SWFLA StrawBerries

[H20.world]

Just ordered some pre-rooted strawberry starters online, and can't wait to get em growin'! Anyone seen anything around here about growing the berry? It's perfect time of year for em outdoors in my area... The fields are filling up with em!

[H20.world]

My intentions are to use CoCoCoir/Perlite mix and feeding via dripper on a timer. Any recommendations on a starting pH? 6ish?

Thanks...

[Grey]

I wish I knew from personal experience, but I never got around to growing strawberries in FL.

A pH of 5.3 to 6.5 is optimal, but strawberries will grow in soils with a pH between 5.0 and 7.0.

[opabinia51]

Well being a huge fan of varied soils, I would recommend using a more natural soil consisting of some compost, manure, maybe some leaf mold and if you still want, some perlite.

You'll find that your strawberries will have a lot more flavour and be that much more resistant to disease.

But, do what you like.

[Grey]

I didn't know what CoCoCoir was. In FL I never had any use for pearlite, even though my hubby bought it (primarily for his cactus garden, to keep the sand even looser and drier, which I didn't understand because I thought cacti naturally grew in sand in the first place.)

Florida sand is as loose as you can get, and naturally lacking in any nutrients, so the more natural additives you can mix in your soil or in your pots, the better.

Better hurry on those strawberries, if I remember rightly you are actually behind as planting season is (I think) in November and harvest season is late January/early February.

[The Helpful Gardener]

What kind of strawberries? Day neutrals? Everbearers? Those should set for a while; spring bearers would be the ones that would only set for the one crop. The other advantage to the first two is that they don't run near as much and that's a big advantage in smaller spaces (like less than ten acres, say )

I really think the pearlite is a waste, Grey is right, the soil down there drains plenty fast, what's needed is more nutrient CoCoCoir is a great peat alternative that's a lot easier on the planet, but Opa's right, his list of additives is a great idea. Strawberries feed hard.

And what are we feeding through a dripper? Fish emulsion? Seaweed emulsion? Not the blue goo I hope. Stuff is wiping out your coral down there...

Scott

[H20.world]

EverBearingBerries: Ozark Beauts...

They've arrived! 50 pre-rooted lil rascals... I got about ten potted in the CoCo so far...

It's gonna be a all time low temp of 37 tonight, the coldest so far this winter... (here, where I'm @ anyways...) I've placed them in the shed for the night to avoid the cold temps... They're fresh transplants, and might not take the cold very well... [img]https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/images/picture.jpg[/img]

Anyways, I'm using HyDroOrganic ferts... It's called Earth Juice. It's made of guanos, and kelps... Good stuff; I reckon...

I have no more perlite, so this batch is straight CoCoCoir.

Thanks again to all that posted...

[The Helpful Gardener]

Good for you with the organic feed. They'll taste better too. Good stuff indeed...

Wet that coir well, and you might want to think about working some manure and cocoa mulch into that soil you'll be planting in (might want to try a bit of sand in with that coir for your starters, rather than just straight coir)

[H20.world]

Unfortunately the containers I'm using for this homemade dripper system aren't all that big. They're probably 4" squared. Not a whole lot of room in there for growing media. I may pick up some seperate containers aswell though, after all... I've got 50 plants to work with here...

I'll be the lab rat and see how 'awesome' this new media is. I've heard alot of good things about it... ...any comments on CoCoCoir?

[The Helpful Gardener]

Yep. Talked with some reps who are selling it using Southern Pacific sourcing. It's been a disposable by-product of the coconut trade for centuries, but now offers a good third world emeging industry to replace the diminishing (and ecologically damaging) peat industry. It is far more ph neutral than peat (which is what I used to acidify my aquarium for raising angel fish; peat is ACID), so there's that as well. Good humic content and very absobent. Better than peat and starting to become more available...

H2O, you are planning on doing these in the ground, right?

HG

[H20.world]

H2O, you are planning on doing these in the ground, right?

HG

Naw; my friend. They're all above ground. Too many problematic bugs in my soil here. I've got sod, and turf... Grubs and such are a terrible menace to my plants... I've found that containers above ground are the ticket... Or else a raised bed garden maybe...

Have you checked that link in my above post? It links to a couple pictures that show the dripper rig...

[Grey]

Ah, grubs. And probably nematodes, too, right?
I haven't seen a grub since I left FL. I still have to worry about nematodes tho.

I had raised beds in FL, they were great. I still planted squash, corn and sometimes beans in the ground anyway with a lot of mulch mixed in. I really didn't have any root problems - I often lost my corn crop to beetles and the like.

Something you can do to reduce the number of grubs and nematodes is to solarize your soil this summer for about a month. The hottest months of July and August are the best. Dampen the soil, lay clear plastic sheeting over it, secure the sheeting with tent pegs or rocks at the edges... and that dirt will BAKE the nasty buggers out of there.

[H20.world]

Thanks Grey.

Your right about the nematodes. Corn didn't do so well with me either... Ants infested the rootzone too. What a mess...

I like the raised bed idea.

[Grey]

I never did find a cure for ants.

I don't know how the big white sweet corn growers in FL did it - I tried corn for four years, even built a cage around it all to keep the squirrels out - and we still never got more than a couple cobs out of it.

[The Helpful Gardener]

I can offer lots of general help, but I had no idea you had so many soil fauna out to git yer goodies down there. S'also why we have mods (so folks like Grey who have been there can help out with local knowledge).

Good stuff Grey!

HG

[H20.world]

I never did find a cure for ants.

Me neither. They're a hassle. My back yards fulladem. Summers the worst, as you could imagine... I really don't notice them too much this time-o-year... I spray that Ortho-X FireAnt gimmick, or whatever its called, and they still present a problem...

Thanks All...

[Grey]

I dump boiling water on them - long as the pile is caught early and is't HUGE, it does work. If the pile is too big, then you'll have to do it several times to make sure you boiled 'em all, or else you'll be chasing them all over the yard as they make new piles.

[H20.world]

...problem is, they don't form piles! They're just cruisin' around, and roamin' around as they wish...

[opabinia51]

Try looking at this website to see if there are any plants that repel ants:


https://www.basic-info-4-organic-fertilizers.com/companionplants.html

Here is another website, I don't think that I would be to up on using boric acid but, in small amounts I don' t think that it would cause to much damage.

https://www.ghorganics.com/page11.html

[opabinia51]

I've looked up the MSDS on Boric Acid and apparently it is non toxic. Also it is hygroscopic meaning that it will absorb moisture readily.

However, it is an acid and be very careful using such products if you choose to follow the recommended recipe from that website. I always use safetey spec when handling acids or bases.

[H20.world]

How's that gonna treat my lawn though? Wouldn't acid kill my grass & lawn? ~ thanks for the links, and comments...

[img]https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/images/h2o.jpg[/img]

[The Helpful Gardener]

H2O, I just switched that to a URL, as you have a address that isn't hosting well, but the link goes straight through now. I know it's not a posted image, but it works. Just tryin' to be helpful...

HG

[webmaster]

Scott's right, there is something about the URL that is breaking the image being shown. I would guess that it's the question mark in the URL.

In any case, I uploaded it to our server and I'm hosting it from here. Is that the pic you wanted to show us?

[H20.world]

In any case, I uploaded it to our server and I'm hosting it from here. Is that the pic you wanted to show us?

YesSir. How do I upload pics to your server? Or is that not an option for me? You guys don't have a 'image gallery' type thing here?

[The Helpful Gardener]

Thanks Rog...

We'll talk about the image gallery and get back to you; thanks for the idea...

Scott

[Grey]

In any case, I uploaded it to our server and I'm hosting it from here. Is that the pic you wanted to show us?

YesSir. How do I upload pics to your server? Or is that not an option for me? You guys don't have a 'image gallery' type thing here?

You can post pictures by clicking the "Img" button at the top while posting, then place the URL of your photo behind it (no space) and then click "Img" again.

There are a number of free image hosting sites - I use Uploadit.org myself, but there are better ones out there I am sure!

[The Helpful Gardener]

Sizing...did we mention sizing your image? Web sized pics are best...

[Grey]

These fit in my screen - it only bothers me when the photos are so wide I have to scroll to the right to see the whole thing!

Looks great, H20!

[H20.world]

Sizing? Those pics are under 100KB! Their taken @ my lowest resolution on my camera! I don't think they're too big. What size are 'web pics'?

[Grey]

My little web hosting server only lets me have pics 8" wide at 72 dpi, compressed in photoshop. If I don't do that, then they are only allowed to be 3x5... talk about sad...

[webmaster]

Since you all are geeking out on graphics , I'll add my two cents on this matter:

It all depends on the resolution of your monitor. I have my work monitor set at 800x600 pixels resolution because I can see details clearer. But my other computers are set at a higher resolution.

So when you post a photo at 800x600, the 35% of users that set their monitors to 800x600 will have to scroll to the left to enjoy the photos.

99k is a large size for a photo. I could probably reduce those to at least 15k (including a size reduction) by using photoshop. But not everybody owns photoshop, or even photoshop elements, so no worries.

Thanks for the pics, they DO look great, and I have broadband so no issues downloading them.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Always more to learn about these infernal boxes... I stand corrected by a clear majority . My apologies, H2O...

Scott

[Grey]

I hadn't even considered that some people have their monitors set at 800x600 - mine is always set at the max so I can see more of the page I'm working on. part of the job I guess...

I'll have to remember that when I work on my website...

[opabinia51]

Maybe someone should split this topic off to the General Forum and entitle it "Pictures" or something to that tune.

[H20.world]

I shrunk those a little... How's that work fer size?

[webmaster]

Looks great!

[Grey]

Looks great!

Florida lets you garden all winter, and in the summer if you want to - I never did during the hottest months. If I didn't want to be out there, I figured most of the plants I was growing didn't either - and they would be lacking my attention to boot.

So - late June to early September, I let the garden beds bake (nematodes could all DIE!!), by mid-August I would start seeds indoors and by late September/early October - I had a garden again. So enjoy your months between now and June - have you started any summer crops yet?

[H20.world]

Woah! Sorry 'bout the size E'VryOne... New camera! This things awesome. 7.2mp updating from a 2mp! BIG difference... I resized them twice... The next ones'll be shrunk more... I promise...

But anyways, this is my first berry!

They're lovin' the CoCoCoir; I reckon... I'd like to get bigger containers for them maybe though after this first set come out... ?

[The Helpful Gardener]

Just a touch of spotting on those leaves H2O; naught to worry about yet but something to keep an eye on...

HG

[H20.world]

yeah, I noticed that too Helpful Gardener... Whaddya think it is?