Strawberry questions

[kimmypoo]

I bought a container that has 6 strawberry plants in it. They already have a lot of berries on them but the container looks too small for all the plants and I'm pretty sure it's root bound because roots are peeking out the drainage holes. If I transplant them, will I lose the berries because the plants will be putting their energy into establishing roots? Should I even bother transplanting since they're growing so well?

TIA

Kim

[I Fly]

I would definitely plant them!  I think the roots will quickly appreciate the added space and moisture.  You won't lose any berries.  If anything, I think you'll get better production, the more space you give them.  Make sure to mulch with leaves or bark or straw, too.  That will conserve moisture and prevent dirt from splashing onto your plants and berries when it rains. 

[SweetSilver]

If they June bearing strawberrries they will produce runners soon.  My day-neutral Tri-Stars either don't produce runners, or very few and haven't done so in a while.  I forget which.  So, if the are a June-bearing variety I would hold off on planting them.  When they produce runners you can set the whole shebang in the garden and the runners will root.  These varieties produce best when the oldest plants are culled every 3 years or so.  (Day-neutrals produce best when left alone.)

I only say this because you might just do best to lose the berries if you want to plant them in the garden.  If they are truly root bound you should prune those roots back heavily when replanting, and the plant might choose root growth over berries.

Me?  I would either leave them be, harvest the berries and afterwards get the plant ready to go in the garden.  Or I would remove the berries and flowers, rip back the roots and plant, hoping for an even better harvest next year.

[kimmypoo]

Thanks for the advice. I think I'll just leave them be for now. One of the reasons I bought them was because they already had berries on them and I'm too impatient to wait.  :P