Strawberry

Origin & history

The garden strawberry is not a European wild plant but a cross between two American species that happened by accident in France around 1750: the large-fruited Chilean Fragaria chiloensis, brought back in 1714 by the officer Amédée-François Frézier, stood there beside the North American scarlet strawberry. The Chilean plants flowered female only and set fruit purely because of that neighbour. Until then German gardens knew nothing but the small woodland strawberry; every variety sold today goes back to that handful of parents.

Varieties

The difference that decides your whole season is rarely printed large on the label: June-bearing varieties give the full crop in three or four weeks — “Honeoye” starts, “Korona” and “Elsanta” follow, “Malwina” is the latest. Everbearers such as “Ostara” or “Mara des Bois” keep setting small flushes after that first batch; never enough to make jam from, exactly right for a window box. “Senga Sengana” is still the variety for jam and the freezer. Buy certified young plants rather than runners from a neighbour — those bring viruses into the new bed.

Care

Set the plants so the crown sits exactly at soil level: deeper and it rots, higher and it dries out. Water without fail for the first three weeks — anything that does not root in during the summer lays no flower buds in autumn and stands empty in June. Cut every runner off in the first year. After that, let two or three per plant root and move them to the next patch between mid-July and about 20 August, so the planting is renewed before it starts to fade. Feed after harvest, not in spring: nitrogen in May gives you soft foliage instead of fruit.

What can go wrong

Verticillium wilt is the failure no amount of care answers: the outer leaves flag in sunshine and lie flat, the crown stays green at first, then the whole plant goes over. The fungus sits in the soil for years and an infected bed never comes clean again — all that is left is a new patch well away from potatoes, tomatoes and old strawberry ground. Grey mould is the trouble of a wet June: straw or mats under the fruit, keep the full 25 cm spacing instead of squeezing plants in, and take every part-rotten berry with you at each picking rather than leaving it lying.

Harvest, storage & kitchen

Strawberries do not ripen any further once picked: take them coloured right to the tip, with the calyx on, ideally in the morning as soon as the dew has dried. Wet berries do not keep a day. Unwashed and in a single layer on a plate they stand two or three days in the fridge; wash them just before eating and always before hulling, or water runs into the fruit. To freeze them, spread them on a tray first and bag them only once they are solid. For jam, a quarter of redcurrants in the pan pays off — strawberries on their own often stay too runny.

Frequently asked questions

When can I pick the first strawberries after planting?

In June of the following year. Planting between mid-July and 20 August is far too late for that same season, since the picking is long over. Only everbearing varieties add a handful of fruit in the autumn of the planting year.

Why does my strawberry flower but set no fruit?

Usually the blossom took the damage: a black centre in an open flower means a late frost, while lopsided or misshapen berries come from cold wet weather when almost no insects are flying. Fleece over cold April and May nights saves the early flush.

Are strawberries winter hardy?

Yes, in open ground they come through the winter without protection. Only what sits above ground is at risk: move pots and window boxes tight against a wall and wrap them, or the root ball freezes solid. A thin layer of leaves or brushwood in the bed never hurts.

How many strawberries fit in a window box?

Three plants in an 80 cm box, otherwise they take water and light from each other. A single plant is happy in a pot of about five litres. In a container the root ball dries out daily on hot June days, so water it daily too.