Fragaria virginiana

wild strawberry

Wild strawberry is most often found in mesic open woodlands and in grassy open fields. It prefers ample, but somewhat filtered sunlight to perform best. It is a creeping ground cover that produces many above-ground stems (stolons) that spread from the main stem and root periodically along their length. It rarely stands taller than 6-12 inches above the ground and can be easily overlooked when not in flower or fruit. Like its commercial cousins, it has a distinctive 3-parted compound leaf, oval in shape, and with noticeable teeth along the margins. This is also representative of the blackberries (Rubus spp.), but wild strawberry is thornless. There are, however, noticeable soft hairs on the stems and leaves. Wild strawberry produces numerous 5-petal white flowers in the spring. These are followed by the bright red succulent fruit in June-July. The fruit of wild strawberry is rarely as much as 1/2 inch across, but are far more flavorful than any of the commercial berries you are likely to find for sale. They make exquisite jam if you can find enough to collect. The leaves also make a fragrant tea that is high in Vitamin C. The tea is made by adding about 1/2 cup of the leaves to 2 cups of boiling water and letting it steep before straining.

Classification

• Common Names: wild strawberry

• Family:

• Variety:

20190511_150508.jpg: 2020-11-14 wild strawberry

Propagation Notes

• Plant Type: Perennial

• Propagation:

• Hardiness: Hardy H5-H1 (<-10)

• Flowering Season: