Special Notes:

• Do NOT store Strawberries upon arrival!
  • Unlike other yCubes, which start from seed, these Strawberries are bare root plants. They will arrive with roots & potentially a few leaves pre-grown for a shorter time to first harvest.
  • As soon as your Strawberries arrive, follow a few quick and easy steps so you can plant them on your Gardyn right away!
• When ordering, ensure all of the plants on your Gardyn will be ready for plant food by the time your Strawberries arrive, and make sure you’ll have room to add them!
• You cannot germinate new yCubes and plant Strawberries on the same Gardyn, as the plant food needed for the Strawberries will harm young sprouts and prevent other yCubes from germinating.

💡Temperature & Humidity: Strawberries do well with temperatures in the 60-85°F range and thrive in 60-75% relative humidity. Watch out for browning on the edges of the leaves, which is a sign their environment is too dry. If you see this, try adding a humidifier near your Gardyn!

🐝 Pollination: Strawberries require help with pollination to encourage flowers to form fruit. When the white flowers appear, hold each flower gently between your index and middle fingers. Intentionally swirl the entire flower head 2-3 times with your thumb, ensuring you touch the entire surface. Pollination is an art, and uneven or incomplete pollination can cause your fruit to form funny (though still edible) shapes! Once pollinated, the flower will drop its petals and transform into a berry over the course of about 2 weeks.  

✂️ Pruning: While this Strawberry variety is compact, you may find you need to prune it to keep it healthy and encourage more fruit production. Follow these vital Strawberry pruning tips:

• Never prune back more than ⅓ of the leaves at a time. You can remove any yellow or brown leaves if they appear.
• Snip off any flowers that appear until the plant has at least 6 developed, fully open leaves.
• Prune away all runners, or stolons, throughout the plants’ entire life cycle.
• Prune your Strawberry roots twice a month by trimming away any brown, black, or slimy roots, along with any roots extending past the yPod. Regularly adding HydroBoost to your tank can significantly help with root health (among other benefits!).

🔎 Plant Health: Strawberries have very sensitive root systems, leaving them highly susceptible to root rot. To combat this, we recommend twice monthly tank refreshes, twice monthly root checks/pruning, and weekly doses of HydroBoost. Aphids and spider mites are common pests, but you can use our prevention and treatment tricks to keep pests at bay!

🍓 Harvest: Strawberries are ready to pick when each berry is red all the way to the stem. Color, rather than size, indicates ripeness. If you still see white or light red tissue, the berry isn’t ready yet! For maximum flavor, give ripe berries an extra day or two to really fill out. They should feel soft to the touch, not firm. Harvest berries right off the stem by either pinching them off with your fingers, or using a clean pair of scissors to snip berries’ individual stems.