Which strawberry production system uses runners to form a dense planting mat?

Which strawberry production system uses runners to form a dense planting mat?

• A. Annual hill
• B. Matted row
• C. Raised bed
• D. Plug system

Answer: (B)

Runners propagated from the original strawberry plants form a dense planting mat when runners are allowed to root along the bed. In the matting row system, plants are spaced along a bed and the runners are left to extend and root, producing many daughter plants that fill in the row into a continuous mat. This dense mat provides excellent ground cover, supports high yields, and helps suppress weeds. Management centers on how many runners are allowed to root to achieve the desired density. The other systems differ in how they handle runners: an annual hill keeps plants in isolated hills with runners removed to prevent mat formation; raised bed refers to the bed’s construction rather than runner propagation; plug system uses transplanted nursery plugs rather than runners.

Runners propagated from the original strawberry plants form a dense planting mat when runners are allowed to root along the bed. In the matting row system, plants are spaced along a bed and the runners are left to extend and root, producing many daughter plants that fill in the row into a continuous mat. This dense mat provides excellent ground cover, supports high yields, and helps suppress weeds. Management centers on how many runners are allowed to root to achieve the desired density. The other systems differ in how they handle runners: an annual hill keeps plants in isolated hills with runners removed to prevent mat formation; raised bed refers to the bed’s construction rather than runner propagation; plug system uses transplanted nursery plugs rather than runners.