Of all the fruits, strawberries are among the easiest to grow and winterizing your potted strawberry plants will keep them happy year after year.
Pots used to grow strawberries are usually made of terra cotta; the reddish-orange pots we all know so well. Both ‘regular’ terra cotta pots and those made specifically for strawberries or small succulents will work just fine. The reason for using terra cotta is that it’s highly porous which allows for better soil drainage. You can purchase strawberry pots at your local home and garden centers or online at places like Amazon.com. Another popular choice of container gardeners are wire hanging baskets lined with coconut fiber or moss.
Strawberries are perennials — they go through a period of dormancy in the winter and return each spring ready to go again. With a minimal amount of preparation for getting them through the winter, your strawberry plants in pots can be as productive as those grown in the ground. The amount of winterizing required depends on what planting zone you live in.
Virtually every planting zone is conducive for growing strawberry plants at least a few months out of the year. If you don’t know what zone you live in, go to PlantMaps.com to find out. Those living in zones 2-7 have harsh winter temperatures which will require winterizing your potted strawberries. Those living in zone 8 or higher can rest easy because no extra attention is necessary.
Winterizing strawberry pots in cold climates can be accomplished by putting the pots in a cool garage or cellar, or by removing the plants from the pot, planting them in plastic pots and planting those pots in the ground up to the top rim of the pots (leaving the plants exposed). The plants should then be covered over with a lose layer of straw.
For more temperate climates that don’t experience extended periods of temperatures below freezing, simply place the plants under the deck or on a covered porch to protect them from winter precipitation. If you have an extended period of below freezing temperatures, bring them into your garage or cellar.
Those living in the warmest climates — where berries are produced commercially — simply removing unwanted runners from the plants to promote healthier growth of the ‘main’ plant and watering them less frequently is sufficient.
That’s about all there is to winterizing your potted strawberry plants. Honest. Strawberries make a great container crop for the following reasons. They…
1. Have shallow root systems
2. Are low-maintenance plants
3. Produce small fruits that don’t require a lot of room
4. Have a vine-like quality that allows them to grow and produce outside the container
5. Naturally propagate runners that can be rooted quickly and easily into more pots
Ever-bearing strawberries (those which produce berries in the spring and late summer) are usually the best for growing in pots. Some of the more popular varieties of ever-bearing berries are Calypso, Alpine, Arapahoe and Alexandria.
When buying your plants, make sure you purchase plants with nice green foliage, few if any runners and plants whose root crowns are firm but fleshy feeling. Plants can be purchased at your local home and garden centers, or from fellow gardeners in your area who have plants to spare. Any of these reputable seed and plant catalogs are also excellent sources for quality plants that come with limited guarantees: Henry Fields, Gurney, Jung, Burpee, Park Seeds and Harris Seeds.
Growing strawberry plants in pots is a fun, economical, easy and delicious way to introduce yourself or your children to gardening and healthy eating.
jan says
November 4, 2011 at 10:28 ami live in rochester, ny. will put my potted strawberry plants in my garage for the winter. do i need to water them?
Louise says
November 12, 2014 at 6:20 amI found this info via google:
Watering Overwintered Strawberries
Just as with storing bare-root strawberry plants, your overwintered strawberries still have to have appropriate water. Totally dry soil means dead plants. Too much moisture can also be fatal. During the cold temperatures and while the plant is dormant, only minimal water is needed.
For outdoor, in-ground, and mulched overwintering strawberry plants, the natural precipitation should appropriately maintain sufficient soil moisture. For the container plants, however, water will have to be provided. The easiest way to provide appropriate water is to collect snow from outside and throw a handful or two on top of the soil. The slightly warmer temperatures in the garage should slowly melt the snow allowing a more natural seepage into the container soil. Doing this periodically (about once a month) should sufficiently moisten the soil and allow the plants to thrive again come spring.
randy q says
July 6, 2012 at 7:55 pmWe live in Wisconsin, grew a strawberry plant in a hanging basket can we bring it in our basement for the winter? The temp. is usually in the low 60’s. If so should we water it from time to time or put it near a window? We only got a few strawberries this year but we’re hoping for more next year.
Alice DeWall says
October 2, 2012 at 9:09 amI also live in a cold climate (Minnesota) If I bring my plants in to the basement, do I water it occasionally and does it have to be kept in the dark?
Alice DeWall says
October 21, 2012 at 7:52 pmWhat do I do to keep my potted strawberry plant over winter? I live in Minnesota where it can get below zero
Linda says
October 12, 2014 at 1:21 pmI live in Leitchfield ky. I have strawberries planted in wooden boxes. How do I winterize them?
brianinbc says
November 12, 2014 at 1:51 pmDoes anyone monitor this page? Questions from three writers about winter watering seem to have gone unanswered. I think many would like to see the author’s recommendation!
Jack Rooney says
January 26, 2015 at 11:20 amI mulch a good two or more inches over the whole garden for the winter in spring move mulch away from plants app one inch never had a problem with over winter plants
Jo says
March 13, 2016 at 5:39 amI have many hanging baskets of strawberries. So easy to grow this way & through watering & full sunlight in summer I have been lucky enough to have an ‘abundance ‘ of berrys. What will happen in winter ? this I would like to know ! but I do live on the east coast of “Australia”.
Raechelle says
December 9, 2016 at 7:44 pmI have wild strawberries and their roots are very long is that normal or would that be different from commercial ones?
Just mccombe says
September 5, 2017 at 10:33 amDo I need to prune strawberry plant if so how far do you prune back please
Kathy says
September 15, 2017 at 11:54 amI have 2 strawberry plants in plastic pots that sit in an elevated bed around the trunk of a tree. The runners have planted themselves in the ground around the pots, so I can’t move the pots inside for the winter (zone 5) without breaking the runners. How would you suggest that I winterize these plants?
C D Boise says
October 30, 2017 at 9:23 pmjust cut the runner and take the pot inside, make sure to cover the rooted runner plants as noted above
Marki knopp says
October 12, 2018 at 11:39 amI have a strawberry plant in a large pot. It is still blooming and bearing fruit. I brought inside, can I keep it going in my house all winter or should I put it outside and let it freeze over the winter? Will it still come back? I live in the mountains in Colorado. It’s cold and snowy here.
Debbee Owens says
October 21, 2018 at 8:24 pmI live in Oklahoma. I have june bearing strawberry plants in three clay pots. What should I do to winterize them.
Linzi says
March 20, 2019 at 12:48 pmHi! When can I bring my strawberries back out of the garage we are still expecting overnight temperature around -10 for a few weeks yet?
Nancy says
May 10, 2019 at 8:59 pmLast year I had bought two container pots with strawberry plants. I live in Minnesota and didn’t know what to do with them in winter. I left them outside in the cold weather. It looks like that they are died. What should I do buy new plants to put in them or wait to see if they come back. I know now that next time I will bring them in garage. Any reply will be very appreciated..