Everbearing and June-bearing strawberries like a sunny location. They prefer soil to which you’ve added peat moss and manure or compost; try seafood compost or chicken manure. Good drainage is critical because strawberries won’t tolerate wet soil. A layer of mulch like straw or cedar mulch around plants controls weeds, provides winter protection, and protects blossoms from late spring frost. Since fruit production declines in the second and third year, it’s a good idea to make additional plantings each year.
No garden? No problems! Strawberries can be grown in containers too and the Albion variety is a good choice for containers. For more info on growing strawberries in containers, check out Halifax-based gardening guru Niki Jabour’s tips on how to do it here.
Plant raspberries in sun and soil amended with manure or compost. Position the canes 45 cm (18”) apart in rows 1 m (3’) apart. “Everbearing” raspberries such as Heritage produce fruit every year in late summer, early fall on new canes. They are all pruned to the ground each autumn. All the other raspberries produce fruit on canes that have grown for 2 years. Since these thicker canes never produce fruit again, they need to be cut out at ground level once the harvest is complete, leaving the thinner one-year old canes that will bear fruit next year.