Locally produced strawberries have outstanding market potential. Yet their production in the north-central US has declined, partly due to risks associated with the traditional matted-row system. While the plasticulture system offers promise, challenges like plug plant availability in late summer persist. Farmers may choose to use bare-root plants and plant in the summer. However, the high labor demand for planting bare-root plants on plastic and the intensive plant care in the summer have limited the use of plasticulture systems to small-scale operations. High tunnels are widely adapted for strawberry production worldwide. This structure protects plants from strong winds and rainfall, providing additional heat units and moderate frost protection. Successful implementation in Indiana, particularly with fall-planted strawberries, has demonstrated significant yield potential. In our initial exploration, an active row cover management strategy, i.e., covering and uncovering the plants daily in the winter months according to temperatures, was employed during winter months. Although the management approach optimized the winter environment for plant growth, it added labor in crop management, and it may not be feasible for farmers who are not on-site during winter months. This study compares four winter cover management strategies in the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 seasons: No cover (row covers were not used in the entire winter), Active with hoops (row covers were actively managed daily and placed on hoops), Passive with hoops (the beds were covered during the coldest period, row covers were not removed during the day and were placed on hoops), and Passive without hoops (the beds were covered during the coldest period, row covers were not removed during the day and were placed directly on plants). The study found that No cover resulted in lower minimum temperatures and higher average daily PAR. The active management treatment exhibited the highest relative humidity. Marketable strawberry yields were not significantly different among the covering treatments. However, aphid density was notably higher under covers compared to the no-cover treatment. Our findings indicate that active row cover management during winter was not necessary in the strawberry production system, as it did not significantly increase yield compared to passive management strategy or absence of row covers. Furthermore, the passive management strategy, while potentially advantageous in terms of temperature regulation, was not recommended due to the associated risk of elevated aphid populations.
