Strawberries are a temperate plant. They can thrive in the chilly weather in the northern regions of the world and can even thrive at altitude on mountains. But, everyone loves strawberries, not just folks who happen to live in the optimal agricultural zones for growing the sweet strawberries. This post is to help the hot and humid gardeners find strawberries for Zone 9 that will perform adequately and allow an ample harvest.
There are three main areas that fall into Zone 9: California, Texas, and Florida. This simple post will help you choose a good strawberry variety for your area if you are a Zone Niner. To find out which Zone you are in, see the Zone Map on this Strawberry Planting Guide.
Zone Nine Strawberries
Growing strawberries in Zone Nine is do-able. The major areas that fall within Hardiness Zone 9 are coastal and central California, much of Florida, and the southern coast of Texas. The desert of the Southwest U.S.A. is also Zone 9, but strawberries are more difficult to grow there, particularly in Nevada. The dry regions require ample amounts of irrigation. Florida and California, however, are well-suited for Zone 9 strawberry plants. A lot of the popular varieties are patented in those two states.
Zone 9 Strawberry Plants for California
1. Albion – plants are tolerant to changing weather, yield multiple harvests as an everbearer, and produce dark red, tasty strawberries.
2. Camarosa – a short-day junebearer that produces early and has good storage properties.
3. Ventana – produces very early in the season (even earlier than Camarosa). Flavor and shelf life are good.
4. Others: Aromas, Camino Real, Diamante
Zone Nine Strawberry Plants for Florida
1. Sweet Charlie – this variety was developed in the early 1980s in Florida, and it is a real winner. It smells sweet and tastes even sweeter. It also has good disease resistance. (for a profile, click here: Sweet Charlie Strawberry Plants)
2. Other good choices: Strawberry Festival, Treasure, Winter Dawn, Florida Radiance
3. Oldies-but-goodies that will still produce: Selva, Oso Grande
Zone 9 Strawberry Plants for Texas
1. Chandler – very likely the best strawberry variety for growing in South Texas. For a profile, click here: Chandler Strawberry Plants.
2. Others: Douglas, Sequoia (both of these varieties will fruit in the early spring).
Growing Strawberries in Zone 9
When it comes to growing strawberries in Zone 9, picking the right strawberry variety is critical. Be sure to refer to the Growing Strawberries reference page for all the how-to as well. A great deal of Zone 9 strawberry growers will treat their berries as an annual instead of a perennial. They plant in the fall and harvest in the next growing season. Tighter spacing is also employed as compared to northern layouts, and the plants are usually allowed to succumb to the heat of the peak summer months.
Living in Zone Nine doesn’t mean you can’t grow your own strawberries. Just pick an appropriate variety and care for your plants well!
Just bought a strawberry plant in St Augustine last week. It was doing fine for a week, gorgeous green large leaves and some fruit. Today most of the leaves just wilted (drouped). I gave it adequate water. What are the problems
maurice,
It is hard to say for certain. If the plant was started and grown indoors and just recently placed outdoors without “hardening” the plants by exposing them to direct sunlight incrementally, the exposed leaves could have been killed. If this is the case, more should grow from the crown to replace the dead leaves. This taxes the plant somewhat, but it should survive. If your plant is afflicted by one of the many strawberry diseases or pests (see the Strawberry Plant page for more details), it might be on its way to meet the plant grim reaper. A good many nurseries and stores that sell live plants have a guarantee that the plants they sell will live for at least a certain period of time. If your plant does indeed die, see if you can get a refund or exchange from the nursery from which it was purchased.
I’m growing strawberry plants from seeds I extracted from a store bought strawberry in july of 2011. I put the seeds in the freezer for about 3 to 4 weeks, then into starting peat pots. I transplanted about 60 of the seedlings in my strawberry garden in late october and early november. They are growing, but very slowly. I had to put screening over them at night to keep wild life from eating them and that seemed to work, yet I’m concerned about how slow they seem to be growing. I fertilized the ground weeks before planting with 10-10-10, and I water everyday. Could I be over watering them, or could they be in a stage of dormancy. I’ve never grown strawberries before so I know very little about the subject. I live in central Florida where planting in the fall is suggested, yet this slow growth concerns me and I really don’t know what time dormancy occurs here. This time of year nights can get down in the 40′s them warm up into the 70 and 80′s. Am I doing something wrong or is this natural growth. This started as an experiment to see if I could do this from seeds I extracted myself, now I’m hooked. Please advise me about this subject and the future requirements to seed this venture come to bloom. Thanks for your time.
Jo,
Most strawberry varieties are hybrids and will not grow true from seed. See the Strawberry Varieties page and the Strawberry Seeds page for more information on that. Also, strawberry plants started from seed do take much longer to grow than strawberry runner plants. So, they are probably growing just like they should. Strawberry seedlings are truly tiny when they germinate and do take quite a while to establish themselves.
Thank you for answering my post. Knowing it takes longer by seed than by runners or buying already established potted plants makes me feel better. Since I asked the question I have noticed that most of the plants have grown some and some even produced a few runners, yet I feel I’m far behind in my progress. (I will by no means be ready for the Florida Strawberry Festival in Feb. which is a very big event in Tampa along with the State Fair.) Again thank you for answering back. I feel perhaps I’m on the right track and will see my strawberry patch come to bloom in the spring or early summer. I appreciate your time.
I also planted strawberries from seed obtained from store bought fruit. I have several sprouts and they are indeed taking forever to grow. Is there an optimal temperature I should try to maintain? Also, I have noticed that my leaves do not resemble the ones shown in most strawberry plant pictures. Why is this? You can view my sprout and its leaves at http://lysasgarden.blogspot.com/2012/01/strawberry-sprout-pictures.html though these pictures only show 1 true leaf and the rest are the cotyledons.
Lysa,
Good news! There is nothing apparently wrong with your strawberry seedlings at all. Strawberry seedlings usually do fine at room temperature. They are temperate and can usually do well even outside in the late winter or early spring, as long as the temperature isn’t too cold. The leaflets of the seedling will continue to grow and mature until they do resemble other mature strawberry leaflets. Just be patient! If you keep them alive and growing, they will end up looking like most other strawberries. Good luck!
I am getting ready to start my first strawberry plants. I plan to grow them hydroponically, not sure what specific system yet but most likely a drip tower using coconut fiber as the growing medium. What cultivars do you suggest for South Florida (an hour south of Tampa)? We sometimes get one or two overnight frosts a year at my house, only half mile to the gulf of mexico. I think I want an everbearing or day-neutral variety.
Bob,
The best strawberry varieties for use in hydroponic or aeroponic systems are the day-neutral varieties. Two of the best day-neutral strawberry varieties are Tribute and Tristar. But, as far south as you are, you might be able to get by with most varieties, although the typical short-day June-bearing varieties grown commercially in your area will not produce for as long as the day-neutral varieties will. Good luck!
I live on the West Coast of Florida. Technicaaly in Zone 10 but close to Zone 9. I have a shaded residential lot and want to grow Strawberries in a stacked container so I can move to the sun as needed. I would like a recomendation on a variety, when to plant and the mix of soil. Can you help ?
Thanks
Dan
Dan,
Most commercial growers in Florida use the plasticulture method with short-day June-bearing varieties. Soil and planting for the home gardener are discussed on the Growing Strawberries reference page. Good luck!
what bout alpines in texas i got seedlings sprouting right now ive been through this site alot but had never seen that zone nine needs to plant from dec to feb so dang can i put them out now or wait til they have some wat of a crown and some true leaves? im supp. them with rhizotonic made by canna. they’ve all sprouted within the last few days so hopefully there growin at a fast pace im gna transplant into a kiddie pool fill with compost and organic soil along with organic supplements .then do i use mulch or straw
ed,
Alpines might have some difficulty in Texas. They prefer milder climates. But, to try, go ahead and get them in the ground and mulch with clean straw or pine needles. Good luck!
I have spent the last hour or so reading many of the posts on this site ~ thank you so much.
We currently have 5 healthy plants in a topsy-turvy (wish I had read that article a few weeks ago) and had hoped to be able to move them to a traditional bed for future use. We live in NE florida so if I’m reading things properly there’s no way for us to have these plants as perennials?
Lady Bren,
You’re welcome, glad you have benefited! It is not impossible to keep strawberry plants as perennials in Florida. It just takes a bit more effort. The FL temperatures often don’t get cold enough to induce a lengthy dormancy in the plants. This shortens their lifespan and stresses them, making them more susceptible to diseases as well. Being in NE FL, you might be able to do it. They will probably do better in a traditional bed than in the planter. Once this growing season is over, you may want to try transplanting them and see how it goes. Good luck!
I love this website!!! Thanks so much for providing these tips.My first strawberry garden went horribly wrong then,I went to this website and I grew another garden. They turned out perfect. Thanks Again
Olivia,
I’m glad everything went well on the second go-around, and I’m glad we were able to help! Thanks for the kind words.
This website is very helpful. I recently purchased a book on biodynamic farming, which explains herbs you can plant near strawberries to help them thrive. Try borage!
Organicfoodie,
Indeed! You can read more about that here: Companion Planting Strawberries.
I’m in south central texas, I planted 30 plants last fall they did real well thru winter and spring but are starting to die will they come back from the roots?
Will,
No, not if they die. Sorry!