Strawberry 'Sweet Colossus'

• If you're planting into a basket, it's best to limit yourself to three or four strawberry plants in a 30cm basket. Add water-retaining granules and slow-release fertiliser into the compost before planting.

• Strawberries should be planted out as soon as possible - only plant outdoors once all risk of frost has gone.
  Plant in a sunny and sheltered position in fertile, free-draining soil. Poor soil can be improved by adding compost or well-rotted manure prior to planting.
• Give your strawberries plenty of space. Dig a hole with a trowel big enough to take the roots of the plant. Plant them 45cm apart, leaving 75cm between rows - the crown should be level with the soil surface.
  If you plant strawberries too deep, they might rot, but if you leave the crown protruding from the soil, the plant will dry out and die. Firm your plants in well and water thoroughly.
• Check the compost daily in hot weather – water if the top half-inch of compost feels dry.
• If growing strawberries in pots or hanging baskets, feed them every two weeks during the growing season with a balanced fertiliser. When flowering begins, switch to a high-potash liquid fertiliser to encourage good fruiting.
• As the fruits develop, place dry straw or mulching fabric underneath to stop splashes blemishing the fruit.
• After cropping, remove any straw and netting to allow better air flow around the crown of the plant.
• As the summer progresses, keep on top of weeding and continue to remove any runners. Clear away dead foliage as this can harbour pests and diseases over winter.
• Each spring spread a general-purpose fertiliser around your plants along with a mulch of well-rotted manure or compost.

Our experienced team at the nursery will always carefully package and send your plants nursery fresh in the perfect condition to thrive once you receive and plant them. Although most plants are extremely tough and will not be affected by all but the most extreme of weather conditions, we always avoid dispatching the most perishable plants if extreme frosts or heat is forecast. We also avoid dispatching orders over Bank Holiday weekends.

Please allow us 3-5 working days to dispatch your order. If you have ordered a 'pre-order' item, these will be sent out as soon as possible after the quoted dispatch date and we generally ship your entire order with any pre-ordered items. Once your order has been dispatched, we will send you an email with details on how you can track it.

We send most of our orders via a fully tracked courier service with Yodel. We will send you a tracking link as soon as your order has been dispatched. To avoid perishable items being stuck at depots and deteriorating, we will not require a signature on delivery, and we ask out couriers to leave your item in a safe place ad your delivery address.

*Please note, once your item has been delivered, we cannot be held responsible for loss or theft from your delivery address. If you have delivery instruction and require our courier to leave your item in a specific place, please let us know - there is an option to leave a message for the courier at the checkout.

For smaller and single-item orders, we may send these via the post with Royal Mail - Tracking will not be available for orders sent via this method.

**Please note, we cannot guarantee delivery on a certain day or time. Delivery to outlying postcode areas may take 1-2 days longer, dependent on your location.

For all orders, a small delivery fee of £4.99 will be charged or spend over £49.99 for FREE Delivery!