Fragaria virginiana

Native Strawberry

Family: Rosaceae (Rose Family)

       

·        Hardiness Zones:  5-9

·        Height: 3-8 inches

·        Spread: 1-2 feet

·        Bloom Time: May to June

·        Bloom: five-petaled white flowers (3/4 inch across) with yellow-anthered center stamen; flowers give way to strawberries which mature to 1/2 inch fruits

·        Light: full sun to part shade

·        Soil: average, well-drained

·        Moisture: dry to moist

·        Use: ground cover, borders, woodland gardens; edible fruit; berries attract wildlife, flowers attract pollinators

·        Care: add mulch in winter

·        Concerns: susceptible to foliage diseases (leaf spot, scorch), root rots (red stele, black root rot), fruit rots (anthracnose, leather rot), gray mold and viruses. Tarnished plant bugs, spider mites, aphids, leafrollers, slugs, nematodes and strawberry weevils are occasional insect problems

·        Native to: native to woodland openings, meadows, prairies, limestone glades and cleared areas including roadsides from Newfoundland to Alberta south to Georgia, Tennessee, and Oklahoma

·        Notes: spreads indefinitely by runners (stolons) which root to form new plants as they sprawl along the ground, often forming large colonies over time; Each trifoliate leaf has three coarsely toothed leaflets (each leaflet to 2 1/2” long), with each leaf appearing on a slender stalk (to 6” long)

·        Teaching Garden Location & Code: Sidewalk Garden G336

 

       Content produced through:

       Dane County UWEX Master Gardener Volunteer Program 

 

       Questions?  

       Dane County UWEX Horticulture Program