Why Strawberries Aren't Sweet: 11 Reasons Why Berries Lose Sweetness
One of the most desirable summer berries is strawberries. Honeysuckle appears earlier, but its taste is not as summery as strawberries.
A bad harvest can be disappointing. Strawberries can get sick, stop bearing fruit, or the quality of the harvest can deteriorate. For example, the berries may not be sweet.
An expert of the online publication BelNovosti, agronomist, landscape designer Anastasia Kovrizhnykh told what prevents growing sweet berries.
1. The simplest thing that could happen is a mistake in choosing a strawberry variety. It is possible that the berry itself has lost its varietal qualities due to age.
2. It is recommended to replant strawberries every 3-4 years. Bushes that sit in one place for more than 6 years grow old and cannot produce tasty berries.
3. It is possible that excess moisture is to blame. This could be due to improper watering or heavy rains. The only way to somehow influence the problem is to regularly loosen the soil.
4. Perhaps you just need to add a mixture of compost and river sand (1:1).
5. Oddly enough, the height of the bed also matters, especially if the strawberries grow on a slope. In this case, high beds are a necessity, not a gardener's whim.
6. Strawberries should be grown in such a way that they receive at least 8 hours of sun a day.
7. Dense planting can also worsen the quality of the harvest and the taste of the berries. It is advisable to leave a distance of 20-30 cm between the bushes, and 40-50 cm between the rows.
8. Strawberry diseases such as rot and mold significantly impair the taste and quality of the berries.
9. Planting time. It is better to plant or transplant strawberries in August. This way the root system will have time to develop, and the seedlings will survive the winter well.
10. In the first year after planting, strawberries will not produce an impressive harvest. The peak occurs in the 2nd and 3rd years.
11. And the last thing you shouldn’t do is mow strawberries in the fall. It’s easy to damage the growth point, which also affects the quality of the harvest.
