Strawberry Jarsoil gets hard as a rock and soooo dry.

Every year after I plant my strawberry jar (with strawberry plants) the soil gets rock-hard and is always bone-dry. The plants usually do not produce fruit and I become frustrated and stop watering! Inevitably, they die. Can someone please suggest a good soil mix that will stay loose and moist ? I know the looser soils tend to run out of the openings in the jar, but with the dryness I am experiencing, even a cactus could not survive! Also, I would really appreciate a recommendation for a good strawberry to grow in the jar--preferably one that fruits all season. Thank you! Liz

Add some coir (coco fiber) to your favorite mix. It 'll hold moisture, and won't harden up like peat moss.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'll try it.

If your jar is unglazed terra cotta you can paint the inside with a sealer. It keeps the water from seeping out through the pot. You could also put the jar in a dish and fill the dish with water when you water the plants. Soils often get hydrophobic when really dry and it takes then a while to absorb the water. If you water and it all runs out quickly, the soil doesn't have time to absorb anything and stays dry. Just be careful to let it dry out a little so the roots don't rot. I hope that helps; I had the same problem so I put the strawberries in a different container and planted portulacas in the berry jar.

Another suggestion for watering a strawberry jar is to take a length of PVC pipe (3/4" to 1" diameter) that's just longer than the planter is tall. Drill a bunch of small (1/8" diameter or less) through it all up and down its length, and plug up the bottom end (a PVC end cap or rubber stopper works fine).

Place it in the empty planter cap side down, and then fill the planter with your potting medium. You may want to temporarily plug the top of the PVC tube to keep the pipe free of potting soil. You can then water the planter top to bottom by removing the top plug and simply adding water to the top of the PVC tube. The water will go all the way through your container much more easily.

This message was edited Jan 31, 2007 2:14 AM

Your local plumbing or building supply store may carry the 6"-8" perforated pipes that are used for French drains. The ones in our area have just the right sized holes already drilled into them. I'm thinking of trying a strawberry tower with alpine strawberries this year. I'll try running a lenth of T-Tape down the middle of the pipe for irrigation.

Thanks everyone. I am going to try to PVC pipe and put a dish beneath the jar. I think that should do it!

Please keep us posted on the progress of your strawberry jar!

Well, my strawberries are planted--in the strawberry jar--with the piece of PVC pipe down the middle of the pot. One thing I did not think of, the pipe sits right on top of the drainage hole in the bottom of the pot. The water was running straight out. I put a bottle top down the pipe to cover the hole and then added some gravel. I also amended the potting mix with coir to keep it loose. It's been less than a week, but so far so good. I will update when I see some growth. Liz

bump, how did this work out?