This Morning: David Domoney's advice on propagating strawberries
Strawberries are well worth growing because they take up such little space and can be grown in containers or even hanging baskets.
They also even produce plenty of runners after fruiting, which means gardeners can easily increase the number of plants they have each year or use them to replace older plants which are past their best.
Speaking on ITV, David explained: “These are most popular with my children and with these plants, it’s buy one get 20 free.
“First of all, they start producing the really tasty fruit and then right now, it’s very topical, they start producing what are called runners.
“They come off from the main plant and at every plant, a baby plant grows and you move further down and there’s another one.”
READ MORE: ‘Best’ time to water in the summer to avoid ‘burnt’ plants
The gardening expert said some people will cut them off, but he likes to leave them connected for “guaranteed success”.
He added: “On the ground, I leave them attached to the strawberry plant, and periodically put a few pots along and pot them up.
“They will root into the soil and eventually you can cut them free and you’ll have your own baby plant.
“It’s almost foolproof because it’s connected to the original and it’ll root in pots as you go. From my strawberry plants just over there, I got about 80 plants last year.
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“It’s easy, it’s great fun, it’s healthy and sustainable at the same time because you’re saving money.”
Gardeners should remember to water their strawberry plants very regularly in the summer, especially those in hanging baskets and containers.
These need regular watering whatever the weather, according to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) because the small amount of compost dries out fast.
When watering, try to avoid wetting the centre of the plant or the fruit, as this could lead to fungal problems and especially grey mould.
The RHS said: “It’s best to water in the mornings rather than the evenings, so if the plants or fruit do get splashed, they have plenty of time to dry out.”
Make sure to also feed them well with a high potassium liquid feed, such as tomato feed, weekly or fortnightly throughout the growing season.
The RHS also advised keeping strawberry beds weed-free to avoid competition for light, water and nutrients, but weeds can be reduced by mulching.
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