How to Grow Strawberries in an EarthBox

Strawberries are easy to grow and excellent as a topping for cereal, in a strawberry shortcake or just eaten plain. Depending on the time of year, they can be expensive to purchase at the store, so growing your own can save your some money. For people who don't have a yard to plant them in, using a container, such as the EarthBox, is an option. The EarthBox is a container system that allows you to grow vegetables with a minimal amount of effort.

EarthBox kit
2 cubic feet of growing medium
Dolomite
Trowel
Fertilizer
Scissors
Strawberry seedlings
Garden hose

Instructions

- 1
  Place the screen supplied with the kit into the EarthBox and place the included fill tube into the hole on the side of the screen, pushing it down to the bottom of the box. The fill tube is used to add water to the EarthBox.
- 2
  Fill the EarthBox with the growing medium for the strawberries until it's about 2 inches below the top of the box. According to the manufacturer, you can use just about any type of soil in the EarthBox but do not use compost, topsoil or medium that contains rock, clay or sand. When filling the EarthBox, pack the soil into the gaps around the corners of the screen. You will need about 2 cubic feet of medium to fill the EarthBox.
- 3
  Add a pound of dolomite on top of the soil. This is a type of lime that contains calcium and magnesium. Fill the rest of the EarthBox with the growing medium and mix the top 3 to 4 inches with the dolomite into the soil.
- 4
  Dig a 2-inch deep trough down the middle of the medium. Fill the trough with 2 cups of synthetic fertilizer and 3 cups of organic fertilizer. Do not use water-soluble or time-release fertilizer.
- 5
  Add more growing medium to the EarthBox until there is a mound 2 inches high over the center of the EarthBox.
- 6
  Place the cover onto the EarthBox then cut holes into the cover for the strawberry seedlings. The manufacturer recommends planting three evenly-spaced seedlings on each side of the EarthBox.
- 7
  Plant the seedlings in the soil so that the plants are buried just to the top of the root system.
- 8
  Water the plants by placing a garden hose into the fill tube and adding water until it flows out of the overflow tube on the bottom of the EarthBox.
- 9
  Place the EarthBox in a sunny location and water the strawberries regularly.

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