As far as I understand, strawberries must be polinated and visited a number of times by the bee population. If the bees do not have access to polinate, move the strawberries to somewhere that they can. This lack of polination causes mishapen stawberries.

Thank you Berryjames, My Strawberry plants are tall with a lot of greenery which could have been covering the blossom. Would you think that was the problem.

I did think Strawberry's were self pollinating.

You could make your thawed strawberries into a smooth sauce and use it for pouring over icecream, puddings etc or make sorbets. As you have found,freezing them is a dead loss! You could try jam making too. You'd have to put the mush into a plastic carton to weigh it so you you know how much sugar to add, and put some lemon juice with it (or use bottled pectin)

Chicken manure will encourage leaves rather than fruit. Next year give them a feed of sulphate of potash in the spring instead and see if there's an improvement. If there is still some fruiting season left for the variety you have and you really want to feed them use tomato fertiliser.

To be honest I don't see anything wrong with the strawberries, true they are not perfectly shaped but so what if they taste good! Not every piece of fruit or vegetable is the perfect shape... and because consumers won't buy growers literally have to throw food away! I'd happily take all your 'deformed' strawberries and make them into something like Eton Mess where you would never notice.

I would guess it is caused by a virus. Strawberries are particularly susceptible to them. Before the onset of polytunnels and the plants being grown in bags higher up on staging; strawberries could only be grown for a few years on the same ground, destroyed and new plants grown on clean soil. Unless your plants were from certified stock then perhaps this is where the problem of deformity occurs. Perhaps you could try and purchase a few new stock plants and grow them elsewhere on a trial basis. Infected plants will transmit virus through their runners.

Thank you Steragram, that is great information. I will give it a go. Just by coincidence as I replied to barryjams my daughter arrived with her friend from the Basque country in Spain for a short break in Ireland. Her family and herself grow a lot of strawberry's in Spain. When I told her that I froze my strawberry's she said that is what they do and one of their favourites deserts is to blend the strawberry's when frozen add some sugar and lemon. Guess what I am having for desert tonight. Lol

Thank you Moon Grow.
I do agree with you, I have no problem with eating strawberry's either square round triangle bumpy lumpy. I just love them. I just thought I might be doing some thing wrong when growing them. I was disappointed when I froze them and they turned mushy and soggy. Now with all the good advice I have got from ye, it will keep me busy for a while or should I say my good wife Anne. Lol

Virus in starwberries shows itself in the leaves which become mottled and streaked with yellow rather than in the fruit.
If you are intending making Jam with the fruit then buy the Jam making sugar which takes only a 10 minute boil. That way the fruit in the jam stays reasonably whole.
We freeze a lot of our strawberries and whilst they may not look like fresh ones, they taste the same and added to Yoghurt (or in my case Soya cream) who cares?

I don't think they taste the same...

Well, ours do!

I would like to say thank you to Barryjames, Steragram, Moon Growe, Jimmytheone, and Owdboggy for all your comments your advice and answers were wonderful.

Johnjoe.

You're welcome John