Strawberries flowering during Winter

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I got 3 strawberry plants of an unknown variety last Spring from a local store, and during the extremely hot Summer (95-100F for June-August) we had in Greece last year they were growing runners like crazy, to the point that I filled 3 of these large flower pots (or are they called flower boxes?).
They started flowering in early June and they haven't stopped since which has caught me by surprise because I've read that even Everbearing varieties fruit for 3-4 months max. These never went dormant even when the temperature dropped to 40F. However, the fruits don't ripen; they remain small and green, and most of them eventually rot. It's perfectly understandable considering the constant rain and that we are in the middle of Winter, despite being rather hot in the last ten days (temp of 45-60F).

My question is what do I do with the flowers? Is there any benefit if I remove them, or will this force the plants to expend more energy to make more of them?

Strawberries.JPG

IMG_3817.JPG
 
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Your strawberry plants look good friend. You are doing a great job growing them. I wouldn't remove the flowers from your strawberry plants during Winter. Allow them to do what they do naturally and when Spring and Summer return you can start picking them again. Keep us posted.
 
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I got some 'Malling Champions' last year, my first experience with perpetual strawberries, and when I looked to clean them up a bit a couple of weeks ago I found the same thing. My reaction was to remove the flowers, with traditional plants one removes all flowers the first year on the basis that the second year crop will then more than make up for it. Maybe if in this situation remove flowers from half the plants so you can compare the results?
 
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Thank you for your advice.
@oneeye My worry is that if the plants are trying now to grow fruit, they won't have the strength to grow any in Spring, but since they look healthy, I'll take your advice and leave them alone. Most likely, I wouldn't be able to keep up with them anyway. I checked today under the leaves and they have so many buds it is insane they are like that in the heart of Winter.

@Oliver Buckle That is an interesting idea, which I am willing to try.

btw, if someone is wondering what that thing is in the middle of the pot, it's an oya. A rather small one, at around 1lt capacity, but I wanted to test if it makes a difference and I couldn't use a bigger one in this setup anyway. It did not replace the regular watering entirely, but it helped a lot during Summer when I had to water once every 5 days. I was so pleased with the result that in the last pot (see below) which is a little larger (80x33 cm), I used 2 of them. I haven't tested these yet because these plants were transplanted in there very late, but I am certain they will appreciate the moist conditions.

Strawberries 2.JPG
 

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IMO your plants are in the first stages of nutrient deficiency, especially Iron and Manganese. See how the dark green leaves are starting to yellow on the edges and then look at the leaves that are yellowish with green veins. Yellowish leaves and green veins are a SURE sign of Iron Chlorosis and/or Manganese Chlorosis. Red leaves are an indicator of a lack of phosporus. Fertilize with a high middle number fertilizer and apply Chelated Iron.
 
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IMO your plants are in the first stages of nutrient deficiency, especially Iron and Manganese. See how the dark green leaves are starting to yellow on the edges and then look at the leaves that are yellowish with green veins. Yellowish leaves and green veins are a SURE sign of Iron Chlorosis and/or Manganese Chlorosis. Red leaves are an indicator of a lack of phosporus. Fertilize with a high middle number fertilizer and apply Chelated Iron.
I mentioned that Winter this year in Greece has been quite mild, but isn't normal for leaves to turn red in Winter before they drop entirely?

I've read that fertilizer should be added late Winter - early Spring, which is late February-March here. Is it OK to fertilize in Winter? Or is it only nitrogen that should be avoided this time of year and those you mentioned can be added freely?
 

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I mentioned that Winter this year in Greece has been quite mild, but isn't normal for leaves to turn red in Winter before they drop entirely?

I've read that fertilizer should be added late Winter - early Spring, which is late February-March here. Is it OK to fertilize in Winter? Or is it only nitrogen that should be avoided this time of year and those you mentioned can be added freely?
Strawberries do not lose their leaves in winter. Strawberries do have a dormancy period where they can take on a yellow or red color but this is NOT the case with your plants. I see no nitrogen deficiency. It is OK to fertilize at ANY time IF your plant needs it. You will not get nitrogen toxicity if you just follow the directions on the container.
 
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IMO your plants are in the first stages of nutrient deficiency, especially Iron and Manganese. See how the dark green leaves are starting to yellow on the edges and then look at the leaves that are yellowish with green veins. Yellowish leaves and green veins are a SURE sign of Iron Chlorosis and/or Manganese Chlorosis. Red leaves are an indicator of a lack of phosporus. Fertilize with a high middle number fertilizer and apply Chelated Iron.
The pH of the media is too high probably. Watering with well water or city water in time, unless you have sulfur water, will cause that.
 
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I water
The pH of the media is too high probably. Watering with well water or city water in time, unless you have sulfur water, will cause that.
I use tap water since I don't have another source available. The potting mix I used had 1/3 peat moss (3.8 PH), but I guess eventually PH will go up anyway.
I wanted to add elemental sulfur in the potting mix to help keep PH down, but I didn't have it at the time, and later it slipped my mind. I've read that the microbes in the soil need up to 6 months in relatively high temperatures to break down sulfur and thus lower the PH, so the new plan is to add it every February and hopefully, this will help balance the use of tap water.
 

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