Gordon Johnson, Extension Vegetable & Fruit Specialist; gcjohn@udel.edu
Temperatures have been very favorable in May for strawberry flowering. Research has shown that peak flowering occurs in strawberries between 60° and 65°F. Flowering is inhibited once temperatures are in the 80s. In Dover, average temperatures have ranged from 50° to 64°F with the highs ranging from 53° to 75°F. The first day in the forecast for temperatures above 80° F is May 28. What this means for strawberry growers is that there will be an extended harvest this year with short day strawberries potentially producing up to the end of June. Nitrogen fertilizer programs will need to be extended this year to match this potential productivity and fungicide programs will need to be maintained.