Arbutus Marina Tree Care

The Arbutus tree will surely be an eye-catcher if you want a tree that bears delicate yet fragrant flowers with bright-colored fruits. There are two varieties, both having the name strawberry trees, the Arbutus marina, and Arbutus unedo.

The care for these trees is similar, but today we will focus on the Marina strawberry tree.

Plant Name: Arbutus marina

Other Name: Marina Strawberry Tree

Plant Type: Evergreen Trees

Native Areas: Western Europe to Mediterranean Region

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Shade

Watering: Moderate

Fertilizer: Organic Mulch

Toxicity: Edible fruits

Temperature: Most temperatures

Propagation: Cuttings and Layering

Growth: 35 feet tall

Soil Type: Sandy, clay, or loamy soil

USDA Hardiness Zone: 7-10

More About Marina Strawberry Tree

Arbutus trees, such as the Marina strawberry trees, quickly grow into beautiful evergreens, reaching heights 35 feet tall and 25 feet wide. The deep green leaves get 4 inches long and have teethed margins. Marina is a hybrid specimen of an uncertain breed.

While the Arbutus unedo is a small shrub with red and yellow berries.

Thus, the unknown parentage resulted in the tree receiving the name Marina where it was found. The foliage to fruits stand out, and as the trees mature, the bark peels off, displaying a new reddish bark underneath.

In spring, you see pendulous clusters of rose-pink flowers followed in summer by orange-red berries that look like strawberry fruits in the fall. This strawberry tree’s parentage is unknown, but it was discovered in 1984 in San Francisco.

It is a single-trunk tree with a low branching habit when bought from nurseries. Hence, you can grow them in the yard, raised planters, or in containers on the patio. You find these trees growing abundantly throughout the year in Southern California.

Arbutus Marina Care Guide

arbutus marina @erichunt

One fantastic thing about the strawberry tree is that it is not finicky, and you can plant them anytime without the concern of frost. You can plant young specimens in early fall or spring after the ice passes. The strawberry tree blooms and fruits attract birds to other pollinators to the garden.

Selecting a Planting Site For Arbutus Trees

The crucial thing is to provide your strawberry tree with a sunny spot that can tolerate some shade. Young trees will need some wind protection but can still withstand severe conditions. These outdoor trees can even handle salt runoff to salt sprays.

When planting more than one evergreen tree to form a hedge, we recommend spacing at least 35 feet apart, depending on your chosen cultivar. You may need to stake younger trees to provide them with support to mature and become hardy.

Also, ensure to remove all weeds from the ground in the landscape when planting these species.

Recommend Soil For Strawberry Trees

loamy, mineral rich clay soil @hanzellvineyards

The strawberry tree does best in well-drained soil like sand, loamy, or clay soil with a higher acidic but slightly alkaline. Still, it can tolerate compacted soil and is drought-tolerant once established. But having good drainage is better as it helps prevent damage to the root system leading to root rot.

Lighting Needs For This Hybrid Tree

The flowers grow with enough sunlight, and it’s best to provide your strawberry tree with full sun and partial shade. The crucial thing when planted is for the tree to receive six hours of direct sunlight daily.

Watering

For the first growing season, your strawberry tree needs regular watering to become established with a strong root system.

As the tree matures, it becomes more drought-tolerant. You can plant to water about one inch a week, equal to the plant’s number of inches in the trunk diameter.

During the summer months, you will water more depending on the rain and less in winter.

Temperature and Humidity

While the strawberry tree can thrive in warm temperatures to cold weather, it will become susceptible to problems in high-humidity regions. We recommend watering around the tree base instead of overhead watering.

Fertilizing The Strawberry Tree

Add three inches of organic mulch around the tree’s base in summer and winter to protect the roots. The mulch keeps the tree roots moist in the heat and protects them from frost in the colder months. In addition, it works as an organic slow-release fertilizer ideal for these trees.

Pruning Your Tree

You need not prune the strawberry tree unless the new growth grows incorrectly. Then, you can prune the dying, diseased, dead branches. The best time to prune is in late winter or early spring.

Nevertheless, you can prune your tree from a young age to form a single trunk.

Potting and Overwintering Strawberry Tree

In the genus Arbutus you can find two dwarf species to grow in containers. These are the Compacta and Oktoberfest. You can grow them in the direct sun away from winds.

The crucial thing is to choose well-drained soil to place in a pot about 14 inches deep and 24 inches wide. We recommend placing the pot on casters and ensuring it has enough drainage holes.

For younger trees, you must provide some burlap covering for the foliage, flowers, and berries in winter.

Propagating Strawberry Tree

To propagate the strawberry tree, you can use cuttings to grow into seedlings to plant outdoors. Yet, using this method does take patience.

Yet, using layering works best, and the best time to take cuttings is in early spring and using rooting hormone. Keep the cutting in bright indirect light until you can plant them outside.

Another alternative is to grow the seeds when harvested and place them in stratification to germinate.

We offer different types of strawberry tree seeds on our website for more options.

Arbutus Marina Similar Plants

In the genus Arbutus, you can find other container plants similar to the strawberry tree:

Elfin King

arbutus unedo elfin king @meganhansen

A slow-growing variety. With this strawberry tree, you will not need to pick up a lot of fallen fruit; it is a dwarf variety.

Rubra

Arbutus unedo ‘Rubra’ @leonoraenking

It is another cultivar producing deep pink flowers followed by berries.

Compacta

arbutus unedo compacta @meganhansen

It is a dwarf strawberry tree that grows up to 12 feet high.

Oktoberfest

Another dwarf variety grows well in the garden and containers.

Arbutus Marina Common Diseases and Pests

The strawberry tree gets affected by different pests and diseases. Some concerns are root rot, leaf spots, leaf galls, anthracnose, sudden oak death, twig dieback, and Phytophthora. Pests on your tree are scale, thrips, leafminers, aphids, borers, and caterpillars.