Fall-applied

Rowcovers
Enhance Yield in
Plasticulture
Strawberries
Gina E. Fernandez
ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS. Fragaria
ananassa, floating rowcover,
synthetic spun-bonded cover
SUMMARY. The environmental conditions necessary for floral initiation
and development in North Carolina
can be arrested by the onset of an
early drop in temperatures in the fall
soon after planting. Floating rowcovers were placed on plots of three
cultivars of strawberry (Fragaria
ananassa), Chandler, Camarosa
and Sweet Charlie, for 2 weeks in
the fall to determine if fruit yield
could be increased by enhancing
additional plant growth. Yields were
taken on plots with and without
rowcovers the following spring.
Temperatures and photosynthetic
photon flux were monitored under
the rowcovers, as well in adjacent
plots that were not covered throughout the year. Daily, minimum,
maximum and mean temperatures
were generally higher under the
rowcovers when ambient temperatures
were above 10 C (50 F). Rowcovers
had no effect on leaf area, root,
crown, leaf, flower and fruit dry
weight in the first year and a minimal
affect in the second year. The application of rowcovers increased total yield
and marketable yield by 80 to 100 g/
plant (0.18 to 0.22 lb/plant) but did
not affect fruit weight. This study
suggests that rowcovers can improve
yield. However further studies are
needed to assess effects of time of
initial placement and duration of
rowcovers on strawberry yield,
growth and development.

Assistant professor, North Carolina State University,

Department of Horticultural Science, Vernon G. James
Research and Extension Center, Plymouth, NC 27962.
I gratefully acknowledge Melanie Halsey for her technical assistance. The cost of publishing this paper was
defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. Under
postal regulations, this paper therefore must be hereby
marked advertisement solely to indicate this fact.

trawberry production in
North Carolina is based primarily on an annual plasticulture system where yields can exceed
15,785 kgha1 (34,800 lb/acre) in
the southeastern part of the state.
However, yields in cooler winter regions of the state average only 19,054
to 20,174 kgha1 (17,000 to 18,000
lb/acre) using this plasticulture system (Poling, 1993). The primary strawberry cultivars used in our plasticulture
system have specific environmental requirements for floral development.
These type of strawberries are called
June-bearers. Floral induction for these
plants occurs in the fall in response to
changes in photoperiod (Durner and
Poling, 1988). Once the initial trigger
from short days is perceived by the
plant, suitable temperatures are needed
for flower bud initiation and differentiation. Crown growth and development occurs when the temperatures
are above 10 C. Flower buds are
formed when days are less than 14 h
and temperatures are above 15 C (59
F) (Strand, 1994). In North Carolina, daylengths are near 12 h and
temperatures are between 15 to 25 C
(59 to 77 F ) for about 1 month
following planting. However, in November temperatures often drop below the optimal range for flower bud
development. For example, the average maximum, minimum and mean
temperatures in October and November are for Plymouth, NC are 23.6,
15.6, and 17.0 C (74, 60, and 63 F)
and 18.8, 6.1, and 12.5 C (66, 43,
and 54 F), respectively.
Rowcovers have been used in small
fruit production to accelerate ripening
(Pritts and Handley, 1998; Pritts et al.,
1992), extend the growing season (Pollard, 1990), serve as an overwintering
mulch (Pollard and Cundari, 1988),
provide frost protection during flowering (Hochmuth et al., 1993) and to
increase productivity (Pritts et al., 1992;
Gast and Pollard, 1991). Others have
found that rowcovers applied in the
fall and left on until the following
spring enhanced yield by increasing
development of tertiary flowers (Pollard, 1990; Gast and Pollard, 1991).
However, in the latter studies it was
not determined whether the increase
in flower number was due to presence
of rowcovers in the fall, spring or combination of the two. The use of rowcovers in the fall could increase yields
in areas where temperatures drop too

early. The objective of this study was

to determine if rowcovers applied for 2
weeks in the fall could enhance yield in
plasticulture strawberries in northeastern North Carolina.

Materials and methods

The study was conducted at the
Vernon G. James Research and Extension Center, Plymouth N.C. (USDA
hardiness Zone 7b, Latitude 76.65,
longitude 35.87). The soil was a
Megget fine sandy loam. The planting
consisted of three strawberry cultivars,
Chandler, Camarosa and Sweet
Charlie. Plants were spaced at 30.45
cm in double rows of diagonally staggered plants. The plants were set on 6
Oct. 1996 (Year 1) and, due to wet
field conditions plants were set on 17
Oct. 1997 (Year 2). The strawberries
received standard recommended cultural practices for plasticulture excluding spring application of water and
fertilizer via a drip system (Poling and
Monks, 1994). Spring frost protection
was successfully administered as needed
both years to protect blossoms. Fruit
was harvested from 31 Mar. 1997 to 2
June 1997 (Year 1) and from 2 Apr.
1998 to 2 June 1998 (Year 2).
The experiment was a split plot
design with cultivar as the main plot and
presence or absence of rowcover (RC)
the split plot. The plots were arranged in
a randomized block design, with treatments replicated four times. Plots were
15.2 m (50 ft) long, each subplot was
6.1 m (20 ft). A section of row 1.5 m (5
ft) was left between subplots to separate
treatments. Typar rowcovers (spunbound polypropylene) 35.4 gm2 (1.25
oz/yard2), (Reemay, Inc., Old Hickory,
Tenn.) were placed on the half of the
designated split plots in the first week of
November of each year and remained
on the plots for 14 d.

Whole plants were harvested at

monthly intervals in both years from
the ends of the plot allotted to whole
plant harvest. Four plants of each treatment combination and replication were
carefully dug from the ground along
with the adjacent soil to insure that as
many roots as possible were harvested.
Soil was washed from the roots over a
sieve to collect root pieces severed
from the plant. Plant were divided into
roots, crown, leaves, flowers and fruit.
Leaf areas were taken using a leaf area
meter (LI-3200; LI-COR Inc., Lincoln, Neb.). The separated plant parts
were placed in paper bags and dried in
an oven at 70 C (21 F) for 10 d.
Temperatures were monitored
under the rowcovers and control plots
using a data logger and thermocouples
(CR10X; Campbell Scientific, Logan,
Utah) for the duration of the study.
Thermocouples were placed on sticks
within the plant canopies. Minimum,
maximum and mean air temperatures
were recorded for each hour and averaged for each day. Photosynthetic photon flux (PPF) was measured when
rowcovers were in place in Fall 1996
(LI-250 equipped with a LI-190SA
quantum sensor; LI-COR). Measurements were taken between 1100 to
12:00 HR on 10 Nov. 1996 in all plots
and presented as averages of RC.
Harvested fruit from each plot
was separated into marketable and nonmarketable berries. Marketable berries
were blemish free, weighed 15 grams
(0.5 oz) or greater and did not have
any visible deformities. Fruit size was
determined using a random sample of
25 fruit from the marketable fruit.
Determination of the effects of
cultivar and rowcover on yield parameters were analyzed statistically as a
split plot design with four replications
using SuperANOVA (Abacus Con-

cepts Inc., Berkeley, Calif.). Yield data

was combined and analyzed jointly for
2 years, plant growth data was analyzed separately each year. Means were
separated using Fishers protected LSD.

Results and discussion

The placement of rowcovers significantly increased marketable and
total yield but not fruit weight of strawberries in this study (Table 1). Marketable yields in plots with rowcovers
were about 80 and 100 g/plant (0.18
to 0.22 lb/plant) higher than in plots
without rowcovers respectively (Table
2). This difference was realized in both
years despite differences in planting
date, indicating rowcovers can not only
increase yield when plants are set on
time but also compensate for a late
planting date.
The increase in yield due to +RC
occurred midseason to late-season,
commencing about 4 weeks after the
first berries were harvested as illustrated with the cultivars Camarosa
and Chandler in Year 2 (Fig. 1). This
increase in yield was likely due to an
increase in the number and not size of
berries because berry size was not affected by rowcover treatment in either
year (Tables 1 and 2). Therefore yield
enhancement was likely due to increased number of secondary or tertiary buds that were initiated during
the treatment period. A previous study
has shown that rowcovers applied in
the fall and removed the following
spring increase yield by producing more
tertiary fruit (Gast and Pollard, 1991).
Anatomical studies would be needed
to assess the exact impact of rowcovers
on timing of floral initiation and extent of differentiation.
Rowcovers did affect fruit quality. The percent of total yield which
was marketable for +RC and RC was

Table 1. Probability values from analysis of variance for year, cultivar, with and without row covers (+RC and RC) and
interactions of total yield, marketable yield and fruit size of three strawberry cultivars grown in 2 consecutive years.

Source
Year
Replication (year)
Cultivar
Cultivar year
Replication cultivar (year)
Row cover
Row cover cultivar
Row cover year
Row cover cultivar year

Total yield
0.0001
0.1256
0.0001
0.0010
0.4830
0.0144
0.4803
0.4383
0.6393

P
Marketable yield
0.0001
0.1427
0.0001
0.0014
0.2205
0.0172
0.5944
0.5743
0.6241

Fruit wt
0.0001
0.0955
0.0163
0.2647
0.7301
0.9001
0.5008
0.4549
0.3335

Table 2. Total yield, marketable yield, and individual fruit weight of three strawberry cultivars with and without row
covers (+RC and RC) means combined over 2 years; 28.35 g = 1.0 oz.

Cultivar

Total yield (g/plant)

Treatment
cultivar mean
Cultivar
+RC
RC
mean

Chandler
Camarosa
Sweet Charlie
Treatment mean

890
850
378
706 az

zMean

774
682
332
597 b

833 az
766 a
355 a

Marketable yield (g/plant)

Treatment
cultivar mean
Cultivar
+RC
RC
mean

Fruit wt (g/fruit)
Treatment
cultivar mean
Cultivar
+RC
RC
mean

698
681
324
567 a

15.7
17.4
17.1
16.7NS

615
565
284
488 b

656 a
622 a
304 b

15.7
18.1
16.2
16.7NS

15.7 a
17.8 b
16.6 a

separation within columns and rows by Fishers LSD, P 0.05.

73% and 92% respectfully. The primary reason for the classification of
unmarketable fruit was attributed to
blemishes caused by the fungal disease
gray mold (Botrytis cinerea). Observations noted at harvest indicated that
more fruit harvested from plots +RC
had gray mold than fruit from plots
RC. The elevated yields in +RC plots
may have resulted in a more crowded
plant microclimate, thus enabling the
disease to spread readily from fruit to
fruit. No fungicides were used at any
time during these studies as a means to
control gray mold. A strict spray program would need to be implemented
in order to minimize losses due to this
disease if rowcovers were to be used.
Analysis of the data combined
over the 2 years revealed there were
significant effects due to year on all
yield components as well as the cultivar year interaction (Table 1). Yields
in Year 2 were about 320 and 480 g/
plant (0.7 and 1.05 lb/plant) lower
for Camarosa and Chandler respectively than in Year 1. In North Carolina, the correct planting date is considered very important for optimal
yield. Planting date has a significant
effect on yield and even a slight delay
in planting can reduce yields (E.B.
Poling, personal communication). In
this study adverse weather conditions
resulted in a delayed planting date in
Year 2 of 11 d. The yield differences we
observed due to year was therefore
likely due to differences in planting
date.
We also observed total and marketable yields varied due to cultivar
(Table 1). Sweet Charlie had lower
total and marketable yields than the
other cultivars (Table 2). Chandler
and Camarosa had statistically similar
total and marketable yields (Table 2).
Camarosa fruit weight was greater
than Chandler and Sweet Charlie
(Table 2). This is consistent with grow-

ers on farm assessments in North Carolina, where Chandler and Camarosa

are the cultivars favored by growers
based on their yield potential.
Temperature, photoperiod and
light levels are important factors in
plant growth and development. Daily
maximum, minimum and mean temperatures under the rowcovers were in
general slightly higher both years, especially when the temperatures were
above 10 C (50 F) (Table 3). In Year
1, once temperatures dropped below
10 C (50 F), plots with rowcovers
had lower temperatures than plots without rowcovers. However, these low
temperatures would not likely influence floral initiation, as several previous studies indicated that optimal daytime temperatures are closer to 15 to
25 C (59 to 77 F) (Arney, 1956,
Darrow, 1966; Durner et al., 1984).
Determination of the number of hours
in a defined range of temperatures and
daylength may be a better means of

determining optimal conditions for floral initiation and differentiation.

Dry weights and leaf area were
not affected by treatment in Year 1
(Table 4). In Year 2, treatment effects
were significant in January and May.
At these dates average leaf area [112
cm2 (17.3 inch2)] and dry weight [1.37
g (0.05 oz)] and crown dry weight
[1.82 g (0.06 oz)] were higher under
the +RC versus RC treatments respectively. In all instances the cultivar
Camarosa +RC had the highest dry
weight, or leaf area of all three cultivars. There were no differences in number of crowns due to treatment at any
time in the second year (data not
shown). Although the response to
treatment was not displayed consistently in the whole plant on the same
dates, various plant parts did display
response to the rowcover treatment.
In other studies that depict the growth
and development of three cultivars,
Butler (1999) has shown that there are

Fig. 1. Weekly marketable yield/plant (g) of the cultivars Camarosa, Chandler, and Sweet Charlie in Year 2 (1997), with and without rowcovers (+RC
and RC); 28.35 g = 1.0 oz.

Table 3. Average maximum (max), minimum (min) and mean temperatures (oC) for Plymouth, N.C., from 1996 and
1997, in plots with and without rowcovers (+RC and RC).
Year 1 (1996)
Day

Maxz

+RC
Min

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
AVG

18.3
25.0
23.6
14.9
11.4
9.0
6.9
7.5
7.2
7.4
7.8
9.1
13.1
12.0
12.4

17.0
20.9
20.8
11.2
7.9
5.9
3.7
4.3
5.7
4.8
5.6
6.1
10.2
11.7
9.7

zoF

Mean
17.4
22.6
21.9
12.9
9.7
7.4
5.2
5.9
6.4
5.9
6.6
7.5
11.4
11.8
10.9

Year 2 (1997)

Max

RC
Min

Mean

18.0
23.6
23.2
14.9
11.0
11.6
10.5
11.1
8.1
10.1
11.6
12.4
13.0
11.8
13.6

16.7
20.1
20.6
11.0
7.6
7.4
6.4
7.4
6.7
6.1
7.8
8.8
10.3
11.6
10.6

17.2
21.7
21.6
12.9
9.4
9.4
8.6
9.4
7.4
7.7
9.5
10.7
11.6
11.7
12.0

Max

+RC
Min

Mean

Max

RC
Min

Mean

21.4
19.9
16.3
14.3
12.4
16.2
16.1
15.3
14.1
11.5
12.8
14.5
10.7
9.3
14.6

21.4
18.6
14.2
12.1
10.1
12.7
13.1
12.6
11.8
11.1
11.8
11.3
8.0
5.2
12.4

21.2
19.8
15.1
13.4
11.5
14.1
14.1
13.3
12.9
11.2
12.0
12.4
8.5
6.8
13.3

21.5
17.9
14.9
12.6
10.7
14.1
14.4
13.8
12.6
11.3
12.1
12.4
9.3
6.5
13.2

21.1
20.2
14.2
12.7
10.7
12.6
12.3
11.4
11.7
10.9
11.4
10.4
6.5
4.5
12.2

21.3
18.3
13.6
11.6
9.7
11.8
12.0
11.6
11.2
10.9
11.5
10.4
6.9
4.1
11.8

= 1.8(oC) + 32.

periods of time in which the plants

allocates resources preferentially. In
her studies Butler (1999) found that in
January and March, there was an upward shift in the percent of whole plant
biomass or total dry weight allocated
to leaf tissue. While in May, crown dry
weight increases dramatically as well.
May is the peak month of fruit production so a increased dry weight of crowns
may be due to additional floral initiation that took place but went undetected by our assessment of crown number and dry weight in the previous fall.
Increased leaf dry weight and leaf area
in the winter months may have been a
response to increased leaf initiation
during the rowcover treatment.
Midday levels of photosynthetic
photon flux (PPF) were 689 and 1171
molm2s1 RC respectively. The
lower levels of PPF under the rowcovers may be approaching suboptimal
levels for maximum photosynthesis.
Lower photosynthetic rates could result in lower carbohydrate accumulation in plants in plots + RC. Saturation
light intensities for strawberry photosynthesis have not been documented.
However, previous studies have shown
that strawberries grown under intensities greater than 650 molm2s1 have
increased leaf area, petiole length and
root, leaf and crown dry weights over
plants grown under lower intensities
(Ceulemans et al., 1986; Feree and
Stang, 1988).
In our study, an 80 to 100 g/
plant (0.18 to 0.22 lb/plant) market-

able yield increase was realized. This

can translate into significant profit and
will help to offset the cost of the rowcovers. For example, in this production system there are about 43,000
plants/ha, (17,400 plants/acre).
Growers in North Carolina typically
charge $0.38/kg ($0.85/lb) for their
pick-your-own berries. An additional
80 g/plant (0.17 lb/plant) would
translate into a $6606/ha ($2456/
acre) increase in revenues. Most rowcovers cost $1111 to 2964/ha ($450
to 1200/acre), therefore they would
more than pay for themselves in a year
under the right environmental conditions. Alternatively, yields of Sweet
Charlie were only increased by 40 g/
plant (0.09 lb/plant) resulting in a
potential $3025/ha ($1225/acre) increase in revenues. However, this net
increase in yield +RC is still not as high
as those achieved by Chandler or
Camarosa RC. Therefore the use of
rowcovers with the cultivar Sweet
Charlie would not be economically
viable with the higher priced rowcovers.
Growers also need to consider
tow cover quality and price. Lighter
weight rowcovers are less expensive
but usually cannot be used for more
than one year, so new rowcovers would
have to be bought each year. The
heavier rowcovers used in this study
were more expensive, however with
good care they could easily last 4 years,
thus decreasing the cost of using rowcovers over time.

However, plants could be damaged if rowcovers were used improperly. For example, if unseasonably warm
temperatures during rowcover treatment were followed by unseasonably
cold temperatures, plants may not acclimate and tissues could have a reduced cold tolerance. This could result in damage to the crown and developing flower buds and yields the following spring could be reduced. Growers should consult seasonal climate
data and predicted long range forecasts before they install rowcovers.
Cultural systems that alter the
plant microclimate can enhance yield.
In this study we found a positive yield
response in strawberry yield to the
application of rowcovers in the fall
shortly after planting. However, many
questions remain to fine tune this practice. Additional studies are needed to
determine when rowcovers should be
placed in the field and how long they
should remain on the crop. We need to
determine at what point in a strawberry plants development rowcovers
would enhance further development
and at what temperatures this could be
best achieved. These studies would
include analysis of crown and root
zone temperatures as previous reports
have shown that below ground temperatures are very important in strawberry flower initiation (Geater et al.,
1997). In addition, morphological
studies are needed to determine if the
elevated temperatures we measured
increased flower initiation and devel-

Table 4. Probability values from analysis of variance for treatment with and without rowcovers (+RC and -RC) on leaf
area, root, crown, leaf, flower and fruit dry weights (DW) on nine whole plant harvest dates from planting (October)
until afterharvest (June) in Year 1 (1996) and Year 2 (1997).
P
Month

Leaf Area

Root DW

Crown DW

October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June

N/Az
N/A
0.9822
0.6313
0.6928
0.7079
0.4288
0.4497
0.3074

N/A
N/A
0.0690
0.8691
0.7217
0.3571
0.9084
0.1315
0.2626

N/A
N/A
0.7553
0.3533
0.8660
0.2219
0.9309
0.0565
0.4913

October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June

N/A
0.2921
0.0820
0.0285
0.3297
0.0573
0.7439
0.5162
0.3554

N/A
0.9297
0.0716
0.7488
0.7773
0.4584
0.6312
0.1103
0.5303

N/A
0.9169
0.3906
0.1298
0.9597
0.5630
0.3192
0.0254
0.5131

Leaf DW

Flower DW

Fruit DW

N/A
N/A
0.5190
0.6904
0.6832
0.7738
0.5762
0.9494
0.3885

N/A
N/A
N/A
0.6229
0.6544
0.3212
0.4466
0.2518
N/A

N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.9485
0.6652
0.1306
0.6375
0.0758

N/A
0.2487
0.1194
0.0176
0.4880
0.0694
0.8824
0.5873
0.3593

N/A
N/A
0.4351
0.1725
0.5080
0.2794
0.1882
0.7069
0.5317

N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.5539
0.0971
0.1417
0.6243

Year 1

Year 2

zN/A

not applicable due to treatment applied after whole plant harvest at this date or to absence of flowers in the fall.

opment. Ultimately we need to determine the number of hours that would

be needed within a critical range of
temperatures to increase flowers produced and ultimately yield. Using such
data a grower could then monitor plant
growth and temperatures to determine how long a rowcover should
remain in place.

Durner, E.F., J.A. Barden, D.G. Himelrick,

and E.B. Poling. 1984. Photoperiod and
temperature effects on flower and runner
development in day-neutral, junebearing,
and everbearing strawberries. J. Amer Soc.
Hort. Sci. 109(3):396400.

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