Growing and Propagating Strawberries

I have grown strawberries in the vegetable patch in previous years but have always had a problem with slugs, so this year I decided to grow some in a hessian sack on the patio as well as some in the veg patch. The plants were set into the sack through slits cut in the sides. I put a bamboo cane into the compost to drape an old net curtain over. This is to protect the fruits from birds once they start to ripen. The plants in the veg patch were protected in a similar way. Both the veg patch plants and the ones in the hessian container produced a good crop of fruits, although the ones on the patio were much better protected from slug damage. I will grow some more like this next year.
I grow Cambridge Favourite which is a mid season variety producing a heavy crop with a decent flavour in mid summer.
The best fruits are produced from younger plants and strawberry plants will usually need replacing when they have fruited for 2-3 years. The easiest and cheapest way to do this is by propagating the runners which are produced from June onwards. I just peg them down into loose soil and when they are well rooted detach them from the parent plant and grow them on in pots overwintered in the cold frame or greenhouse. Strawberries grow best in soil rich in humus so add some well rotted compost to your strawberry patch to ensure a good crop.
Another type of strawberry which is just as easy to grow is the Alpine Strawberry. This type does not produce runners so must be grown from seed. I have grown a variety called Baron Solemacher in the past which is a vigorous heavy cropper carrying the fruits higher on the plants, meaning less chance of slug damage. The fruits are much smaller but very aromatic and sweet, lovely in a dish with some ice cream. The alpine strawberries can self seed and be a bit invasive but are easy to control by simply weeding out any unwanted plants.