Or is it better to start over each spring/fall or year after year on tomatos, strawberries, and jalapeno peppers. I only ask because I was going to give some to my mother in law to start her garden.
I start tomatoes every spring as here in the UK it would be hard, and expensive to overwinter them as they are so tender. Also I think the plants would be pretty exhausted and it is so easy to start again. Chilli peppers I do overwinter and they can often do better the second year. The trick is to keep them in an airy place so they don't get attacked by bugs. Here they can get infested with greenfly - I don't know if that is a problem in Florida. Strawberries go on and on year after year. However, the best thing to do after a couple of years is to pot up some of the baby runners that the main plant produces. Just fill a pot with compost and gently press the baby plant into the compost, leaving it attached to the parent plant - don't be tempted to sever it's stem just yet. After a month or so it will have rooted and then you can cut the cord and you have a new plant. This young plant should replace the parent and will last another 3 or so years before again needing replacing. Strawb plants start to lack vigour after 3 or more years, they will keep producing, but the quality might not be as good and the yields smaller. Hope this helps.
