Growing Alpine Strawberries: Tips at a Glance
- Type Edible fruit
- Lifespan Perennial
- USDA Zones Hardy to 5
- Light Sun or shade
- Water Moist soil
- Other Uses Ground cover
- Design Tips Container garden
- Companions Forget-me-nots
- Days to Mature 100-120
Alpine Strawberries: A Field Guide
Alpine strawberries serve a dual purpose: they are sweet as candy and spread quickly to make themselves as useful as any other ground cover beneath a tree.
Fragaria vesca has charming white flowers that look like miniature apple blossoms (but with a much longer season: wild strawberries will bloom and set fruit from spring through summer). In an edible garden, Alpine strawberries will spread by runner to form individual clumps you can dig up to transplant as you wish (they make a cheery edging plant at the front of a flower border). As a ground cover, F. vesca is good companion to periwinkle and starry blue forget-me-nots.