Strawberries
Strawberry-specific crop notes stay here; shared crop counts, active-control status, vision context, and stress panels live on the crop overview pages.
Perennial everbearing — plant once, harvest for months. Strawberries occupy hydroponic positions semi-permanently (6-12 months) and produce continuously once established. High-value crop: greenhouse strawberries in winter are luxury produce.
Optimal Conditions
| Parameter | Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Day temperature | 65-75°F | Fruit quality drops above 85°F |
| Night temperature | 55-60°F | Cool nights improve sweetness |
| VPD | 0.8-1.0 kPa | Prefers moderate humidity |
| DLI | 17-22 mol/m²/d | Needs more light than lettuce. Grow lights critical in winter. |
| pH (hydro) | 5.5-6.2 | Iron availability is pH-sensitive |
| EC | 1.0-1.5 mS/cm | Moderate feeder, sensitive to salt buildup |
| Photoperiod | 14-16 hours | Day-neutral everbearing types produce regardless |
Control Target Source
The generated Target Bands section lower on this page is the DB-backed control view. The notes here describe strawberry preferences; they should not be read as a second live setpoint schedule.
Varieties for This Greenhouse
| Variety | Type | Season | Flavor | Runner Production | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion | Everbearing | Year-round | Excellent | Low | Best flavor of everbearing types. |
| Seascape | Everbearing | Year-round | Good | Moderate | High yield, reliable |
| San Andreas | Everbearing | Year-round | Very good | Low | Good disease resistance |
| Monterey | Everbearing | Year-round | Good | Moderate | Highest yield of everbearing |
| Recommendation: Albion. Best flavor, low runner production (important in hydro — runners are wasted energy), and consistently rated as the top everbearing strawberry for controlled environments. |
Zone Recommendation
Primary: East Zone hydroponic system Strawberries need the east zone’s cooler temperatures. On hot days:
- East peaks at ~91°F (tolerable for short periods)
- South peaks at 100°F+ (fruit quality suffers significantly)
| Factor | East Zone | Strawberry Need |
|---|---|---|
| Peak temp | ~91°F | < 85°F preferred, < 95°F tolerable |
| Night temp | ~62-67°F | 55-60°F ideal (slightly warmer than ideal) |
| Humidity | Higher (hydro evaporation) | Prefers moderate humidity |
| Light | 14× grow lights directly overhead | 17-22 mol DLI target achievable |
Summer challenge: June-July peak heat will stress strawberry fruit quality even in the east zone. Climate Control explains the shade and cooling tradeoff for the whole greenhouse.
Hydroponic Growing Notes
- Bare-root starts: Soak roots 1 hour, trim to 4-5 inches, place in rockwool/clay pellets with crown above media line.
- Position allocation: Reserve 6-10 positions. Semi-permanent — plan around them.
- Runner management: Trim runners to direct energy to fruit production.
- Pollination: Strawberries need pollination. Hand pollination is necessary — brush each flower with a small paintbrush. Takes 30 seconds per plant every other day.
- Iron supplementation: Strawberries are iron-hungry. Watch for interveinal chlorosis.
Harvest & Economics
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Days to first fruit | 60-90 from bare-root |
| Production period | 6-12 months continuous |
| Yield per plant | 0.5-1.0 lb per month (established) |
| Grocery price | USD 4-6/lb (conventional), USD 6-8/lb (organic) |
| Value per position | USD 2-6/month |
| At 8 positions producing 0.75 lb/month each at USD 5/lb average, that’s USD 30/month in grocery-equivalent strawberries. Year-round greenhouse strawberries in Colorado winter are a genuine luxury. |
Longmont-Specific Notes
- Altitude advantage: Cooler high-elevation nights can improve fruit sweetness.
- Pest watch: Spider mites love strawberries AND dry air. Regular scouting of leaf undersides is essential. See Crops overview.
- Water quality: Longmont’s low-mineral water is ideal for strawberry hydro.
See All Crops.
Catalog Entry
Slug strawberries; category fruit.
Cycle —; scientific name —.
Default DLI; default VPD 0.60-1.00 kPa.
Crop-Control Status
Counts as active control. Occupied east-zone record in v_position_current; strawberry crop context participates in active policy. Target Bands below show current DB-backed profile coverage.
Current occupied positions from v_position_current: none.
Target Bands
59.4–71.1°F; 0.46–0.98 kPa; DLI 12.0. Hours covered: 24.
59.4–71.1°F; 0.46–0.98 kPa; DLI 12.0. Hours covered: 24.
Current Plantings
No active Strawberries plantings are recorded right now.
Latest Vision
No camera observations have been linked to Strawberries yet.
Planting History
EAST-HYDRO-312026-04-01 to 2026-06-1171 days; final stage seedling; events 2.