Strawberries can be grown in most parts of the country right at home in the garden. Your local nursery will carry varieties that should work for your area. Almost everywhere in the country they will be planted and treated as perennials in the garden, but in some of the hotter parts of the country like parts of Texas they are just treated as annuals and replanted every year.

The first step of course is to pick the type of strawberries that you want to grow. They are generally broken down into three different types.

The most commonly grown are the June bearing varieties. While they don't truly all bear in June, especially in the different parts of the country, these generally have a peak period of production that only last two to three weeks. However, these tend to be the largest and tastiest of the varieties, explaining their popularity.

There are also the everbearing varieties. Somewhat smaller, these will have productive burst 2 to 3 times a season, and so stretch out harvest season more than the June bearing. These also don't spread as much as the June bearers.

Finally are the day neutral varieties. These are the most consistent bearers of the bunch, but tend to have smaller fruits than the other two. Once again, they don't send out as many runners as the June bearers.

Since everbearing and day neutral varieties don't send out a lot of runners, they are the favorites for use when planting strawberries in containers. This is a favorite way to grow strawberries, and makes it feasible for many who don't have the room for a strawberry bed. Either a hanging planter or a self watering container on the patio are a couple of popular containers.

If you do want to grow strawberries in the garden, keep in mind that since they are perennials it's best to set aside a bed for growing them. There are three basic types of beds used to grow strawberries...