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Research looks at winter protection for
strawberries
By
Laura Skillman
 PRINCETON, Ky., (Dec. 19, 2007) – After a long winter, the taste
of fresh, homegrown strawberries is a tantalizing treat, and
consumers will pay top dollar for the first berries of the
season. Having those first berries can mean higher profits for
growers.
One of the biggest challenges in strawberry production is
protecting the plants from winter’s varying temperatures.
Research is under way at the University of Kentucky Research and
Education Center in Princeton to determine what is the best
method to protect plants from winter freeze or damage. The
research will not only look at winter survivability and yield
but also ripening earliness.
“Strawberries are of interest to a lot of our growers and a
great cash crop in the spring,” said Joe Masabni, fruit and
vegetable specialist with the University of Kentucky College of
Agriculture. “The temperature fluctuations in late winter and
early spring cause flower injury and yield reduction. In a year
like last year with the Easter freeze, yields were significantly
lowered, and some growers were completely out of business.”
Masabni said previous research was done with high tunnels at UK.
In his travels to Uruguay, he saw what he’d describe as medium
tunnels used to protect plants. With the high interest in
strawberry production and various protection methods available,
he said he wanted to see what would work best for Kentucky’s
producers.
 “The idea is to keep the plants alive and growing throughout the
winter and not go completely dormant,” Masabni said. “This will
give them a 10-day jump start in spring growth because they
aren’t in deep dormancy. “
That can mean earlier ripe berries and higher profitability
before most growers have any berries for sale, he said.
The researchers are using the production method called
plasticulture where the plants are planted in the fall,
harvested in the spring and then removed. This method uses
raised beds covered in plastic with each raised row having two
rows of berries.
The experiment includes a high tunnel covering two beds and a
medium-sized tunnel covering one bed. The tunnels are made from
PVC, rope, clear plastic and anchors and are tall enough for a
person to enter. The experiment also includes a small tunnel
consisting of metal hoops covered with a floating row cover.
They also have rows covered with just the floating row cover and
plants that aren't covered at all. The strawberries were planted
in mid-September and covered Dec. 1. Air and soil temperatures
are being recorded for all treatments.
Using the breathable row covers instead of plastic on the small
tunnels, which are only about 2-feet above the ground, requires
less management because it does not have to be removed during
the warmer late winter and early spring days, Masabni said.
Straw is commonly used on many matted-row strawberry beds in
Kentucky. These are beds used for multiple years and planted
directly into the soil. Straw is a good insulator but many times
not enough is used, and by the end of the winter it has often
been blown off the bed. The floating row cover is a better
option, he said.
Working with Masabni on the project is Courtney Flood, UK fruit
and vegetable extension associate. Flood said while the research
is under way, they also plan to use the site for field days,
grower meetings and workshops to educate growers on the
different options. This will allow them to see how easy it is to
utilize some of these methods.
“Since we’ve put the tunnels up, we’ve had a lot of interest,”
she said. “People were stopping by and asking us what we were
doing, as we were setting up the tunnels.”
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Contact: Joe Masabni, 270-365-7541, ext. 247
Courtney Flood, 270-365-7541, ext. 262
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of Agriculture, through its land-grant mission, reaches across
the commonwealth with teaching, research and extension
to enhance the lives of Kentuckians. |
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