1. New Horticultural Crop Production Systems
Becky Hughes
New Liskeard Agricultural Research Station

2. Strawberry Plant Types
Junebearing Strawberries Dayneutral Strawberries

3. Strawberry Plant Types
June-bearing Varieties
Dayneutral Varieties
Set flower buds in the short days of fall
Set flower buds at any daylength in the growing season as long as the temperatures are not too high
Fruit in June or July for 3 weeks
Fruit over the whole season
Produce runners after harvest
Produce few runners
Traditionally grown on matted beds
Grown on raised beds with plastic
Adapted varieties
Californian varieties

4. June-bearing Strawberry Production
Matted row system – 10-15,000 plants/ha
Year 1 – establishment
Harvest 2-3 years
2-4 week harvest

5. Recommended June-bearing Cultivars
Pick-your-own and retail
Annapolis – early
Jewel – mid-season
PYO
Cavendish – mid-season
Honeoye – early mid-season
Kent – mid-season

6. New June-bearing Cultivars
Wendy – early, large fruit, PYO and local markets
Summer Dawn (V151) – early, productive, retail markets

7. New June-bearing Cultivars
Valley Sunset – very late, very large, PYO and local markets
Summer Rose (R14) – very late, very large, low yields

8. New June-bearing Cultivars
Summer Ruby (2V55) – firm, large-fruited, early-mid-season
Information
OMAFRA - website
OBGA

9. Dayneutral Production Systems
Raised beds
Polyethylene mulch
Drip irrigation and fertigation
30,000-50,000 plants/ha

10. Dayneutral Production Systems Research
Ontario
Cedar Springs
New Liskeard
Simcoe
Quebec

11. Production Systems Research
Growing systems
- high tunnels vs outside
- planting dates, plant types
- plant (crown) size
- planting density
- mulch types
- length of blossom removal
- winter cover systems
Cultivars

12. New Liskeard Growing season average 110-120 frost-free days
Hardiness zone 2-3b
Average daily temperatures
Jun-Aug – °C
Winter lows < -35°C

13. Dayneutral Production
Year 1 – plant in spring, pick Aug-Oct, overwinter
Year 2 – pick spring harvest and in NL through to Oct

14. Plant Early Plant as early as possible
Therefore make beds the year before
Buy a good bed maker/mulch layer
Larger plants may be beneficial in cold climates
Rain-Flo Model 2600 bedder/mulch layer

15. Mulch
Affects soil temperature (depending on color, soil-mulch contact, bed orientation, time of year, light quality)
Reduces weeds
Keeps fruit clean

16. Mulch
Mulch Trial
Standard black embossed plastic (0.9 mil thickness)
Black-on-white (1.0 mil thickness)
Brown (0.85 mil thickness)
Green (1.0 mil thickness)
Silver-on-black (1.0 mil thickness)
White-on-black (1.0 mil thickness)

17. Mulch
Conclusions: Use black or black on white mulches in a cool climate. Do not use white or silver. Put straw between the rows. In a warmer climate white and silver may be beneficial especially in a high tunnel.

18. Cultivars
Trial Albion - high quality Monterey – late, low yields, good size & quality Portola – high yields, large berries Seascape – most winter hardy, high yields
Albion
Monterey
Portola
Seascape

19. Dayneutral Cultivars
Seascape – adapted across the province, high yields
Albion – later, lower yields but larger berries and great fruit quality
Have tested a number of others – Portola may have potential in the north

20. Locations
SW Ontario harvests more berries the 1st year after planting (they can plant earlier)
The cool summer weather in New Liskeard results in fruiting over the whole second season
Higher temperatures in SW Ontario result in earlier spring harvest but no berries mid-summer (too hot)