Vanilla strawberry tree

3 years ago

last modified: 3 years ago

I'd like to try making my new vanilla strawberry into a standard or tree form. I think I prefer the standard but would be happy either way. Whichever one I can accomplish!

Here is a picture of my plant.

If I try for the standard, I was thinking of choosing the branch with the red line. Its 20 inches from the base to the place where it branches. That would involve cutting off most of the rest of the plant. Would this be the right way to do the standard? Will the 20 inch "trunk" get taller? (ETA - I see now it won't, its been cut at the top)

Or, for the tree form, I've read you can just let them grow as a bush for a while and then trim them up something like this (not my picture).

Is this a good idea?

Also, I'm not sure how many years I will be in this house. Can it spend a few years in a 20-gallon pot in case I need to take it with me?

Looking for any advice on what to do. Thanks.

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Comments (3)

luis_pr
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
I have seen some in half wine barrels but am not sure for how many years. The bent stem may need staking to straighten it. With a date uncertainty, I would pay for a fully developed tree so you can start enjoying right now.
sara82lee
Original Author
3 years ago
Thanks luis_pr! I can stake the stem after I cut all of the other ones off if that's the way I go. Very tempting to buy one ready-to-go! I'm partly wanting the experience of figuring out how to do this also :)
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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
3 years ago
"Standard" and "tree form" are interchangeable terms :-) Either refers to a multi-stemmed shrub that has been trained from a very young age as a single stemmed plant.

While you can, with time, patience and a lot of care, train a more mature, already bushy shrub like yours into a standard, it is far easier to start with a small seedling plant or from a cutting. This is the reason standard or tree form shrubs are so expensive compared to their naturally shaped cousins - all those years of hands-on care and training to get that baby to a decent, salable size. Depending on the type of shrub, this is a 5-10 year (or more) process.