Getting to know the different types of strawberries will help you to choose the right strawberry for you. Strawberries come for the genus of plants known as Fragaria and inside this genus there are two distinct types.

Fragaria Vesca

These are the original or wild strawberry. The strawberries that we see sold in supermarkets have been significantly altered from their original form. But the wild Fragaria Vesca is a tasty reminder of how strawberries once were. If you grow these hardy wild strawberries you will be rewarded with a reliable harvest of small fruits packed full of flavour.

Wild strawberries are sweeter & more acidic than their supermarket sold cousins. They are fully hardy are require very little maintenance, just split & divide clumps of plants every Autumn to ensure a bountiful harvest every Spring & Summer.

Fragaria Ananassa

Known as the garden or pineapple strawberry, these hybrid strawberries are mass produced around the world for supermarket sales of fresh strawberries, yogurts & deserts.

They have been developed for supermarket sales in that they store well, last long & can be transported easily. As a result, they have lost much of the flavour that you would get from a wild strawberry. But, nonetheless Fragaria Ananassa remains the most popular Summer fruit & because of this there is an endless array of cultivars.

Fragaria Ananassa can be broken down into 2 distinct groups: June Bearing & Everbearing.

As mentioned above, Everbearing strawberries will fruit twice each year, once in Spring & again in Summer or Autumn.

These strawberries have less runners & their harvest can be smaller than that of June bearing strawberries.

June bearing Strawberries produce the largest fruits and as the name suggests, they produce these in June over a two or three week period. This group is further broken down into early, mid & late season strawberries. To ensure a longer harvest time you can choose a selection of early, mid & late June bearing strawberries.

When to Grow Strawberries

• Plant out in September - November or mid March

Where to Grow Strawberries

• Sunny location, avoid frost pockets & wind

How to Plant Strawberries

• Fertile, well draining soil. Space 30cm apart & rows 45cm apart

Care of Strawberries

• Keep moist, protect fruits with netting & mulch around base