There's nothing quite like enjoying a ripe and juicy strawberry on a warm summer's day, so wouldn’t it be great to have your own supply of strawberries at home? However, you don't even have to think about buying strawberry seeds or plants because (drumroll, please) there's a way to grow strawberries from shop-bought fruit.
If you’re wondering how to propagate strawberries from your supermarket punnet, then you’ve come to the right place, and it turns out that it’s not all that difficult. You don’t need to be a seasoned gardener to be able to grow your own strawberries at home using the off-cuts from your store-bought fruit. All it takes are a few easy steps.
How to grow strawberries from shop-bought fruit
Gardening writer and social media influencer Simon Akeroyd shared his tips on how to grow strawberries in pots from supermarket-bought fruit on his TikTok and Instagram. We thought it sounded genius but, before we got our hopes up about whether it would work we ran his tips by a few more gardening experts.
And, yes! You can absolutely grow strawberries from shop-bought fruit. However, Fiona Jenkins, gardening expert at MyJobQuote.co.uk, points out that it can be a hit and miss method.
‘Shop-bought strawberries are usually a hybrid variety, so there’s no guarantee that your seeds and pieces will germinate or that you will end up with crop-producing plants,' she explains. 'However, it’s still worth giving it a go as successful plants could give you a good few seasons of fresh strawberries.’
So if you are still up for growing your own fruit and vegetables at home, then this is how to do it for your very own home-grown strawberries.
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What you’ll need
- Shop-bought strawberries
- A kitchen knife
- Kitchen roll
- Compost like this one at Amazon
- Spray bottle like this one at Amazon filled with water
Step-by-step guide
As strawberry seeds are on the outside of the fruit, start by thinly slicing off the flesh with a kitchen knife and placing the slices on a kitchen roll, similarly to how you’d grow raspberries from shop-bought fruit, with the seeds facing upwards.
‘Cut the tops off and leave them on some kitchen roll to dry out. Once fully dried out, you can gently scrape the seeds away,’ Fiona says.
Depending on when you’re doing this, you can either move straight into the planting stage or store the seeds in an envelope until it’s the right time.
Next, you can either use the same container your strawberries came in or opt for another seed tray or container to plant your seeds in. Either way, fill it with compost.
‘Place your seeds or strawberry pieces in a container or seed tray that’s filled with moist, soil-based compost,’ Fiona says. ‘The seeds barely need covering as they need some sunlight to reach them in order to germinate. The strawberry seeds also need warmth to germinate. So they’re best started indoors.’
Simon Akeroyd recommends placing the container on a sunny windowsill and regularly watering them with a spray bottle.
‘When seedlings start to appear, you may need to pick out the weedier looking shoots to give the strongest plants room to grow,' advises Fiona. 'Once they’ve grown big enough, you can pot them up as you would shop-bought strawberry plants.'
FAQs
What month is best to plant strawberries?
Spring is the best time for planting strawberries.
‘The best time to plant strawberries is usually spring time, after the last frost has been and gone,’ says Steve Chilton, garden expert at LeisureBench.
‘You could also plant them after summer in August/September time, as this gives them enough time to establish their root system before the winter and the first frost comes.’
How long do strawberries take to grow?
Just remember that when growing strawberries from seed, whether that’s from shop-bought fruit or a seed pack, it takes about a year for the plant to produce fruit.
‘A strawberry seed would take around a year to grow and show fruit,’ Steve confirms. ‘However, a bare-root strawberry plant should take around 3 months to produce fruit.’
So if you’re looking to have your own strawberry supply already this summer, then investing in a strawberry plant rather than seeds is your best bet.
But if you’re willing to wait until next year, then you’ve got yourself a strawberry plant with very little effort.
