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PVC Strawberry Tower, Vertical PVC Strawberry Planter Pgina 1 de 18

Try a PVC
Strawberry
Tower if Youre
Short on Space -
or Long on
Daring!
A PVC strawberry tower is an innovative way to
grow lots of strawberry plants on a small plot of
ground.

This strawberry planter would work well on a patio


or deck.

And if used in a greenhouse, you could be picking


your strawberries before the outside strawberries
are even blooming.

It's a fun way to grow strawberries, too!

Question: How Many


Strawberry Plants Can
You Grow on One Square
Foot of Ground?

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Answer: If youre planting in the ground, you can


grow exactly one strawberry plant on a square
foot of ground.

But if youre using that square foot as the


foundation of a strawberry tower, you can grow
many plants - 100, to be exact, using the setup
Im about to show you.

Advantages...
What are the advantages of this system?

Well, the most obvious is the ability to grow many


plants on a small plot of ground.

Its an interesting way to maximize the production


of a small garden, or to grow strawberries on a
deck or balcony. And since greenhouse space is
precious, its particularly well-suited for
greenhouse growing.

But there are other advantages.

Since the plants are off the ground, youll be able


to grow very clean, very high-quality berries.
Disease problems can be minimized with the off-
the-ground approach, particularly in a greenhouse
where constant airflow is provided.

Theres an intangible advantage, too: This is just


a cool way to grow strawberries; its kind of fun!

And Disadvantages...
To be fair, there are some definite disadvantages
to this system, too.

One is that this is really just a one-season


approach to growing strawberries. We havent had
much luck carrying the plants through a second
growing season. We've found that the plants

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overwinter and survive OK (in our greenhouse),


but arent very productive the second season.

There is also more potential for problems with this


growing system than with the old-fashioned
method of just planting in the ground. Towers can
fall over (happened to us!), and plugged irrigation
lines can quickly result in dead plants (happened
to us!). And its a lot of work to get your PVC
pipes ready and the system set-up.

If youre game to give it a try, or just curious as


to how its done, read on

(NOTE: Some feel that there are concerns about


potential health risks in using PVC pipe. Youll
have to decide that for yourself, but just in case
you didnt know, you likely drink and bathe in
water every day thats traveled miles through PVC
pipe.)

Intrigued with the concept


of vertical growing...
But don't want to bother with all the measuring, drilling and

building? Then here are some purchase-and-grow alternatives

that might be worth considering:

5-Tiered Vertical Strawberry Planter


Pot

This product is very similar to my strawberry

towers in that it utilizes the trickle-down

method of irrigation. You just pour water in at

the top and it flows through to every pot.

Comes with a bottom drip tray which makes it

usable for indoor growing. And though it's a

5-tier stack of pots, it can be broken up into two tiers to make

two shorter, separate towers.

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If I just wanted to grow a small amount of strawberries, I think

I'd do it this way rather than building a tower from scratch. But

then, I'm more into the growing than the building! Click here to

visit product page.

3-Foot Column Planter Tower

Comes with a center feeding tube for watering and

fertilizing.

This planter is made of thin plastic instead of rigid

PVC, so will only stand erect once filled with

growing medium. (Perlite would work great with

this tower, just as with the PVC tower.)

I'm not sure how durable this tower would be long-

term. But it would probably be a great way to experiment with

vertical growing. Click here to visit product page.

Mr. Stacky Hydroponic Growing


Tower

Not inexpensive, but this unit is a self-contained

hydroponic tower for growing strawberries (or

other crops). It's designed for both indoor and

outdoor use.

The tower comes with:

- a 17.5 water/nutrient reservoir

- a submersible irrigation pump and timer

- pipe and tubing

- a stack of grow pots providing locations for 20 plants

Click here to visit product page.

Transform a
Plain Piece
of Sewer
Pipe Into a

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Strawberry
Tower
Yep, I said sewer pipe.
6-inch sewer pipe to be
precise.

We purchased it in 10-
foot lengths, and cut
them in half to make
5-foot towers, but you
could go with any length
you want.

(I dont think I need to


clarify this, but just in case: its new sewer pipe,
not used!).

You can buy sewer pipe at most any home


improvement store such as Lowes and Home
Depot.

Youll also need a 1.5 inch hole saw (the kind you
can use with an electric drill), and you might need
an end cap for each pipe (to be explained later).

Once you've got everything you'll need on hand,


you can lay out where your holes will go, and cut
them with the hole saw.

The Measurements:
Here are the measurements we used for our
strawberry towers:

There are 8 vertical rows of holes on each


pipe

The rows are 2.5 inches apart, center to


center

Along each row, the holes are 4 inches


apart, center to center

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Stagger the holes, so that the holes on one


row arent lined up evenly with the holes in
the adjacent rows (see the photos below)

Place the first holes 8-inches up from the


bottom. Otherwise youll end up with plants
growing on the ground

These measurements and spacing will give you 4


rows of 12 holes alternating with 4 rows of 13
holes, for a total of 100 holes per 5 foot tube

Mark and Drill Holes


Use any method you want to lay out the hole
pattern, but heres what I did:

I used a flexible tape measure (the kind that


would be used in sewing) to mark off each
row around the circumference of the pipe

Do that at each end of the pipe, of course,


and be sure to keep the measurements at
both ends lined up (I used the
manufacturer's marking on the pipe as a
reference)

Then I used a rigid tape measure to mark


the rows from end to end, and to measure
and mark each hole location on each row.

With all the hole locations marked, it's a relatively


quick and simple job to drill out all the holes with
a hole saw. For both marking and drilling the pipe,
you'll need a way of stabalizing the pipe. (I used a
pair of sawhorses with spacers nailed on to make
a pipe cradle.)

Once the holes are cut, its a good idea to use a


piece of sandpaper to knock off the sharp edges
formed by the hole saw. (Your fingers will thank
you when it comes time to plant!)

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Setup the Strawberry


Towers and Get Ready to
Plant
To get your strawberry tower ready for planting,
youll need to address two concerns: stability and
irrigation.

Stability:
Ive only used the towers inside a greenhouse, so
wind was of little concern. But even so, the towers
tend to be a bit unstable and should be supported
in some way. The taller the tower, the more
important this is.

We simply ran a wire from one end of the


greenhouse to the other, and attached each tower
to the wire. Any arrangement that keeps the
tower from tipping and doesn't block light from
the strawberry plants will work.

We dont put a cap on the bottom of our towers,


but you could if you preferred. If you use a cap,
youll need to drill several holes in it to assure
drainage.

I've heard of people suspending strawberry


towers in the air, and for this setup youd
obviously need a bottom cap. You'd also need a
VERY STRONG structure to handle the weight,
because these towers are HEAVY when full of
moist growing medium!

Irrigation:
The simplest arrangement for irrigation is to use a
single sprayer or dripper positioned at the top of
the tower, and let the water percolate down.
That's what we did.

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If you have some experience with irrigation


systems, you could design your own system for
this purpose, purchasing just the components you
need.

Alternatively, you could buy a kit designed for


container gardening, such as this product or this
one. Though if you buy a kit it's likely you'll be
purchasing some components that you'll never
use.

Another possibility would be to run a small


diameter soaker hose vertically through the center
of the tower. With an internal water outlet,
though, you run the risk of complete or partial
clogs.

Whatever system you set-up, I'd recommend


running your irrigation from a timer, if possible.
Makes things a lot easier.

If you don't have a timer on hand, I'd recommend


this product. It's what we used in our strawberry
greenhouse, and for many other farming
applications through the years. Perhaps I've just
been lucky, but I've NEVER had one fail on me.
(I've had some far more expensive timers fail,
though!)

You could also plan on applying irrigation by hand,


just pouring the water in at the top. That would
be very doable, especially if you're just using one
or two towers. But this setup requires frequent
watering, so an automated system with a timer
makes management much simpler.

Once you have the tower stabilized and the


irrigation in place, youre ready to plant.

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Some Pre-Planting
Notes...
Strawberry Plants:

Not quite sure what type of strawberry varieties you should grow?

Here's some help: Popular Strawberry Varieties

We use bare-root strawberry plants that are


dormant at the time they are shipped. So for the
most part, the plants are just roots and crown.
(You can see that the strawberry plant in my hand
below has just broken dormancy and begun to
grow.)

But you could use strawberry plugs if you prefer.


(Here are some tips about buying strawberry
plants.)

Growing Medium:

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We use perlite as the growing medium in our


strawberry towers. Here's why: We grow the
strawberries hydroponically, meaning that all of
the nutrients the plants require are delivered in
the irrigation. Every time the plants are watered,
they are also fed.

The perlite works great as a substance for the


roots to grab hold of and grow into. Perlite also
provides excellent drainage of excess water, while
retaining a film of water around each grain of
perlite to help prevent roots from drying out.

If you use perlite alone, just be sure to select a


quality brand of horticultural grade perlite.

If you dont want to use just perlite, though, you


can use whatever combination of perlite and/or
potting soil and fertilizer you prefer (soil from
your garden is not recommended due to the risk
of soil-borne diseases and pests).

Be aware that if youre watering from the top,


water might not make it down to the bottom
plants in sufficient quantity if your potting mixture
is too dense (not a problem with perlite).

Fertilization:
Many people have asked about fertilizing
strawberry plants grown this way. There really are
many options; which will be best for you will
depend upon your situation and your preferences.

As I noted above, we grow our strawberries


hydroponically. That means that we use water-
soluble fertilizers that are dissolved in the
irrigation water. So every time the timer kicks-off
an irrigation cycle, the plants are also fed.

We're very experienced hydroponic growers, with


years of experience growing hydroponic tomatoes

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and lettuce on a commercial scale. So we're very


comfortable growing our strawberries
hydroponically.

But if you don't want to use that method of


fertilization, there are many granular fertilizers
that you could choose to use. Probably the best
bet would be to choose some form of slow-release
granular fertilizer to mix into the growing medium
as you plant. You could go with a strictly organic
fertilizer if you prefer.

If you decide to use a granular fertilizer of some


sort, youll need to make certain that its mixed
well with the growing medium youre using. Youll
also need to be careful not to exceed
recommended rates of application according to
the fertilizers label.

And it will probably take a bit of head scratching


to convert the fertilizers label recommendations
for surface application to a suitable quantity for
your tower.

Some Fertilizer
Recommendations...
Don't have a favorite fertilizer in mind for your strawberries? Here

are some suggestions:

Winchester Gardens
Organic Berry Fertilizer
This is a 2-3-4 formulation that will work as a

slow-release fertilizer, so you can mix it with

your growing medium before planting.

It's composed of ingredients that are approved

for organic growing (ingredients include bone

meal and feather meal). Click here to visit product page.

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Hydroponic Strawberry Fertilizer

If you want to grow your strawberries

hydroponically (the way the plants featured

on this page were grown), you'll need a

completely water-soluble fertilizer suitable

for hydroponic use.

If you happen to be an experienced

hydroponic grower, you may know how to mix your own

formulation from a number of different nutrient ingredients. But if

you're a newbie to hydroponic growing (or you just don't want to

bother with all the mixing), I'd recommend that you start with

something like this product.

It contains all the ingredients needed for a complete hydroponic

nutrient solution - all you have to do is add water.

Be aware that this is not an organic product (and neither is the

nutrient formulation we use with our strawberries). Click here to

visit product page.

Load Up Your Strawberry


Tower With Plants
Once your towers are set-up and stabilized, you're
ready to plant your strawberries.

To get started, you just pour perlite (or whatever


growing medium youre using) into the top until
the tower is filled up to the bottom of the first row
of holes.

Then place one plant in each hole, taking care


to plant the crowns at the proper depth.

Now pour enough perlite in to fill the pipe up to


the next layer of holes, tamp it down a bit by
reaching into the holes with your fingers, and then
put in the next level of plants.

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Just repeat the process, working your way up the


tower until all of the holes have been planted, as
illustrated in the series of photos below.

Notes:

Its a good idea to make sure the perlite is


wet before you start planting. It's easier to
work with when wet, and you don't have to
breathe the dust. I drill a few small holes in
the bottom of a plastic 5-gallon bucket, fill
the bucket with perlite, and then add as
much water as possible to the bucket. The
bucket will gradually drain, keeping the
perlite moist but not waterlogged as you use
it.

Remember that since the hole layout in the


rows is staggered, youll have 4 holes at
each level as you work your way up the
tower. So youll plant 4 strawberry plants,
pour in enough perlite to get up to the next
level of holes, and then plant 4 more plants,
etc.

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And The Result?


Two weeks after planting:

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Six weeks after planting:

Eight weeks after planting:

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Time to feast!

Modify to Suit Your Needs


I certainly did not originate the concept of
strawberry towers using PVC pipe. There are
many different versions and methods of growing
strawberries vertically, but this is the system that
Ive used myself.

Some strawberry tower setups are quite different


from this system, and involve variations such as
melting the PVC tube in places to create ledges for
the plants.

So if you want to try this challenging (and fun!)


method of growing strawberries,
perhaps your system will contain some innovative
design tweaks of your own to make it perfectly
suited for your growing environment.

In any case, I wish you lots of luck (and lots of


good eating!) with your strawberry towers.

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