Most strawberry plants are considered hardy perennials. With appropriate care, they are able to withstand cold temperatures during the winter months. As the temperature drops, strawberry plants slow their respiration, and cellular function almost comes to a stop (but not quite). When this occurs, the plants are still alive but are in a state of dormancy. Usually, strawberry plants in this state of being will survive until the warmer temperatures of late winter or early spring revive them.
But what happens if temperatures warm up, revive the strawberries you have planted in your garden, and then drop again? This sequence of events can cause cold injury to strawberry plants. If this pattern happens in your region, you may want to see if your strawberry plants have been damaged. If they have been damaged, the extent of damage is critical. Slight cold injury will not kill or significantly hamper the production of otherwise healthy strawberry plants. But, if enough cold-damaged tissue is found, replanting your strawberries may be the best option.
So, how do you check for cold damage after a cold snap preceded by a relative warm period?
First wait a day or two. Then gather a few basic tools. You will need a hand trowel, a wooden block (or other hard surface), and a sharp knife (box cutters work especially well). Once you have gathered your tools, head to your strawberry rows. Once there, gently dig a circle around a strawberry plant. Lift out the plant and shake as much dirt as possible from the roots. Then pull off or cut off all the leaves. Place the remaining strawberry crown on your block and make a vertical cut downward from the leaf end to the root end. This should cut the crown in half.
After slicing the strawberry crown, it is important to inspect the insides quickly. When exposed to oxygen in the air, the inner portions of the strawberry crown will begin to brown and darken making it impossible to accurately gauge the extent of any cold damage.
Immediately after cutting the crown, look for light brown or discolored spots or streaks in the otherwise ivory-colored crown. Light brown spots signify mild cold injury and should not concern the farmer. However, if brown streaks are visible in the crown, the strawberries will likely need to be replaced. Before jumping right in and digging up all your planted plants, it is prudent to wait several weeks and recheck cold-injured strawberries. If new white areas are forming in the previously cold-injured strawberry crowns, they will likely recover. If no new white is forming, the plant will likely die.
