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The University of Minnesota released its first three strawberry cultivars in 1920. Several more were released through 1960 and then nothing until 1982. None of those early varieties are now available.

It can take up to 12 years to produce a new strawberry cultivar and the average life span for a cultivar seems to be about 20 years. The older varieties fall from favor with the introduction of more resistant, hardier, better tasting, and bigger fruited varieties. So much for trivia.

If you are interested in learning about raising strawberries, you need to attend our 10th annual Bonanza. It will be Saturday, March 8, at the Abundant Life Church in North Branch. There will be 17 different presentations including the class on strawberries.

Jim Birkholz, owner and operator of the Pleasant Valley Orchard and pick-your-own strawberry farm will be the presenter. Jim will also present a class on apple pests before the strawberry class.

Although I've raised strawberries for many years, Jim has cleared up some of my misconceptions about them. I have written several articles about strawberries and each time I wrote that one should cut the berries down in August and fertilize with a 10-10-10 fertilizer. At harvest time in June, I would get a nice first picking, but by the third picking, they were done.

At one of Jim's classes someone else had the same problem. Many of the growers who raise strawberries commercially, fertilize several times. You just need to know when to do it.

Those of us who just have a small patch, usually are satisfied to get what we can out of the patch.  We could get much more out of the patch if we knew when to water and when not to.

Diseases like leaf spot can be controlled through proper maintenance, if you know what to do. Literature I received from one of Jim's classes indicated more than 20 different insects that could attack your strawberries. Which ones should we be concerned about? Which ones can we live with?

When the Chisago County Master Gardeners first started selling bare root plants, it was just raspberries and strawberries. The first couple of years we sold three different varieties of strawberries.  Mesabi was the variety that seemed most popular with our customers, so it is the only variety we offer.

If you haven't received our plant order form, contact one of the Master Gardeners or the Extension office at 651-213-8901. We now offer grapes, raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. We also sell asparagus and onions and native plants.

I don't want to confuse you, but our first class is coming up before the Bonanza, Tuesday, February 26 at the Senior Center in North Branch. This is the first of our Spring Series Classes. Jim Birkholz will give a presentation on pruning fruit trees. This is always our best-attended class. If you need information about this class, contact the Extension Office at 651-213-8901. You could also contact me at 651-257-4496.

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