Alexandria alpine strawberry

[Radishrain]

Here are some Alexandria strawberries that I harvested, today. They weren't bitter at all, and they had quite a bit of flavor (not the same flavor as Reine Des Vallees). The fruits were larger/wider than in previous years.

[Radishrain]

The ones I harvested today in the more shaded location are huge! Many of them as big as medium-small domestic strawberries. They have a moister, more clay-like soil than the smaller fruited ones in with more sun. They're not mulched like the ones with more sun.

My consensus is to get a four-foot tall cement trough in a shady area, fill it with a clay-ish soil that stays cool and moist easily, and plant a long row of these in it. Water it frequently, if desired. the reason for the four-foot trough is to make harvesting easier.

[Radishrain]

I squished up all of the large group of Alexandria strawberries into the soil near the parent plants, which are on the north side of the house, and watered that soil. I'm curious how well they'll germinate. In theory, they should germinate just fine, unless the soil is particularly tough for them to germinate in. The temperature and moisture should be great.

This is my first time direct-seeding alpine strawberries. I've heard that it works. It'll be nice to have a second generation of Alexandria (or any alpine strawberry, for that matter).

[Radishrain]

Here are the Alexandria alpine strawberry plants on the north side of the house. I planted the seeds mentioned in the previous post in this area.

[Radishrain]

Here's most of the harvest from the north side of the house, today. they're producing nicely (probably because of the cooler temperatures we've been having). It's a good alpine strawberry year. I think splitting them up tonone plant per spot may have helped with production and fruit size.

[Radishrain]

Here's today's harvest from the same plants:



You can't really tell, but some of the berries in the bowl are huge! They're as big as some regular strawberries. I think the ones among these in the bowl that I mean are the biggest alpine strawberries I've had, yet.

I think the key to getting bigger ones is growing them in the shade for multiple years, splitting them up in the fall (no more than one plant per spot), and keeping them wet enough. The soil they're in stays wet for a while; I really like that clay-type soil.