How to grow strawberries in Canberra

The little plants look a picture for many months, with their bright green leaves, white flowers and colourful fruit. They do make for an excellent border crop. They also grow well in planter boxes, when you can regularly provide additional waterings.

You will remember the amazing difference in taste when you have eaten a freshly picked strawberry from a friend's garden. "Wow" is a typical expression after eating freshly picked strawberries, as compared to the cardboard taste of those picked and packed interstate, some days previous. Many food miles do not sit well with many berries and especially with strawberries.

Yes, it is worth the effort to grow your own strawberries. To pick fully ripened, home-grown strawberries and then serve them with cream or ice cream for an evening treat, is close to being in food heaven. And the other good thing is most varieties of strawberries will keep providing you with a crop from mid spring through to late autumn – not too bad for a small-sized plant.

Strawberries are easy to grow and a small planting will take up little space. In one square metre, you can provide plenty of space for around 20 plants. They will also grow well, with a little extra care, in planter boxes. Each plant has the potential to produce around one punnet, over the cropping season. They need to have lots of sunshine, regular feeding and be well watered but well drained.

My strawberries were one of the few real success stories over the most recent summer and autumn period. I would put this success down to five key aspects; aspects that you can replicate. Preparation of the garden bed, growing them naturally and organically, ensuring the plants come from a certified grower, keeping the plants well mulched and keeping them well watered.

Strawberry plants will be growing in their one location for two to three years, so you would do well to prepare the bed with plenty of organic matter and lots of compost. Also add in some long-life organic pelletised fertiliser. Hill up to provide good drainage and plenty of depth for the roots of the runners. Quality strawberry runners can have roots that are 20-25cm long and they will grow best if they are not too crowded so plant them 40cm apart, in twin rows.

Many commercial growers will lay down black plastic and plant their runners through holes. This may be a good mechanism for weed control but it is terrible for the micro life within the soil. The rich mix of micro-organisms and earthworms will be killed off. There are natural weedmats now on the markets. But better still, enjoy the simple task of mulching and then manually taking out the few weeds that still penetrate the mulch. .

There will be minimal spoilage of the berries growth when they are mulched. A natural protection barrier between the berries and the garden soil will stop mudsplash and keep the berries away from dampness. This is simply where the name originated, the berry of the straw. An option is to mulch with pine needles. As strawberries are acid loving plants, if you can secure a supply of pine needles for mulching the acidity of the needles will slowly leach into the soil, providing extra benefits.

Melba, Julliette, Lowanna and Adina are newer varieties with good flavour. Some other excellent varieties brought in from California, such as Albion and Portola, are only supplied under licence by the Toolangi Strawberry Runner Growers Co-op in bulk quantities, to commercial growers.

Canadian Strawberry and Rhubarb Pie

Pastry

Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl then rub in the butter, using thumbs and forefingers, until the mixture is like fine breadcrumbs. Add a little water to produce a firm but pliable dough. Place the dough onto a lightly floured board and knead lightly until smooth. Wrap in clingwrap and place in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Cut the pastry into two halves and roll out for the pie base and top. Lay the first pastry onto a 24cm pie pan and trim the edges.

Pie

Toss the strawberries and rhubarb together and add the sugar, cinnamon and cornflour. Fill the pie shell with the fruit.

Moisten the pastry edge of the pie shell. Then cover with the pastry top. Seal and flute the edges by pressing around with a fork. Make incisions into the pastry to allow steam to escape. If you wish, whisk an egg yolk with a tablespoon of milk and brush over the pastry.

Bake in the oven at 200C for 20 minutes then reduce the temperature to 180C. Continue baking for a further 20-25 minutes until the crust is golden and the juices begin to bubble.