In article , Mel
writes
I bought some strawberry plants in early November and planted them up in a
big pot. I put the pot into an unheated greenhouse because I thought they'd
need the protection as I had planted them quite late. At Christmas I bought
a little heater for the greenhouse to keep it frost-free.

Should I keep the strawberries in the greenhouse for a few more months or
should I put them outside now? I wasn't particularly planning on forcing
them, but having just done a bit of reading on the subject it appears that
that's what I might be doing!

What you have done is more or less the process of forcing your
strawberries in order to have an early crop. The method for normal
cropping should have been to plant them outside in late autumn on a
prepared bed or on ridges to over-winter. Strawberries are hardy plants,
normally needing no protection, though they respond well to forcing if
early crops are required - after which they are discarded.

You may be able to redress the situation by hardening your plants off if
they have not begun new growth. You could put them in an unheated indoor
place first, then choose a favourable time to put them outside. If they
have already begun to show new growth, or if you are unable to harden
them off and plant them out, keep them growing on and you should have
fresh strawberries sometime between Easter and Whitsun.
--
Alan & Joan Gould - North Lincs.