• With good planning, you may enjoy strawberries nearly all year long.Lew Robertson/Stockbyte/Getty Images
  
  Most gardeners wait to plant their new strawberry seedlings after the last frost in the spring. They may assume that winter weather would inevitably kill the young plants. However, autumn can be the perfect time to plant strawberries to receive an early and plentiful yield in the spring. Minimal preparation is require to ensure that your strawberries survive the harsher temperatures between November and March.
  
  

Selection

• Not all strawberries are the same. Strawberry plants are available in several varieties, all of which may be successfully grown in the fall, depending on your area and growing situation. June bearing strawberries normally have a short season, just a few weeks in the spring. You can select early June bearing, mid-June bearing, or late June bearing to determine when your berries will be available. Fall planting, however, may extend the fruiting season of June bearing plants a bit. Everbearing strawberries will re-blossom and fruit in spring, summer and fall. In addition, planting in the fall may shorten the periods between fruition so that you have berries nearly all year long. Everbearing plants are also ideal for growers with limited space, since they get taller but less wide. Day neutral strawberries, similar to June bearing plants, will fruit only in the spring growing season. They, too, however, may fruit longer as a benefit of fall planting. Remember to take into account your growing zone.
  
  

Planting

• Strawberries should enter the ground between September and October, while the soil is still on the warmer side and soft. The soil should be conditioned so that the measurable pH level is somewhere between 6 and 6.8. Your strawberries will do best in an area that drains well and receives plenty of winter sun. If your soil is not nutritionally rich, you may wish to till it with a complete fertilizer. Fall strawberries should be planted a bit deeper than spring plants, so that only a little of the crown is above soil after the soil is firmed. Matted row planting systems are best for June bearing strawberries, while hill systems are best for everbearing and day neutral plants.
  
  

Winterizing

• Strawberry plants set-in during the fall should be protected from the upcoming winter weather. The plants can be covered with weed barrier cloth or black plastic, with openings carefully cut and fitted around each plant to keep the ground warm enough. The plants should be cut back to remove any dead or diseased portions, but care should be taken not to damage the crowns in any way. Once the plants have been trimmed, about an inch of natural mulch should be spread around and between each plant, over the top of the weed barrier cloth or plastic.