Outdoors, garden strawberries are usually grown in long rows. But growing strawberries vertically is enjoying ever-increasing popularity among both experienced strawberry growers and amateur gardeners who want to save valuable space in their garden. This method allows you to grow many seedlings in a small space and achieve high yields. We'll show you interesting instructions on how you can build a strawberry tower yourself.
Benefits of strawberry towers
– The strawberry towers save space. Plant 24 strawberry seedlings in an area of less than one square meter? For the same number you would need a garden bed of at least 2 x 1.2 meters.
– You are mobile. You can also overwinter them indoors.
– The strawberry towers do not need weeding, the runners are easy to find,cut or replant.
– They are easy to water. The water also reaches the plants at the bottom through the PVC pipe.
– The strawberries are also easy to harvest. The fruits just hang down and are easy to spot.
– Strawberries feel very comfortable in pots and plastic towers and produce higher yields.
Necessary materials for construction
Materials and tools:
– Two empty 20 liter buckets and only one lid
– Weed fleece (approx. 1 x 1 m)
– A hole saw, ø 50 mm.
– A reciprocating saw
– A PVC pipe, ø 20 mm. It must be long enough to extend at least 5 cm above the floor of your tower.
– A drill with a small tip
– PVC glue
– 1 can of spray paint for plastic
– Coarse sandpaper
You still need strawberry seedlings and suitable soil substrate.
Construction instructions
Clean your buckets thoroughly and remove the handles. Cut off the bottom and about 1.5cm above the bottom edge of one bucket. For the second bucket, cut off 4cm or so. You should now have two bottomless buckets of different heights. These are inserted into each othera large pipeto form.
A notice:You can also use buckets with slightly different diameters to save yourself time and labor. You have to cut two buckets of the same size so that they fit together.
Try to see if the cut bottoms fit together. (If they don't match, cut the smaller bucket a bit more and try again).
Put the lid on and twist the tube so the lid stays on the bottom. Now you can cut the holes and sand the rough interfaces with sandpaper.
Mark the holes randomly. The distance between the marks should be about 10 cm. Space the holes so that the strawberry plants can receive optimal amounts of water and light. Use the hole saw to cut the holes. The strawberry seedlings will later be planted in these holes. Then take the small PVC pipe and drill several small holes with the small drill.
If you want to have drainage in the tower base, drill several holes in the base cover. Glue the PVC pipe to the lid, which now forms the tower base. You can do this even after the buckets have been painted. Allow the PVC glue to dry for an hour.
Once all the holes are drilled and sanded smooth, you are ready to paint your tower, floor, and PVC pipe. Follow the manufacturer's instructions and spray each bucketwith the spray paint. When the spray paint is completely dry, put the buckets back together.
Cover the strawberry tower walls and PVC pipe with weed fabric to retain moisture in the soil and prevent the holes from becoming clogged with roots and debris over time.
Once the PVC pipe is secure, move the tower to the target. The strawberry tower can now be moved easily, but it will become heavy once the plants are planted.
Plant the strawberry tower
The strawberry tower is planted in layers from bottom to top. This is how it works:
– Fill the tower with soil up to the first hole and then place the plant in the ground. Cut an X in the weed control fabric and carefully guide the leaves through the hole.
– Water the soil well and lightly press the soil around the strawberry roots.
– After the first two layers of strawberries are planted, add fertilizer. This gives the plants a good start.
– Repeat planting in layers until the tower is tightly packed with soil. You can also place several strawberry plants on the top of the tower, which will cover the PVC pipe with their greenery.
Your DIY strawberry tower is now complete! In about three weeks, your strawberries will grow out the sides and top. The flowering strawberry plants will surround the tower and bear delicious fruit.
irrigation
Water the strawberry plants regularly through the PVC pipe. The water will drip down to the lower roots of the strawberry plants.
