Wondering when to cut back your strawberry plants? An expert reveals why acting now is crucial

Although it's a sad sight when your strawberry plants are finally done with producing fruit, there's still the matter of cutting them back for next year's growth.

Whether you've started vegetable gardening for beginners this year or have grown strawberry plants for years, it can be a little confusing knowing what to do once they've flowered and produced all the fruit they can. This is where you'll need some August pruning advice, as acting now can help with flowering and fruit production come next year.

This seasonal advice from Simon Akeroyd, posted this time last year on his Instagram @simonakeryodgardenwriter, shows how a brutal chop now can be extremely beneficial for your strawberry plants.

As one of the best edible plants to grow in pots, strawberry plants are a popular choice when it comes to growing your own produce. However, to ensure a fruitful return, they need a little maintenance at the end of their season.

"If your strawberries have finished fruiting, you should trim back excess foliage. As this exposes the crown to sunlight in late summer, meaning next year you will have more flowers and fruit," says Simon.

"It might look harsh, but trimming back excess strawberry foliage at this time of year will improve your crop for next year. Trim back strawberry foliage to expose the crown to sunlight. Just leave a few young leaves near the crown of the strawberry plant," he adds.

Ensure your essential gardening tools are completely clean and as sharp as possible; that way you're not risking any disease contamination or damage to the plant.

This is a pretty important task to add to your list of summer gardening jobs, as now is the time that strawberry plants begin to save energy for their next growth cycle.

"Between now and autumn is when strawberry plants are deciding how many flowers and fruit they will produce next summer. This depends on how much sun they receive at this time of year," explains Simon.

"If strawberry plants are in dense shade now and covered in excess foliage, then they won’t fruit much next year," he continues.

There are some plants well suited for shade, but your strawberries certainly aren't one of them. So keep them happy in the sun to get more fruit next summer.

Surprisingly, strawberries make fantastic ground cover plants, so if you're looking to make your garden look fuller and lusher, why not add the delicious plants to your beds too?