Fragaria virginiana (Wild Strawberry) Unity Grown

Fragaria virginiana, also called wild or Virginia strawberry, is a very low-growing perennial groundcover plant that forms dense mats of three-part leaves via runners. More importantly, wild strawberry is not just a name, as this plant produces small edibles berries that are the less cultivated version of farmed strawberries! Growing to only 4-8" tall but spreading up to 2' feet wide from a single plant, wild strawberries are an excellent bed plant if you're looking to produce fruit, but also work great for naturalizing in any location with full sun to part shade.

Fragaria virginiana blooms from mid to late spring, and produces small, 5-petaled white and yellow flowers that turn to ripe fruit by early to mid summer. Berries are smaller than cultivated fruits and have a sweet-tart flavor, so if you want to pick some strawberries, be sure to get to them before the critters! Strawberry flowers are highly attractive to a number of pollinators, and fruits will attract birds and small mammals. Beyond fruit, wild strawberries are an excellent groundcover for forest gardens and work great for erosion control on slopes too!