When strawberry plants have finished fruiting, they naturally produce runners which grow into small plantlets. This is how strawberries spread and increase, and in the process give us more plants for free.

If you would like to increase you strawberry plant stock, or propagate some to give away to friends or family, August is a great time to do this. Even for a beginner, this is a really easy way to start propagating.

Here’s how:

Select the strongest runners. Peg down the tuft of leaves at the end of the runner into small pots filled with multi-purpose compost which you can place around the plant. It is a good idea to dig the pots in a little to prevent them falling over.

Water the plants, and leave for around six weeks until rooted.

Once roots have formed, cut the runner from the mother plant and you have a new plant to grow on and plant out.

Expect a small harvest from these baby plants in the first summer, and good cropping from the second summer onwards.

If you do not wish to create new strawberry plants from the mother plant, remove all the unwanted runners by cutting them off close to the plant. Supporting the growth of new plants saps energy from the plant and will reduce future yields.