Weed control in strawberriesis a necessary procedure, because weeds are a strong competition for strawberries for water and nutrients in the soil, significantly reducing the growth of strawberries and its yield. See how to conductweed control in strawberriesin amateur cultivation on the plot and whether chemical spraying is possiblespraying on weeds in strawberries
Weed control in strawberries - straw mulching
We start combating strawberries in strawberriesbefore starting the cultivation and planting of strawberries.At this stage, it consists in thoroughly cleaning the beds of all weeds present on them, so that the strawberries are planted in the weed-free soil. We can do it mechanically or with herbicides.
Only manual, very thorough cultivation is recommended on small beds in the plotuprooting and removing weeds from the bedsIf there are only one-year-old weed species, such as quinoa, on the beds intended for strawberries white, nightshade or starweed, a careful mechanical soil tillage is enough. However, it is important to remove the weeds before sowing their seeds, from which the weeds could grow next year. A good natural method ofweed control in strawberriesis also sowing plants that compete with weeds and enrich the soil with nutrients, such as mustard, lupine, vetch or field grass, for the forecrop. Some early vegetables are also a good forecrop before strawberries, such asbeans, peas, carrots, onions.
For larger strawberry crops where we cannot manually remove all weeds, and heavy weed infestation with perennial weeds such as dandelion, couch grass and morning glory, useweed control prior to strawberry plantingherbicides can be used. However, in amateur crops on plots and in home gardens, use herbicides only as a last resort.
Asweed spraying in strawberries , performed before planting, foliar herbicides containing glyphosate are used, such as Roundup Ultra and its counterparts. Troublesome, deep-rooted weeds such as dandelion, horseradish, blackberry, nettle and turnip can be treated with Starane 260 EW. It is important to spray green and grown (at least 15 cm high) and dry weeds as the herbicides are absorbed by the above-ground, green parts of the weeds.
Note!After spraying with the herbicide, we do not perform any treatments for a month, and we can plant strawberries only after 1.5 months from the application of the herbicide.
However, I would like to emphasize once again that I encourage you to give up the use of herbicides on plots andmanual weeding of strawberry beds , especially since some of the weeds collected, such as dandelions or nettle are an excellent raw material for the preparation of liquid manure, extracts and decoctions that help fertilize and protect plants against diseases and pests. The profit from this work can therefore be double - the naturally cleared field and the herbal material obtained for protective preparations.
Against weeds in strawberriesmulch between plants and between rows to reduce weed growth and many other benefits, such as reducing water evaporation from the soil, protecting the fruit from soil dirt and reducing the risk of strawberry diseases such as gray mold.Straw is the best mulch for strawberries and spread it out in a 10 cm thick layer. Pine bark, so popular for mulching bedding plants, can also be used.
A practical solution that completely eliminates weeds is planting strawberries on agrotextile. For this purpose, black agro-nonwoven fabric is used, the so-called mulching, with a basis weight (thickness) of 50 g / m². After spreading the nonwoven agrotextile on the bed, holes are cut in it and plants are planted there.
If strawberries are planted without agrotextile and mulched with straw, it is necessary to weed and remove weeds from between the strawberries throughout the growing season. Straw quite effectively protects strawberries against the growth of annual weeds, but we must watch out for the perennial ones.
Note!When manually removing weeds in strawberries, soil should be presentloosen very shallow, i.e. to a depth of 3 cm, so as not to damage the plant roots. The last cultivation is carried out in September at the latest in order not to expose the plants to frost.
There is also quite a large list of chemical agentsweed control in strawberrieseven in already fruiting plantations, but their use on plots is not recommended. As a rule, they are available in quite large packages, the purchase of which is profitable only for growers. If we want to have he althy strawberries free from chemicals and harmful pollutants on the plot, we should settle for strawberries mulching and manual weeding.
In large plantationsweed control in strawberriesherbicides are carried out in spring, until flowering, then after harvesting and mowing the leaves, and then in the fall. The herbicides recommended for early autumn and autumn application are Azotop New 80 WP and Devrinol 450 SC (the latter can be mixed shallowly with the soil in the inter-rows). On the other hand, Goltix Compact 90 WG should be applied just before the emergence of weeds or on emerging weeds (these preparations are taken up by both the roots and leaves of the weeds). Before usingherbicides on weeds in strawberries , read the strawberry protection program for the given year, as the list of authorized agents may change.
