Hi Everyone,

I am new to this forum and a bit of a novice when it comes to gardening.

I have a couple of questions regarding planting strawberries.

I have ordered some strawberry plants, which I am expecting to arrive this week. I have read on various websites that strawberries have an average of 3 year life expectancy. I plan to replant the runners from my strawberry plants and replace the older plants when they are around 2-3 years old. Am I right to do this? I have read that you should not re-use an existing strawberry patch, but others websites say this is not a problem.

Also, I have also read that if I plant new plants early in the year, I need to remove any blossom/fruit so that they do not produce fruit in the first year, this is supposed to give the plant a chance to establish a good root. Is this correct? Is February too late for planting to get any fruit for this year?

Steve