Strawberry is one of the easiest plants to propagate. They grow runners during summer and fall, spreading quickly. You may end up having 20+ strawberry plants from one single plant in one growing season! If you love strawberries like I do, this may be a great option to get multiple plants without spending a lot of money.
Last summer, I won a strawberry plant from a raffle for the local garden club. It was in a 3-gallon pot, and I left it under my banana tree all summer as there was no room to plant it. It grew and grew, and had lots of runners, and these runner plants grew more runners! I ended up having a lot of strawberry plants all over the banana area. I emptied one raised bed just for strawberries in the late fall, and they are growing very nicely so far. It is very easy to do, and you may end up having lots of strawberry plants, too! Let’s go through the steps together.
Find the Runners
First step is to find the runners. You may see stems extending from the mother plant, and there may be a small strawberry plant attached to it. These runner plants usually establish on their own, but if they are in the air, you may want to help them establish by using a u-shaped wire to hold the plant to the ground. Hold off on cutting it from the mother plant if there are no roots developed, or the plant is too small. The bigger the plant, the higher the success rate for transplanting later on.
Cut the Runners
Once you know that the plants are established and roots are developed, clip away from the mother plant. That small plant should be able to survive and grow on its own at this point. If the runner plant has its own runners, make sure to cut them. It needs to use all its energy for itself, not for runners.
Transplant the runners
I found that the easiest way is to dig around the plant with soil attached to it. Sometimes you find out that it does not have roots, so you can help it make good contact with the soil by using a u-shape wire to hold it down. Make sure that the top section of the crown is exposed. If it is buried too deep, the plant may rot and die. The small runner plants did not do well for me. After a couple weeks, they did not survive. The key is to dig up well established runner plants. Some plants are directly planted in a raised bed, and some in nursery pots.
Fertilize the runner plants
Spread fertilizer around the plants. I use organic fertilizers, but anything you have with you should work. Avoid using very strong synthetic fertilizer for these young plants.
Water them well
Finally, make sure to water enough to remove air pockets around the roots. Keep the soil moist until they are well established. Strawberries are cold hardy, and they usually survive the 7B/8A zone winter if they are planted in raised bed or in ground.
This is a great way to harvest your favorite strawberry year after year. Strawberry plants are cold hardy, tough, and easy to care for. Give it a try if you want to multiply your strawberry harvest!
Happy Gardening!