Strawberries are Easy to Grow

Strawberries are Easy to Grow

When and How to Plant Strawberries

In warm climates, plant strawberries in late autumn. In climates where the ground freezes, plant in spring.

Strawberries (Frageria ananassa), members of the rose family (Rosaceae), are some of the easiest and most popular fruit in the garden. Strawberries are also good for you. A cup of strawberries provides more than the adult daily requirement for Vitamin C, and has only 55 calories.

How Strawberries Grow

First, strawberries are shallow plants. That means that 90 percent of the root system is in the top six inches of soil.

A strawberry plant has three major parts: leaves, roots and crown.

Crown. The strawberry crown grows right at the soil line. The leaves and buds of the small fruit begin here at the crown. In addition, the crown stores food for the plant and provides support for it. Therefore a strong strawberry plant needs a the crown to be strong for good leaf production.

Leaves. Strawberry leaves are the site of photosynthesis, which is how plants produce food. Not only are they necessary for berries to develop, they help insure plant survival during times of stress.

Roots. Strawberry roots must develop quickly. They should be at full growth within two to three months after planting. There are two types of roots: large roots and smaller fibrous roots. Development of the fibrous root system is important.

The delicious fruit is the reason most people plant strawberries. Strawberries are easy to grow , that’s why people interest to growing strawberries. There are some interesting facts about strawberries. Lets check to others article about strawberries.

STRAWBERRY - MORPHOLOGY FILES

Strawberry - Morphology files

Strawberry - Morphology files

The strawberry is an accessory fruit; that is, the fleshy part is derived not from the ovaries (which are the "seeds", actually achenes) but from the peg at the bottom of the hypanthium that held the ovaries. So from a technical standpoint, the seeds are the actual fruits of the plant, and the flesh of the strawberry is a vegetable. It is greenish-white as it develops and in most species turns red when ripe.

The rosette growth of the plants are a well-known characteristic. Most species send out long slender runners that produce a new bud at the extremity. The leaves typically have three leaflets, but the number of leaflets may be five or one.

While the flower has the typical rosaceous structure, the fruit is very peculiar, but it may be understood by the contrast it presents with the rose hip of the rose. In a rose the top of the flower-stalk expands as it grows into a vase-shaped cavity, the hip, within which are concealed the true fruits or seed-vessels. In the rose the extremity of the floral axis is concave and bears the carpels in its interior. In the strawberry, the floral axis, instead of being concave, swells out into a fleshy, dome-shaped or flattened mass in which the carpels or true fruits, commonly called pips or seeds, are more or less embedded but never wholly concealed. A ripe strawberry in fact may be aptly compared to the fruit of a rose turned inside out.

STRAWBERRY - CLASSIFICATION

Strawberry - Classification

Strawberry - Classification

There are more than 20 Fragaria species worldwide. Key to the classification of strawberry species is recognizing that they vary in the number of chromosomes. There are seven basic types of chromosomes that they all have in common. However, they exhibit different polyploidy. Some species are diploid, having two sets of the seven chromosomes (14 chromosomes total). Others are tetraploid (four sets, 28 chromosomes total), hexaploid (six sets, 42 chromosomes total), octoploid (eight sets, 56 chromosomes total), or decaploid (ten sets, 70 chromosomes total).

As a rough rule (with exceptions), strawberry species with more chromosomes tend to be more robust and produce larger plants with larger berries (Darrow).

Diploid species

• Fragaria daltoniana
• Fragaria iinumae
• Fragaria nilgerrensis
• Fragaria nipponica
• Fragaria nubicola
• Fragaria vesca (Woodland Strawberry)
• Fragaria viridis
• Fragaria yezoensis

Tetraploid species

• Fragaria moupinensis
• Fragaria orientalis

Hexaploid species

• Fragaria moschata (Musk Strawberry)

Octoploid species and hybrids

• Fragaria x ananassa (Garden Strawberry)
• Fragaria chiloensis (Beach Strawberry)
• Fragaria iturupensis (Iturup Strawberry)
• Fragaria virginiana (Virginia Strawberry)

Decaploid species and hybrids

• Fragaria × Potentilla hybrids
• Fragaria × vescana

Numerous other species have been proposed. Some are now recognized as subspecies of one of the above species (see GRIN taxonomy database).

The Mock Strawberry and Barren Strawberry, which both bear resemblance to Fragaria, are only distantly related species in the genus Potentilla.

STRAWBERRY - MORPHOLOGY FILES

MORE FACTS ABOUT STRAWBERRIES

Strawberries, the small red fruits clad in scarlet red, dotted with tiny seeds and wearing green little caps, make one of the most deliciously attractive fruits on Earth! Strawberries come in different varieties having different colors, flavors and shapes. Reportedly, the United States was the greatest producer of strawberries till 2005 but in Asia strawberries farmers growing rapidly. Look at some of the interesting facts about strawberries

Facts about Strawberries

How did a strawberry get its name? Some believe that the name hailed from the practice of placing straws around the growing strawberry plants. Other say that the name evolved around 1000 years ago from the word, 'strew' that means 'spread', applicable to runners that spread outwards from the strawberry plants.

Strawberries belong to order Rosales, family Rosaceae and genus Fragaria. The word, 'fragaria' comes from the Latin word meaning fragrant. Italians call strawberries by the name ‘Fragola’. Interestingly, strawberries are not fruits. They are enlarged receptacles of the flowers and are hence known as a secondary fruit.

Strawberries are planted during the months of September and October. Strawberry plants are handpicked after every three days. This is the time required for a strawberry to change its color from white to red. On picking, they are cooled and delivered to the markets in refrigeration.

Strawberry is the only berry that has seeds on its external surface. The other berries have seeds inside. A single strawberry has 200 tiny seeds. They are also the first ones to ripen in spring.

Strawberries are low in fat content and calorie. They are rich in vitamin C, fiber, folic acid as well as potassium. They can reduce the risk of cancers and heart attacks. Strawberry intake helps in the reduction of systolic blood pressure. Fresh juice from strawberry pulp helps in recovering from fever. Strawberry juice, if combined with honey can reduce inflammation. It has a curative effect on sunburns.

Originally, strawberries were known as heart-seed berries and eaten with cornmeal bread. The English and the French used strawberries to landscape their gardens. In the 14th century, Charles V of France had ordered 1200 strawberry plants to be grown in the Royal Gardens. It is said that Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII had a strawberry birthmark on her neck. It is believed that Madame Tallien, an important person in Emperor Napoleon’s Court, used to bathe with the juice of fresh strawberries. Strawberries juice are very delicious, serving in many way like strawberries with milk..don’t you like strawberry?

STRAWBERRY - CLASSIFICATION

KNOWING of STRAWBERRIES FACTS and TRIVIA

Strawberries are the only fruit with seeds on the outside. The average strawberry has 200 seeds. The ancient Romans believed that strawberries alleviated symptoms of melancholy, fainting, all inflammations, fevers, throat infections, kidney stones, bad breath, attacks of gout, and diseases of the blood, liver and spleen.

To symbolize perfection and righteousness, medieval stone masons carved strawberry designs on altars and around the tops of pillars in churches and cathedrals. In parts of Bavaria, country folk still practice the annual rite each spring of tying small baskets of wild strawberries to the horns of their cattle as an offering to elves. They believe that the elves, are passionately fond of strawberries, will help to produce healthy calves and an abundance of milk in return. Madame Tallien, a prominent figure at the court of the Emperor Napoleon, was famous for bathing in the juice of fresh strawberries. She used 22 pounds per basin. Needless to say, she did not bathe daily.

Strawberries are the first fruit to ripen in the spring. There is a museum in Belgium just for strawberries Strawberries are a member of the rose family. Ninety-four percent of US households consume strawberries. Americans eat 3.4 pounds of fresh strawberries each year plus another 1.8 pounds frozen per capita.

Strawberries are low fat, low calorie; high in vitamin C, fiber, folic acid, potassium. Strawberries, as part of a 5 a day fruit & vegetable program, can help reduce the risk of cancer & heart attacks. In medieval times, strawberries were served at important functions to bring peace & prosperity. Folk lore states that if you split a double strawberry in half and share it with the opposite sex, you’ll soon fall in love. In France, Strawberries were thought to be an aphrodisiac. A soup made of strawberries, thinned sour cream, borage, & powered sugar was served to newlyweds.

Over 53 percent of seven to nine-year-olds picked strawberries as their favorite fruit. In Asia strawberries aren’t popular as well as in US and Europe but commonly this fruit starting popular in Asia.

MORE ABOUT STRAWBERRIES