How to Grow Sequoia Strawberries in a Raised Bed

Site the raised bed where the strawberries will receive full sun, or at least six hours of direct sun each day. Fill the bed 8 inches deep with a mixture of half topsoil and half planting compost containing manure, or half potting soil and half planting compost with manure. Sequoia strawberries need well-draining soil with plenty of organic matter. A light soil mix in a raised bed warms faster in spring, so you can plant earlier.

Buy Sequoia strawberry crowns at a nursery in March. Insert them into the soil so the roots are covered but the crown is exposed. Plant them 6 inches apart in rows 1 foot apart. Water well to settle the soil and eliminate air pockets. Water regularly to keep the soil moist as the first leaves appear, then cut back watering to weekly. Don't plant strawberries where tomatoes, peppers, eggplant or potatoes have grown to help prevent verticillium wilt.

Water the plants weekly during summer, even when they are not fruiting. Fertilize monthly with an organic fertilizer high in phosphorous and potassium, the P and K in the fertilizer container's NPK ratio. In cold climates, after the plants go dormant in late fall, cover the bed and the plants with straw for winter protection. Pull the mulch aside in spring but leave it in the rows in case you need to cover the plants due to late frosts.

Pinch off the first blossoms to let the plants establish a healthy root system, leaves and produce runners. By the beginning of July, stop pinching off the flowers and let them set fruit for the rest of the season. Leave the runner plants attached to the mother plants and arrange them in the middle of the rows you left between plants, so they have space to grow. You'll get a strong crop the second year from both the mother plant and the runner plants.