Veteran Master Gardener Jeanette Stehr-Green will introduce growing strawberries locally at the next Digging Deeper Educational Series event set for 10:30 a.m.-noon on Saturday, June 19, via Zoom.

Join this presentation by going to extension.wsu.edu/clallam and selecting the Master Gardener zoom presentation link. Or, joins by phone by calling 253-215-8782 (meeting ID 992 9960 5492, passcode 463203).

In her “Growing Strawberries on the North Olympic Peninsula” presentation, Stehr-Green will talk about selecting, planting, and caring for strawberries in a way that minimizes diseases, maximizes productivity, and extends the life of a strawberry patch. She will look to help local gardeners make sense of the general types of strawberries and identify varieties recommended for Western Washington so that gardeners and their families can enjoy fresh strawberries all summer long.

Stehr-Green will describe the ideal planting site, proper spacing and planting technique for strawberries. She will describe seasonal care of strawberry plants, including post-harvest renovation of June-bearing strawberries and protection of strawberries over the winter.

Stehr-Green will also discuss how to recognize when a strawberry patch is no longer productive, and it is time to start a new patch in a new site.

Stehr-Green has been a Master Gardener since 2003. She has provided many presentations to the public on gardening and contributes to Master Gardener newspaper columns in the Sequim Gazette and Peninsula Daily News. She appears on “Garden Talk” a live, hour-long monthly gardening show on KONP Radio with host/moderator Todd Ortloff.

Stehr-Green is a berry enthusiast who enjoys growing, picking, and eating berries and teaching others about growing berries and learning from their experiences. She has many years of experience growing berries on the North Olympic Peninsula and thinks all gardeners should consider growing strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or blueberries in their landscapes or gardens.