At Nourse Farms, we’ve experienced the benefits of selling potted strawberry, black and red raspberry, and blackberry plants. Offering customers potted plant options, especially around popular holidays such as Mother’s Day, boosts the visual appeal of your merchandise displays and allows you to charge a premium for your products, increasing your profit margins. Potted plants can extend your selling sea- son, as they can continue to grow and be planted throughout the season, even into the fall.
A few things to know before getting started:
- Proper timing and potting techniques are key to maximizing your success. The timing of your planting will depend on your target sales season.
- If you are potting plants early in the season, it is imperative to have a heated greenhouse space available for the plants.
- It is important to choose well-draining media for pots and a display area that allows growing plants to receive adequate sunlight.
Strawberries
Hanging Baskets
- To sell baskets with flowers, pot your strawberry plants about six weeks before your sale date.
- To sell hanging baskets with ripening fruit, plan to set plants 8–10 weeks prior to your sale.
- Day-neutrals are ideal for hanging baskets. Options include Seascape, Evie 2, and Mara des Bois.
- You can fit three plants in a 10” pot, and four plants in a 12” pot.
June-Bearing Nursery Pots
- Don’t allow plants to flower or fruit while in the nursery. Plant them about four weeks before your earliest sale date to give them time to fill out the pots.
- Some popular, easy-to-grow varieties include Earliglow, Sparkle, Jewel, Honeoye, and Allstar.
- A 4” pot is perfect for a single strawberry plant, or an 8” pot for two plants.
Brambles
- Pot your brambles at least eight weeks before the sale date to ensure healthy, green cane growth.
- We recommend using at least an 8” pot for brambles, though a larger pot may be required for bare-root canes.
- Set black raspberry and blackberry plugs about 1⁄2” below potting soil surface.
- For red raspberry bare root canes, ensure the roots are no more than 1” below the soil. You may need to coil the roots around the pot to prevent planting too deep.
Reach out to our Customer Service team any time with questions. You can reach them at 413-665-2658 or info@noursefarms.com.
