How to Build a Terraced Strawberry Bed

Making the Terrace System

• 1

  Prepare soil by mixing a total of 16 cubic feet of soil, 6 cubic feet of peat moss and 6 cubic feet of agricultural sand. Add some 5-10-10 strength fertilizer and mix well. This will provide a soft, rich soil for the strawberry plants.

• 2

  Form corrugated aluminum lawn edging into a 6-foot-diameter circle. Nail a 12-inch stake to each end of the edging so that the top is flush with the edging and the bottom comes down further so it is easily pushed into the soil. Drive the stakes into the ground to make a closed circle. This is the base of the terrace.

• 3

  Fill the base with the soil mix, leaving a 1-inch head space at the top.

• 4

  Form a 4-foot-diameter circle with another piece of edging. Situate it in the center of the base and make a closed circle; fill it with soil.

• 5

  Make a 2-foot-diameter circle with the edging, center it in the 4-foot circle, drive the stakes into the soil and fill it with the soil mix.

Planting Strawberries

• 6

  Plant new strawberry plants in early spring and protect them from any frost that might occur. Dig holes two times as wide and the same depth as the root ball.

• 7

  Place the roots in the hole making sure that the crown, or the fleshy part of the plant in the center from which leaves grow, is at the surface of the soil. Do not bury the crown or let it sit up far from the ground. Fill around the roots with soil, and firm into the terrace system.

• 8

  Plant 20 plants in the base, 12 in the middle level and six in the top. Space all plants 9 inches apart. The terrace beds will fill in with runners from the mother plants. Plant terrace systems with June-bearing or ever-bearing varieties.