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Home » Strawberry Questions & Answers

How to Save Strawberry Runners for Next Year?

Modified: Feb 9, 2022 by Mr. Strawberry · This post may contain affiliate links · 29 Comments

Hand holding small brown pot with strawberry runner in soil

Question: How to Save Strawberry Runners for Next Year?

Cathy Piger asked:

I will live in NW PA and am moving there this winter. I would like to dig up some strawberrie runners and save them to plant in the new location in the spring. How do I go about bear root storage?

Answer to: How to Save Strawberry Runners for Next Year?

Strawberry plant with many small runners on black plastic foil

Cathy,
The easiest way is to dig up the already-rooted runner plants you want to keep, dirt and all, and put them into cheap plastic pots. Keep the plastic pots somewhere where it won’t get too warm or too cold (avoid extreme freezing and keep the plants in their dormant state). Putting them in pots or other suitable containers will allow you to water them through the winter. If their roots dry out, they die. If you do shake off all the dirt from the roots (not recommended), you can store them in sand, peat moss, wood chips, re-cover with dirt, or just about any moisture-holding medium. Re-plant them in the spring as you normally would. Much more information can be found here: Storing Bare-Root Strawberry Plants. In addition, be sure to check out the additional information on overwintering strawberry plants. Also, if you don’t have a plan for how you intend to deploy your perennial plants, consider the methods discussed on the Transplanting Strawberry Plants page. Good luck!

This is a question submitted to StrawberryPlants.org by a reader. See the Strawberry FAQ for more questions and answers.

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Comments

  1. Tom

    December 10, 2022 at 6:34 am

    Hi, for some reason my question disappeared from here, here is it again. What temperature and relative humidity level are optimal for storing strawberry runners? A strawberry breeding related question: does anybody know what temperature is optimal for storing strawberry pollen? Thanks in advance.

    Tom

    Reply
    • Robin

      August 09, 2023 at 4:23 pm

      Hello I’m a newbie at trying to grow strawberries this season I bought plants and they didn’t do any good and I also bought the bare roots and they didn’t even grow. What did I do wrong please and the strawberry plants that I have will they come back back next year ? Cause they were blooming strawberries all summer just not big enough to eat or do anything with so I was told to cut off the flowers all summer and next year I would get an abundance

      Reply
      • Mary Ward

        August 11, 2023 at 5:43 am

        Hard to say what went wrong with your bare root plants, but it sounds like you probably had bad stock–old and dry or dead. For the plants that did grow, you did the right thing cutting off the blossoms to let the plants develop and with good continued care, you should be in good shape next year. It is probably a good idea to fertilize the patch once this fall, then mulch it for the winter.

        Reply
  2. Tom

    December 10, 2022 at 6:04 am

    Hi, I am doing an assignment on strawberry breeding. I am interested to knnow what exact temperature and relative humidity level are optimal for storing strawberry runners. What place/environment would be best to put the plastic pots with already-rooted runner plants?

    Besides that, I have another strawberry related question maybe someone will know the answer to. In strawberry breeding, pollen are stored in Eppendorf tubes and put in the fridge. What temperature would it be in the fridge/ what temperature is optimal for storing strawberry pollen? Thanks in advance, T.

    Reply
  3. Mervyn

    August 08, 2018 at 7:11 pm

    Hi, I have a raised bed approximately 2m long X 1m wide 7 inches deep with soil 6 inches deep. I have grown strawberries for the past two years this year was extremely bountiful. The runners are out and establishing quite well. There are about 20 plants all now with runners, the bed looks as though it could be overcrowded. Each plant has about 6 stems can I prune them back to say 3 stems per plant to make room for the runners, or should I move some plants to another bed. Will it be suitable to use 4 – 6 inches of straw over the winter months.

    Reply
  4. Mark Hill

    September 13, 2017 at 11:05 am

    I’ve just bought bare root strawberry plants (Gigantella Maxim) approx 20 in the pack. I live in South Wales UK. I don’t want to plant them now can I freeze then in-till planting next Spring. Or is there another way of keeping them? Thanks in advance.

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      September 13, 2017 at 12:12 pm

      Mark Hill,
      It is not advisable to freeze them. It is best to go ahead and plant them, let them develop roots, and then mulch them over the winter. The success rate is much higher that way. If you absolutely want to try to keep them un-planted over the winter, here’s how. Good luck!

      Reply
  5. Darlene Fremeau

    August 19, 2017 at 5:28 pm

    I have a greenhouse and I plan on starting strawberries in the spring in a strawberry tower.
    My question is. We go south for the winter and I was wondering how to save the plants for future planting.
    I have bought bear root plants in the past and would like to know how to do it so I don’t have to buy new plants every year

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      August 22, 2017 at 10:42 am

      Darlene Fremeau,
      Here is how to store bare-root plants. However, in your situation, it will be difficult to make it work all winter due to the monitoring and watering needs. Good luck!

      Reply
  6. billy

    June 01, 2017 at 11:45 am

    I live in zone 9 and trying to keep my plants till October how do I do that

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      June 06, 2017 at 1:18 pm

      billy,
      I’d recommend starting here. Good luck!

      Reply
  7. Pam

    September 12, 2016 at 5:20 pm

    We live in Arctic Canada and I would like to keep my strawberry plants until next spring. I think digging them up and bringing them in would be the only way. If not how can I do that? How do I keep them alive but dormant inside?

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      September 13, 2016 at 2:16 pm

      Pam,
      It is difficult to do. The light and the warmth triggers them to leave dormancy. If you can control the humidity and prevent mold/fungus from growing, you can keep them in a refrigerator. You do have to make sure the soil doesn’t dry out, and some may die regardless, but that can at least save a few. The refrigerator should be dedicated to only storing the plants, however, as there will be mold spores of some sort in most refrigerators. Good luck, and let me know if you are successful!

      Reply
  8. Bharthari

    November 18, 2015 at 7:43 am

    Hi! I m from India . We plant strawberry in sept till may . As from May temp raised to 45 degrees . My question is how can I preserve runners in that extreme conditions ( May to August ?

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      November 18, 2015 at 9:05 am

      Bharthari,
      You’ll most likely need to keep them in a climate-controlled room to avoid overheating or pathogen contamination. Good luck!

      Reply
  9. Dave

    July 12, 2015 at 3:45 pm

    If I put down a fabric for weed control, can the runners still set root through them?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      July 14, 2015 at 3:31 pm

      Dave,
      They will be hampered significantly, although some might root well enough to survive. It is better to poke a hole in the fabric or cut small “X” in it and then place the runner node into it so that the root will be in contact with the soil. That will work much better and allow the runner plant to flourish. Good luck!

      Reply
  10. Hazel MacKenzie

    October 27, 2014 at 3:12 pm

    When we get out new strawberry plants each year they seem to come
    directly out of a freezer and are frozen together. We thaw them out and plant them right away.
    We want to save our runners or plants in this way for next season. When would we dig the plants ? and are they really kept all winter in a freezer?

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      October 30, 2014 at 11:11 am

      Hazel MacKenzie,
      You can store them in a freezer, but you will need to control the humidity as well as the temperature. In order to survive, the plants need appropriate temperature AND moisture. Usually, the plants aren’t kept in a freezer all winter by the suppliers, but are kept in the freezer for a time to induce dormancy, and then shipped out as demand requires. To learn more, see this post on overwintering. Good luck!

      Reply
      • T.

        December 13, 2022 at 6:04 pm

        Dear Mr Strawberry,

        Do you know the temperature and humidity level for an optimal storage in the freezer? Thanks in advance.

        Reply
        • Mary Ward

          March 13, 2023 at 4:31 pm

          Temperature is the real issue, and that should be 0 F or -18 C. More on freezing strawberries here: https://strawberryplants.org/freezing-strawberries/

          Reply
  11. Barbara

    June 20, 2013 at 4:39 pm

    Should I fertilize the new plants I am potting for next year ?
    Options: Cedar Grove Booster Blend; all purpose 10 10 10;12 special blend 4 4 2 with mineral, bacteria & fungi. The soil is pretty good. (I also have the leachate of vermicompost).

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      June 24, 2013 at 8:50 pm

      Barbara,
      10-10-10 is a good blend for strawberries. See here for more: Growing Strawberries. Good luck!

      Reply
  12. Cole Meyo

    December 07, 2012 at 11:58 am

    Hi, I planted one of those Topsy Turvy strawberry things and it grew very well long runners but not but a few berries. The runners are still on the pot hung outside but I was just trying to find out if I should just leave them or clip them down so they won’t have to feed all the runners next spring?? I live in Omaha Nebraska and this was my first planting of them this last spring of 2012. I would aprreciate and advice on what to do with them to actually produce berries nex year, Thanks.

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      December 11, 2012 at 2:08 pm

      Cole Meyo,
      You might have difficulty producing a good harvest of strawberries with the Topsy Turvy planters. I have written about them here, if you are interested: Topsy Turvy Strawberry Planters. For other reasons why your strawberries aren’t producing strawberries, see here: Runners but no Berries. Also, the runners should have been rooted and separated from the mother plant once the roots for the daughter had established themselves. For more, see the Strawberry Runners and Transplanting Strawberries pages. Good luck!

      Reply
  13. Heidi Elwanger

    July 14, 2012 at 7:47 pm

    I cut runners off and transplanted them. I know the answer to this question is probably the one I fear, but will the baby plants grow a root system without the attatchment to the parent plant?

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      July 19, 2012 at 9:07 pm

      Heidi,
      Unfortunately, no. If you snip the runner prior to the roots developing, the runner plant will die.

      Reply
  14. brenda

    July 01, 2012 at 6:37 pm

    hi, we are a small ky farm. we are trying to start up a strawberry picking farm. i have around 500 plants that includes original parent plants . this year we have had few strawberries, and many more runners then i thought possiable.

    i was wondering how do you know how many to grow to sell and save for your own family. if i was to plant let say once acre.
    and do they need water all year long if we are low in that area.
    thank you b shaw

    Reply
    • Mr. Strawberry

      July 01, 2012 at 9:59 pm

      brenda,
      See the Growing Strawberries reference page as it will answer most of your questions. Also, be sure to check the links at the bottom of the page as many more topics are covered there.

      Reply

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