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Mini Strawberries

These strawberries are an alpine type known for their abundant harvest of sweet, flavorful berries that add a beautiful pop of red to your Gardyn. Strawberries are a delicious source of vitamin C, folate, and healthful flavonoids including anthocyanins and ellagic acid, both of which are antioxidants!

Category

Days to Sprout

Taste It for

Temprature

Germination

Pollination

Prunning

Plant Health

Support

Harvest

Fruits

10-15

6 Months

Prefer warmer temperatures in the 70-85°F range and thrive in 60-75% relative humidity. Watch out for browning on the edges of the leaves, which is a sign their environment is too dry. If you see this, try adding a humidifier.

Mini Strawberries require help with pollination to encourage flowers to form fruit. When the white flowers appear, hold each flower gently between your index and middle fingers. Intentionally swirl the entire flower head 2-3 times with your thumb, ensuring you touch the entire surface. Pollination is an art, and uneven or incomplete pollination can cause your fruit to form funny (though still edible) shapes! Once pollinated, the flower will drop its petals and transform into a berry.

While Mini Strawberries are a compact variety, you may find you need to prune to keep your plant healthy and encourage continued fruit production. Follow these vital Strawberry pruning tips:

Never prune back more than ⅓ of the leaves at a time. You can remove any yellow or brown leaves if they appear.
Snip off any flowers that appear until the plant has at least 4 developed, fully open leaves.
Prune away all runners, or stolons, throughout the plants’ entire life cycle.
Prune your Strawberry roots twice a month by trimming away any brown, black, or slimy roots, along with any roots extending past the yPod. Regularly adding HydroBoost to your tank can significantly help with root health (among other benefits!).

Mini Strawberries have sensitive root systems, leaving them susceptible to root rot. To combat this, we recommend twice monthly tank refreshes, twice monthly root checks/pruning, and weekly doses of HydroBoost. Aphids and spider mites are common pests, but you can use our prevention and treatment tricks to keep pests at bay!

Strawberries are ready to pick when each berry is red all the way to the stem. Color, rather than size, indicates ripeness. If you still see white or light red tissue, the berry isn’t ready yet! For maximum flavor, give ripe berries an extra day or two to really fill out. They should feel soft to the touch, not firm. Harvest berries right off the stem by either pinching them off with your fingers or using a clean pair of scissors to snip berries’ individual stems.

Origin

Strawberries have been eaten by humans for hundreds if not thousands of years. However, it wasn’t until the 18th century that they gained popularity and became a staple in the home garden. This mini variety, also known as wild or alpine strawberries, is native to many temperate regions of the world, including parts of North and South America.

Qualities