On Mon, 28 Feb 2011 23:20:29 -0800, Edward wrote:

Hi!
It's just a rectangular area immediately outside the patio door.. It's
just mostly filled with a mix or strawberries & 1 1/2' tall dead, brown
grass...which does come out easily. It's just completely encompassing
the strawberry plants. Our latest Pacific storm has resulted in temps
down to around 32 deg. F. or a few degrees below, at night.
The reason I asked about the mowing is that we also have a small red
raspberry patch which seems to thrive on being cut back severely every
couple of years in wintertime. I was just curious if the strawberries
might respond the same way.
It looks like there isn't any easy way out of the weeding. LOL. Thanks!

I live in socal. The cold snaps may ruin a couple of fruits, but the plants
are hardy. Worst that will happen is the leaves will die, and new ones will
come up soon. I would recommend removing all the grass. Put out some straw
for the berries to lay on to keep them from bugs and slugs.
I found if the berries touch the dirt, the next day they have holes
in them from bug damage.