When we’re talking about the manner in which we can grow strawberries vertically, we actually have two main choices: go with the DIY route or buy the best vertical garden planter set/the best vertical strawberry tower.
I’m not going to go into the DIY options because that’s what YouTube is for. If you search for how to make a vertical strawberry planter, you will find plenty of videos for inspiration.
Some will make the set up from PVC pipes, others will use food grade plastic barrels. There are plenty of DIY options if you’re into making things at home.
If you’re interested in an alternative growing method, check out my guide on how to grow hydroponic strawberries.
Table of Contents
How to Grow Strawberries Vertically in 9 Steps
Strawberries are actually the plants which are overall best suited for vertical growth because they grow up so tiny. These are some of the smallest plants. There are leafy greens that grow taller.
Luckily for us, due to their tiny size, we can stack a lot of strawberry plants one on top of the other in a vertical manner. Moreover, these plants are very productive, we’ll get a wonderful yield from a wonderful arrangement without taking up much space. We can leave all that free space to tomatoes or cucumbers or to other big plants.
It’s such a perfect option for saving a lot of space, whether you’re growing outdoors or indoors.
I will also review some vertical planters for growing strawberries vertically to give you an idea about what’s on the market but let’s see what else this whole growing process implies.
After all, growing plants in whatever arrangement requires more than getting the right containers.
1. Runners
Strawberry plants are grown from runners not from seeds.
There are 2 options: you can buy the runners online or from nurseries or you can transplant them from someone who’s already growing these fruits and has a nice crop.
You can plant day-neutral varieties about 8 to 12 inches apart.
2. Varieties
Here’s another thing that you must be aware of. There are two types of plants: day-neutral and short-day.
Day-neutral varieties are not dependent on receiving a lot of light, their flowering and fruiting stages are induced by high-enough temperatures. I recommend giving them a go if you want to grow strawberries indoors.
Outdoors, day-neutral will produce fruits from June to mid-fall. They’re just great for amateur gardeners, whether you plant them indoors or outdoors.
Short-day varieties are perfect for cool conditions, they will flower during days with less than 12-14 hours of daylight.
Among the day-neutral varieties we have: Albion (highly popular), San Andreads, Seascape, Evie-2, Keoki.
Among the short-day varieties we have: Sierra, Ruby June, Scarlet, Stella, Camino Real, Chandler, Sweet Charlie.
3. Soil
We can’t talk about how to grow strawberries vertically without mentioning which soil is best for them.
Fortunately, they’re not that particular about which soil they grow in. Deep, fertile soils with good drainage are obviously the best option.
If you’re buying potting soil, go for a nutrient-rich one, maybe with a mix of compost and manure. You can also buy organic potting mix.
If your container is too deep, you can also add stones or similar material at the bottom and then fill in the rest with good quality potting soil. That’s possible because these plants have a shallow root system.
4. Light
They also require plenty of sunshine but that can be replaced with full-spectrum LED grow lights indoors, especially during winter.
Generally, they require 8-10 hours or light per day or at least 12 hours of grow lights.
5. Watering schedule
It’s important to have good drainage because their root system is quite shallow. But this tiny root system also makes them susceptible to drought.
Newly transplanted strawberry runners should be watered immediately after planting.
If your vertical garden planters are placed outside in the sun, you’ll need to water quite often.
The general rule is that the plants should receive at least 1 inch of water per week.
Mulching the surface of the soil is one way of ensuring that the moisture stays trapped in for longer.
For strawberries grown in containers like our best vertical strawberry planters, you can also add a fertilizer, diluted at half-strength. You can add some to soil once a month.
6. Fertilizer
A balanced, all purpose fertilizer will work very well for growing strawberries plants, both for vertical and horizontal growth.
A product like the Miracle-Gro Water Soluble All Purpose Plant Food will work very well and it’s easy to use because you just dissolve it in water. But you can get other balanced fertilizers, even organic ones if that’s what you prefer.
Water soluble fertilizers are the easiest to use.
If you prefer adding your plant food to the soil, you can choose to use slow release fertilizers.
Down to Earth All Natural Acid Mix Fertilizer 4-3-6 is a fantastic natural fertilizer blended especially for acid lovers. This one is formulated specifically to feed plants like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, potatoes, hydrangeas, evergreens, and other plants that need a low pH.
You can add the Down to Earth All Natural Acid Mix Fertilizer 4-3-6 to the soil when transplanting the runners for vegetative growth and again when blooms appear. The instructions also apply to plants grown in containers so just follow what the manufacturer recommends.
7. Pollination
If you’re growing indoors or in greenhouses, you’ll have to take care of pollinating the plants. Outdoors, the wind and insects take care of it.
You have a few options at your disposal: brush over the tops of the plants, use an electric pollinator, use a circulatory fan. Whatever method you choose, just keep in mind that you must do it daily.
8. Pruning
Moreover, if the foliage gets too big and it detracts from fruit growth, do some pruning.
Remove the lower older leaves as they grow too big for the health of the plant. It will also increase air flow.
9. Harvesting
In general, the fruits are ready for harvest in about 30 days after full bloom.
You can pick them as soon as they are fully colored.
Are there any special requirements for growing strawberries vertically indoors?
Not really. If you follow the above short guide on how to grow strawberries, you’ll be able to do so quite successfully, even indoors.
You should definitely choose day-neutral varieties, that’s one tip to keep in mind.
The advantage is that you can grow them even in the winter because it will be warm enough. If you don’t have any access to sunlight, you can fix that by using grow lights for about 12 hours daily.
All in all, that’s pretty much my complete guide on how to grow strawberries vertically, the plants best suited to this method, especially if you want to save space both indoors and outdoors.
How to Grow Strawberries Vertically: Best Vertical Garden Planters
Let’s see which are some of the best choices for containers/pots/sets if we want to know how to grow strawberries vertically.
Once we review some of the best models, we’ll also talk about what else you might need and what to expect throughout the plant’s life cycle.
I just want to warn you that the price differences between various models can be substantial. You can get a small vertical planter set for as little as $10-20 or you can spend somewhere around $200 for a set of raised garden beds.
Establish how much you’re willing to comfortably spend before choosing the best vertical strawberry planter.
1. Meiwo New Upgraded 7 Pocket Hanging Vertical Garden
These bags that can be hung on a wall or anywhere else you might want to hang them are really impressive. They can be hung both indoors and outdoors.
They’re cheap but well made. And they’re called New Upgraded because the manufacturer has actually listened to reviewers and made noticeable improvements. That’s not something you see that often.
Overall, I love how uncomplicated these felt cloth bags are and how easy it is to hang them on a wall. They’re perfect if you want to grow strawberries vertically on a very low budget.
If you’re satisfied, you can get a bunch more and expand to growing all sorts of herbs, flowers, and vegetables.
What the set contains
- 7 felt cloth bags that are arranged as vertical pockets for the plants
- the material is enforced with a waterproof layer to prevent us from destroying our walls, which is a fantastic idea
- there’s also a waterproof pocket at the bottom so that it doesn’t drip all over our flours – we can definitely use this set indoors and it’ll fit quite nicely due to its compact vertical setup
- the bags are a nice size, each fits about 4 pounds of soil (2kg) – I recommend growing just 1 strawberry plant per bag, which still means that you’ll be able to grow 7 plants per set, I think it’s more than enough
- size: 40 x 11.8 inches
If you want to transform your walls into the perfect garden without much cost, you should consider getting the Meiwo as your best vertical garden planter.
2. Outland Living 4-Ft Raised Garden Bed: Great Container for Growing Strawberries Vertically
Do you want one of the best sets that will enable you to grow strawberries vertically without problems? This vertical garden from Outland Living can definitely help with that but it’s also one of the most expensive setups. It’s really pricey but it’s also quite good.
The idea is brilliant and beautiful in its simplicity. If you don’t want to spend money but can somehow build something like this, that will be awesome. You’ve found your inspiration.
The structure consists of
- 4 rectangular plastic box containers that are really spacious, you’ll be able to grow 3 strawberry plants in each – each container is 21.75 inches long, 8 inches wide, and 6 inches tall
- these 4 boxes are vertically placed on a structure that looks a bit like a ladder, the whole support is solidly built and easy to assemble
- between the containers there’s a 12-inch distance but the overlap must also be taken into account – the bottom containers are great for herbs and leafy greens and our plants but the top can accommodate even larger vegetables or flowers
- there are no pre-drilled drainage holes
- the bins rotate on the support pegs for easy watering
It works both indoors and outdoors and it will look quite nice.
You can grow a combination of herbs, strawberries, leafy greens, flowers, and maybe even some tomatoes in the top container.
3. Mr Stacky 5-Tier Strawberry Planter Pot
I couldn’t end my reviews for this guide on how to grow strawberries vertically without reviewing a set that actually makes it clear that it was designed for these plants.
I will admit that it’s not my favorite but it doesn’t mean that it can be yours.
The set contains
- 5 terracotta orange color planters and 1 bottom saucer
- well, each of these 5 planters can be stacked vertically or you can use them separately or maybe just stack 2 or 3 of these for strawberries and use the other containers to grow herbs or leafy greens
- moreover, each planter has space for 4 plants – in total you can grow 20 strawberry plants at the same time, which is quite nice for a vertical garden planter
- this model is not big at all, its dimensions are: 12” L x 12” W x 28” H
- the whole set also has a 24 quarts volume
The flow through design is supposed to prevent overwatering and root rot. However, there are quite a few users who are pretty dissatisfied.
They expected the water to distribute but you’ll actually have to water each section of the pot individually. Moreover, some have noticed that the bottom gets too wet.
The space can also seem a bit too small. There are definitely users who are quite satisfied with how well their strawberries have grown in Mr Stacky 5-Tier Strawberry Planter Pot.
All in all, it wouldn’t be my first choice for the best vertical strawberry planter. That’s why I chose to review the other 2 sets first.
How to Grow Strawberries Vertically FAQs
As you saw, it’s totally possible to grow strawberries vertically in a few simple steps, whether you buy vertical planters or search online for DIY projects.. Last but not least, let’s answer some questions related to this subject.
1. Do strawberries grow well vertically?
They’re ideal for vertical growth in all sort of planters because strawberry plants are tiny. As long as you follow a good growing guide, you can grow strawberries in vertical planters with much success. With this method the plants also consume less water. Besides taking up less space, that’s another advantage.
2. Will strawberry plants climb a trellis?
No. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers are some of the most popular plants that need a trellis but strawberries don’t climb.
3. Is it better to grow strawberries vertically or horizontally?
It depends on how much available space you have. If you want to grow indoors, vertical planters are very convenient. Some planters, like the Meiwo New Upgraded 7 Pocket Hanging Vertical Garden can be attached to a wall, to a fence or everywhere you might have a bit of vertical space. If you’re not constrained by space, growing horizontally is great. All in all, we can grow strawberries vertically and horizontally with a good yield.
