Every year around this time our strawberry plants go wild and throw out runners. Now, I’m not sure what YOU do with your runners… But I try to save each and every one of them. One summer I had “rescued” enough strawberry runners to supply two of my neighbors with enough strawberry plants to start their own berry patches.
But this fall, I have something else in mind. After we harvest all the pumpkins from our pumpkin patch, I plan on filling the area with strawberry plants. Because we live in a pretty mild climate, transplanting strawberry runners in the fall isn’t an issue. Typically I will transplant runners in both the spring and the fall. But since I planted 500 new strawberry plants this spring, I have an abundance of runners right now.
If you have never replanted strawberry runners before, it’s simple.
This is what I do –
- Carefully lift up the strawberry runner, leaving the roots intact
- Place the roots in a 3 inch container and cover with moist potting soil
- Leave potted runners where they are for about 6-8 weeks, watering as needed
- When the roots are well established, snip the runner about 6″ from the “vine” and move to the desired planting area. Remove from the pot, plant new strawberry plants and cover lightly with straw or leaf litter until spring, to protect the new strawberry plants.
The following spring your new strawberry plants should emerge and you’ll be able to enjoy strawberry desserts all summer long. Wahooo… Three cheers for fresh strawberries that actually TASTE like strawberries.
~Mavis
P.S. Do YOU save your runners, or am I the only one?
P.P.S. Did you know you can actually BUY strawberry seeds? Yep, Amazon has them for sale HERE. Has anyone ever grown strawberries from seed before? I haven’t, but I’m curious about it.
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vickie says
thanks for the info – I’m going to do this -hopefully this week
Sarah says
Awesome. I might have to do this, too. I just need to figure out where to put them…
Robin Welch says
Yes save the runners and now have strawberry plants even as ground cover under my rose bed. Three cheers for free strawberry plants! Great tutorial as usual.
Mavis says
Thanks Robin 🙂
Paula Perez says
Yep, I have a whole bed grown from runners from one plant purchased 4 years ago.
Emma Benefiel says
Thank you so much for this post, this is my first year attempting to grow strawberries, or grow anything and i was wondering what to do with the runners. the most common thing i read is to remove them but they never say how to replant them. I think i killed a few of my plants but not giving up!!
Christa says
i have started doing that too. 🙂 i want more starwberries next year, dang it. lol. my plan is to take my potted runners and put them in a pallet (i am all about pallets right now) and grow a vertical (2nd) strawberry patch. you can never have too many strawberries. 🙂
SC says
[snip the runner about 6″ from the “vine” ] Is the vine the parent plant or the new plant? I have some runners that I replanted in little pots to be able to move some of the patch.
Almost had strawberries this year, the plants flowered, we got a heatwave, flowers died meaning nor strawberries 🙁
Karissa says
This year is my first year planting runners, I skipped the repotting step and just snipped them and planted them straight in the ground. They all survived!
Rachel says
That is GREAT information. Now I know! Too bad I snipped and trashed mine not so long ago. 🙁
Beckybeq says
Beautiful! After trying for 3 years to grow strawberries unsuccessfully, hubby & I pulled up the beds and are going to plant apple trees instead. :o(
Mavis says
What kind of apples are you growing?
jolanta says
My mom always saved the first one closest to the vine. She would say that others are not good for planting…
donna finchum says
oh my ! how can you not plant the runners? it is like – just letting a plant die. my strawberries are in a stacked planter and i put small pots below, all around the stack, and stick the runners in them while still attached, until rooted.
Mari the Kiwi says
Hi Mavis.
Here in NZ, this kiwi grows strawberries and each autumn, I cut off the runners and put them into a commumnal box. Acutally I use an old sink I have for that. Put 2/3 soil in, place your plants and cover arounds them with soil and put it in the greenhouse or under a tree for the winter. Then come sping (did them about 3 weeks ago actually) well, still winter, when I set up my new strawberry box, I planted them all out.
What is my sttrawberry box??? >> Read on the lettuces in pallets thread to see what I have done..
Chris says
Mavis, I’m curious and sorry if I’ve missed a post update, but how did your strawberries do in the wooden pallets. Right now my strawberries are all in containers, but I would like to put them in the ground soon and your pallet idea looks awesome. Thanks.
Mavis says
Hi Chris,
I’ve been wanting to write about the results, but totally forgot about it. I will address this issue tomorrow {with pictures}. I hope that is okay.