Growing strawberries from seed only takes a few weeks. It takes much longer, however, for a plant to produce fruit.
For example, the average time for a June-bearing strawberry to go from seed to a fruiting plant is about three months.
A significant factor in how long it takes to grow strawberries is the variety of plants you have chosen to grow.
Different types can bloom at other times, even though they are planted at the same time because it is their nature to do so. The June-bearing type of strawberry is just one variety you can grow.
Because varieties of strawberries can be produced at different times, you can plant them all and have berries throughout the season.
Then, if you are blessed with a bounty, you can make jam and freeze a few for winter beverages and desserts.
If you love strawberries and want the best there is, grow them yourself.
How Long Does it Take To Grow Strawberries?
It takes a strawberry plant about two months to reach 12 inches, but that does not mean it is ready to bear fruit. When it germinates is dependent on its variety. The varieties include everbearing, day-neutral, or June-bearing plants, and they all set fruit at different times, even if you start the seeds simultaneously.
Start Your Strawberry Plants Early
From the time you start strawberry seeds till the time you see growth is about two weeks. However, from this point, your plant has a long way to go before being planted.
You can start your plants inside from seed with growing lights or by placing the growing trays in a south-facing window in a warm room.
Once they peak out of the soil, you will still have four to five weeks before they have a complete and second set of leaves and are ready to be replanted.
After planting, your plants will bloom, then fruit. The fruit is first green and white and covered with black specks, which will grow into seeds.
The time for this process with June bearing fruit is about three months, at which time you should have strawberries.
Get Different Varieties Of Fruit At Other Times
Planting all three types of strawberry plants will give you fruit from early June until almost frost. Many gardeners will plant strawberries in pots or raised beds, as opposed to in the garden.
Growing your plants in this manner adds protection, and if you want to winter them over right where they are, it is easy to do so.
It is easier to keep strawberries clean when they are planted in raised beds and pots. You will not be as inclined to lose berries that droop to the ground.
The soonest you will get berries from your plants is between spring and early summer. However, if you plant suitable varieties of strawberries, you will have plants until autumn.
June varieties are the easiest to grow, but they only give you fruit for a few weeks. To expand the length of your berry harvest, try different types of strawberry plants.
Qualities Of Different Strawberry Varieties
Each variety of strawberry behaves differently than the other. For example, day-neutral and everbearing varieties grow smaller fruit than the once-blooming June variety of strawberries.
June bearing or spring strawberries offer their fruits for a few weeks in early June, or spring, depending on where you live.
Day-neutral strawberry varieties will produce berries throughout the growing season. However, they are not as prolific as spring strawberries.
Everbearing varieties of the strawberry do not grow fruit continually. Instead, this variety of strawberries will be provided for you twice a year.
They bud in the summer and fall and produce berries in the spring and fall of the year.
Will Your Strawberries Return Next Year
They will in some climates and are often left to overwinter in raised beds, pots, and gardens. However, the majority of strawberries are grown from seed and planted as annuals.
Raised from seed in the late winter months, strawberries are ready to be planted in the spring. Starting your plants from seed allows them to grow in safety, and they are then set out as strawberry seedlings after the last frost.
Potted strawberry plants can be kept indoors to overwinter. Then, when they begin to bear runners in the spring, you can cut them free of the mother plant to start new plants.
Strawberry plants started from runners have all of the parent plant’s characteristics.
Plants left in raised beds and gardens can be mulched for overwintering or placed into pots and moved indoors.
For example, when mulching strawberry plants for overwintering, cover them with 10 – 12 inches of mulch. Then, once the chance of frost in your area is passed, uncover your plants and watch them grow.
Frequently Asked Questions About How Long It Takes To Grow Strawberries
Where should I plant my strawberry plants?
Strawberry plants need sun, a lot of sun. Optimally, your plants should get between 10 and 12 hours of sunshine per day for the best production. So if you are planting your strawberries in pots, place them where they can make the most of the sun.
Do strawberry plants need fertilizer?
Don’t give strawberries a full-strength application in the spring. Doing so can cause soft fruit, which is not the best fruit. Fresh strawberries should be firm and bright red, with a flavorful aroma.
Daniel has been a plant enthusiast for over 20 years. He owns hundreds of houseplants and prepares for the chili growing seasons yearly with great anticipation. His favorite plants are plant species in the Araceae family, such as Monstera, Philodendron, and Anthurium. He also loves gardening and is growing hot peppers, tomatoes, and many more vegetables.