Since healthy roots may or may not have dark surfaces, determine root condition by cutting or scraping them. All of the inside of a healthy root is whitish, but the inside of a rotted root is partly or entirely brownish or blackish. Wash the cutting tool in soapy water and swab in rubbing alcohol after cutting. Root symptoms of strawberry red stele root rot. Cutting diseased roots before harvest reveals a reddish brown core surrounded by whitish tissue.
Root tips are usually dead and there are few side roots.
Core color is most obvious in spring near dead root tips, and becomes faint or disappears after harvest. Wash and sterilize the cutting tool as described above. Determining the exact cause is often difficult even for professionals. Poor soil drainage. Often, poor drainage leads to general root rot and contributes to red stele root rot.