Mould and pests won't ruin strawberry plants if you dust soil with 1 ingredient

Strawberries are amongst the simplest fruits to cultivate, particularly for novice gardeners, but without proper care, they can fall prey to environmental problems – such as grey mould and leather rot – or be devoured by pests.

To produce vibrant and ripe strawberries without any complications, gardeners are being encouraged to sprinkle their soil with one common ingredient: cinnamon. According to home 'hacks, tips, and tricks' TikTok creator@creative_explained, cinnamon can assist your plants in six different ways.

Most crucially, it helps prevent mould and fungi from developing in your soil and eliminates troublesome bugs.

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Adding cinnamon to your plants takes just a few seconds and will make your strawberries grow succulent, healthy, and flourishing throughout the entire season.

How does it work?

The home hack creator explained: "Cinnamon has anti-fungal properties that prevent mould and fungi from appearing from the soil. Plus, you know those annoying gnats in the soil, well guess what? Cinnamon gets rid of them too."

According to Gardening Know How, "damping-off disease" is a fungal problem that affects young seedlings just as they begin to develop.

Dusting with cinnamon can help prevent this by destroying the harmful fungus, reports the Express.

Making a cinnamon solution to spray onto affected plants is another efficient method to reduce the symptoms of fungal infestations.

"Under laboratory conditions, scientists have shown that the elements in cinnamon powder inhibit the development of grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) and various species of Phytophthora.

"Spraying a mixture of ground cinnamon solution and water onto infected plants can be an effective way to alleviate the symptoms of fungal infestations," reported experts at Plantura.

What makes cinnamon a pest deterrent?

"What makes this method so effective is that the aromatic powder can break the gnats' reproduction cycle. This way, they cannot hatch or reproduce," explained the expert.

Strawberry plants often attract other pests such as aphids, fruit flies, leafhoppers, caterpillars, beetles, spider mites, thrips, and whiteflies.

Cinnamon also proves effective against ants and slugs, but it's crucial to remember that not all bugs will be deterred by this solution.

How to make the cinnamon plant spray

Use one teaspoon of ground cinnamon and pour it into a spray bottle

Then add five litres of warm water to the bottle

Let it sit for a few hours, and then you're done