How to make a pyramid for strawberries with your own hands
Content
What is the essence of the design
The indisputable advantage of the vertical method of growing strawberries is space saving and a high yield. When planting plants in this way, the bushes are on top of each other and do not occupy large areas. The strawberry yield in such constructions can exceed the usual one by 5 times. In order for a strawberry bush to grow well and bear fruit, it needs to provide a free height of about 30 cm.With this method of cultivation, care in general is greatly simplified: removing the mustache, watering, feeding, harvesting.
Modern vertical beds can be made in a variety of configurations: pyramids, metal or wood shelves, ovals, tire circles, pipes, plastic bottles, flower pots and much more. They can be installed both in a greenhouse and in the open air, and some craftsmen adapt such structures even on the balconies of apartment buildings.
In hand-made strawberry pyramids, it is especially profitable and convenient to grow continuously fruiting varieties (remontant), since they bloom and ripen over a long period of time.
How to build vertical tiers
The most popular among gardeners is the pyramid. Usually it is made three- or quadrangular. The design can be made with your own hands quite simply. For its manufacture, wood, metal or dense plastic are used. The most convenient is wood, but each one comes out of his capabilities and experience with this or that material.
First of all, you need to think about which design will be most suitable for you; make the necessary drawings; determine the exact dimensions; prepare materials for the construction. For the base, it is best to take a block with a thickness of about 40 mm. All wooden elements should be treated with an antiseptic or varnished. This will help protect the wood from moisture, fungi, pests, etc.
The workpieces are fastened together with nails and glue, and for greater strength, you can use metal corners / strips and screws. This will significantly improve the strength of each tier separately, and the entire structure as a whole. The first (fundamental) tier must be filled with previously prepared fertile soil, leaving 4–6 cm free on top so that it is possible to feed and water the plants.
Then the soil should be lightly tamped and the next tier should be placed. The procedure is repeated until the completion of the designed structure. Please note that each floor should be 30–35 cm smaller than the previous one. The pyramid can consist of 3–9 tiers and bring up to 95 kg of strawberries per season. After completing the assembly of the structure, it can be painted or decorated in an original way so that it harmoniously fits into the landscape.
Video "Interesting ideas for the beds"
We establish drip irrigation
When growing any crop, it is extremely important to ensure timely correct watering, which guarantees a good harvest.Today, the most popular method of irrigating pyramids for strawberries is drip - water flows directly to the root, and the soil does not become waterlogged.
To ensure watering of the strawberry pyramid, you will need a perforated hose. It is not necessary to buy it, it is quite possible to do it yourself, piercing small holes in an ordinary hose at a distance of about 20 cm with an awl or a gypsy needle.A hose prepared in this way must be laid with a snake between the beds and plugged one end. The second is to connect to a container, from which life-giving moisture will come.
When doing drip irrigation with your own hands, you should also provide for the analysis of the system for wintering, so that in the next season you can again use ready-made materials.
Useful Tips
- a massive DIY strawberry pyramid should be assembled at the place planned for it. Otherwise, you may face transportation problem;
- to get a good harvest of strawberries, you need to fill the tiers of the pyramid with good quality soil. For strawberries, an ideal composition would be a mixture of peat, perlite, vermiculite and coconut fiber. Also, do not forget about regular feeding;
- think carefully about how to protect plants from frost. It is better to think about this issue before starting the construction of the pyramid, so as not to ruin all your labors later.
Vertical beds have many advantages over traditional strawberry growing methods. Strawberry pyramids bring not only a great harvest, but also serve as an original decoration of the entire site.
Video "Bed type" Pyramid ""
The video shows a simple and effective design for growing strawberries. The described type is called a pyramid.