Sun and Shade
When daytime temperatures are routinely over 90°F (32°C), strawberry plants must be shielded all day with 50% shade cloth and/or lattice. From Nov 22 to Mar 21, strawberries can be unshaded. The rest of the year, afternoon shade is needed.

Mulch
With drip irrigation, 1 to 1.5 mil plastic can be placed under and around plants to keep berries clean and reduce moisture loss during warm months. If using straw as mulch, take care not to cover leaves. Straw should not be used as frost protection. Row covers will protect plants from freezing temperatures and provide more sunlight during the day.

Watering
Daily in the morning. Pale green leaves indicate overwatering. Small, misshapen berries signify underwatering. Twice a day at the same times will be necessary when temperatures are over 95°F (35°C).
In the shortest days of the year, from the first of December to mid-January, watering can be reduced to every other day.

Remove All Runners
Strawberry plants spread themselves by stolons called runners, above-ground roots with nodes that grow new roots into the soil at intervals to produce daughter plants (clones). Cut off all runners to keep the plant's energy devoted to developing roots, leaves and fruit, unless you want more strawberry plants.

Remove Weeds by Hand
Remove weeds by hand to avoid cutting shallow roots. Remove dead or dying leaves and stems, as they appear, to avoid fungal diseases.

Rotating Crops
Home gardeners can grow strawberries in long, narrow containers, then simply replace the soil and sterilize the containers every 2 years.
In raised garden beds, strawberries should be grown for only two years, then replaced with other crops for five years. Rotation is necessary to avoid the build-up of microbial diseases that attack strawberries. Nightshade family crops, like tomatoes or peppers, cannot be used in the rotation because they share some of the same diseases with strawberries.
Strawberries are heavy feeders that deplete the soil of nutrients. In rotation years without strawberries, leguminous cover crops like field pea and clovers can be used to add nitrogen to the soil. In one experiment, mustard cover crops and broccoli crop residue were plowed into the soil, just before replanting strawberries, to reduce the possibility of Verticillium Wilt. This experiment showed a five year rotation could be achieved instead of the normal seven years.

Pests
Birds, rodents, slugs and snails can be a problem. An enclosure of 1/2" (13mm) wire mesh or netting on top may be necessary.

Good Companions
Plants that help strawberries include legumes such as beans and alfalfa which put nitrogen into the soil, and plants that attract bees such as borage. Caraway is also considered beneficial because it attracts beneficial wasps.

Experiment with Many Cultivars
Trying different cultivars is the best way to see what grows well in your location with your garden setup.

Strawberry Plant Problems

All Foliage, No Flowers
This can be caused by too much nitrogen in the soil. Do not use nitrogen-only or high nitrogen fertilizers. Some cultivars, such as Quinault, will fail to flower if the soil is not to their liking, even when other cultivars, like Loran or Sequoia, flower in abundance. The soil must be properly acidic, have the right balance of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous, and not be depleted of nutrients.

Many Flowers, No Fruit
Flowers will not set fruit if temperatures are too high. For some temperature-sensitive cultivars, daytime temps over 80°F (27°C) will stop setting fruit even when nighttime temperatures are much lower. For other cultivars, low nighttime temperatures will keep them setting fruit.

Fruit Ripen Too Small
Insufficient soil nutrients or insufficient water may cause small fruit. Know what the normal size of the berries on your cultivar of plant are supposed to be.

Fruit are Brown and Shrunken
Insufficient water caused by (1) temperatures over 85-90°F (29-32°C) and failure to water twice a day, or (2) plants possibly too close together and competing for water.

Fruit are Deformed - Phyllody
With this rare disease, floral parts are converted to leaves. The fruit have leaves growing out of them, green bumps in place of seeds, and/or tips that have turned bumpy brown. The non-infectious variety is caused by excessive chilling of transplants in storage. This will disappear over the season.
The infectious variety is caused by phytoplasmas, bacteria-like organisms that harm plants and are spread by leafhoppers. These plants will continue to produce deformed fruit and should be destroyed.

Spider Mites
Use a mite predator, such as Phytoseiulus persimilis, which can be purchased at garden supply companies specializing in organic controls.

Yellow or Red Leaves
Sometimes older leaves on a strawberry plant will die, and they turn yellow and red in the process because they contain red pigment.
Remove dead and dying leaves as soon as possible to prevent fungal problems.
Red Stele root rot can also cause yellow or red leaves. This fungal disease is caused by poorly draining soil or overly wet soil. If your garden bed drains well, yellow and red leaves are usually normal.
Red stems can be a characteristic of some cultivars and are not a problem by themselves.

Brown Leaves
Verticillium Wilt is a root and crown disease that causes browning along the margins and veins of a leaf. Do not allow soil to dry completely, and do not place plants where this disease might be present. Remove dying leaves as soon as possible.

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