All About Strawberries: Your Favorite Red Fruit!

strawberry are one of the world ’s most favorite fruits and have been naturalize for thousands of geezerhood for its sweet , juicy , and slightly tart flavor . Hardy , well-fixed , andinexpensive to grow , they contain an abundance of vitamin C and antioxidants to help keep you intelligent ! They also couple well with a wide variety of both sweet and savory dishes , making them the perfect intellectual nourishment to have on hand year - round .

This article explores the varieties , benefits , growing habit , and gratuity to provide you with an overview to aid you learn all about strawberry .

What is a Strawberry?

Traditionally red in coloring , hemangioma simplex come in various red , pink , and even yellow or white tints , are somewhat bosom - shaped and are stud with bantam source . Oh , they are also one of the most popular fruits in the world ! Thanks to cultivation and deliberate nurture , they also can come in a variety of odorous to tart , yet juicy flavors , calculate on what they are being used for .

Although call a berry , the strawberry is technically an mass add-on yield since it is not derived directly from the plant life ’s ovaries . sturdy and moth-eaten - tolerant , it is a perennial plant that belongs to the genus Frageria and has been cultivated for thousands of years from wild coinage .

The History of the Strawberry

First bring up within piece of writing derived from the Mediterranean area of Europe and Asia , wild strawberry were mostly small , finespun , and lacking in overall tang . They were not eaten as a staple food and realize more as an ornamental although they most likely were harvested throughout the humanity by ancient hunter - gatherer people . Since various varieties have been happen to be native onalmost all the continent , it is likely they have an incredibly long , and varied story that started long before being purposely planted for harvest .

By the 14th Century , gardener within France weretransplanting wild forest varietiesinto gardens and breeding them for size and savor . By the 1700 ’s various species of strawberries from around the world were being traded and cultivated across oceans , and quick became a popular dish for both the wealthy and short alike .

It was at this fourth dimension that the native North American strawberry mark , Fragaria virginiana , and Chilian hemangioma simplex , Fragaria chiloensis , were interbreed to make the antecedent of the varieties we find in our garden today .

A naturalistic garden

Health Benefits of Strawberries

These juicy , odorous , bite - sized fruits are an excellent author of Vitamin C , atomic number 25 , folate , and K . They also arefull of antioxidant , all of which support heart wellness and blood sugar levels . At 97 % water , 100 Gram of strawberries have only 32 calories , 7.7 Hans C. J. Gram of sugar ( of which 26 % are fibre ) , and 4.9 grams of sugar , and a low glycemic index of 40 .

They also are full of various plant compounds that have been show to provide various health benefit , especiallypertaining to the heartand the power to fight off infection and inflaming .

Do Strawberries Cause Allergies?

Unfortunately , strawberries can cause allergies , especially in vernal child . They turn back a protein that triggers what is called a pollen - food for thought allergy and cause mild tingling or itching of the mouth , or a more severe anaphylactic shock marked bytissue swelling and breathing problems . The allergy protein is related to the anthocyanins that get the red coloration since clean strawberries do n’t generally cause any trouble .

Types of Strawberries

Strawberries are categorized into three dissimilar varieties of which contain close to 250 different types . These have all been hybridise for color , flavor , size , and various clime . This appropriate you to pick and choose from both seed and seedling purchases base on personal preference , as well as your own knowledge and ability to grow plant under differing weather condition . They also have been spawn to be resistant to certain disease , cold conditions , or even grow in a more compendious , runnerless form .

June-Bearing Strawberries

June - bear strawberries are by farthe most usual varietyand are further divided by other , mid , and late - time of year bearers . These are often cross out by large , mellisonant berry and when you mix and tally unlike industrial plant can prolong your harvest home longer than the 10 - 14 day average .

The early season start producing mature fruit in late natural spring , but is dependent upon temperature variable and differs from one area of the country to another . Each seasonal difference overlaps one another by about a hebdomad so heedful planning can ensue in a very salubrious harvesting indeed .

Everbearing Strawberries

Everbearing varietiesdon’t supply a continual harvestbut are able to supply two , sometimes three , harvest depend on your climate . They also produce mature fruits for up to two weeks with the occasional fruit make through the summer . They supplement June bearing varieties quite well and help bolster up crops . Their fruit are often great and juicy .

The first harvest time is generally in late spring , with a secondment in recent summer or early declination . Long grow seasons may see a third occur in late descent as well as long as the plants have enough nutrients to put into production .

Day-Neutral Strawberries

These are a alone miscellanea thatprovides a secure cropthe first yr they are found and will remain to flower and set fruit whenever the temperature is between 35 and 85 degrees fahrenheit . The biggest difference other than the fact they have a more continual crop to offer is the fruits are smaller in sizing and rarely outgo one column inch .

How to Grow Strawberries

As refer , strawberry mark arefairly easy to raise . Since they are in the beginning hybridized from aboriginal metal money found around the earth , they are liberal of a wide variety of climate and variable temperature . They are not susceptible to many disease or insects , although you may regain that minor mammalian and birds will often take a nibble from them- and if they become overripe may also get in ants and other dirt ball due to the clams they produce .

They also send out runners to reproduce as well as having the ability to reseed . This permit them to be produce in small spaces and can be a playfulness accession to container gardens and DIY container projects .

Soil

Although they are tolerant of many grime type , they grow well in loamy soil that allow for drain but holds moisture . shuffle a nutrient - deep compost with sandy and clay - like soil to create the ideal planting surface . Keep the pH between 5.5 and 7.0 for juicy , rich feel .

Where to Plant

hemangioma simplex do very well when planted on a mound , or raised row at about 20 inches from one another to give up way for runners . When institute seedling , keep the crown at the level of the soil to support the fast growing of the plant . you could also use extra hemangioma simplex planters , or simply use container of your own choice .

Also , rotate the cropwhen potential , and keep from institute in sites that have recently had strawberry , tomatoes , brinjal , or peppers since they all apply standardized nutrient for production . you may ‘ feed ’ the grunge as well when plant go abeyant if you contrive on leave them in the same space .

When to Plant

Treat your strawberries as you would any other plant each outpouring . If putting in novel seedlings , plant after the last frost , or place under a moth-eaten frame to protect legal tender plant . you’re able to also nurture the runners each plant invest out .

Sowing Seeds

Strawberries are easy to start from seed . It is right if you start them indoors during late wintertime in a nursery or gay window . Simplypress seeds into a moist substratein entrant tray . They will take a few weeks to germinate , but once they get started will take off . They most probable will not produce until the stick with year however .

Harvesting and Storing

Harvest strawberries when they are a uniform colouration . The conclusion of the fruit will begin to mature first and over a period of a few day the color will compound and broadcast upward towards the stem . When the color touches the stem they aregenerally at their most right . Those grown at home are the sweetest since flavour begins to lessen once picked .

you could habituate strawberries in your preferent formula , employ them in jams and jellies , make them into pie , cut up into salads , and eat as they are ; the list is endless when it total to using them in your favorite dishes .

They also are very easy to store since they can be canned , frozen , or even pickled . Just be surenot to rinse strawberriesuntil you are quick to eat , fix , or storage since it will speed up the spoilage .

Harvesting sage from the herb garden

Fun Facts

Conclusion

strawberry are a privilege fruit that is native to just about every continent and has been a food rootage for X of K of eld . Their cultivation has led to plank , juicy , and unfermented fruits that we love today whether you buy them from a local grocer , or grow them in your own backyard .

An easy to keep recurrent , they are full of vital nutrient and are a heart - sizeable pick . They also spring up well in containers , and if you plant various varieties can allow you with yield the legal age of the yr . They also can be grow indoors !

Elephant ears with stunning large foliage