunning than a number of baskets with tiers of strawberries hanging off the perimeters.

Cowl Picture: Fairacre Farms