Strawberry
Fragaria x Ananassa

days to maturity: 60 days
plant spacing: 4 per square foot
sunlight requirements: 8-14 hours hours
look out for: slugs snails and mammals stealing your fruit
harvest notes: harvest when it blushes so others don’t get to it first
seasons: winter
Annual

We sell two varieties of Florida friendly strawberry:

Sweet Charlie strawberry plants like full sun and need moist, well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter. This variety does best growing in soil with a pH between 5.6 and 6.6. Sweet Charlie strawberry plants have good resistance to multiple common strawberry pathogens. They demonstrate resistance to crown rot and fruit rot, two-spotted spider mites, and powdery mildew which is why we offer them ... our most common strawberry issues are mites and powdery mildew. The Sweet Charlie strawberries are medium in size, but, as the name suggests, deliciously sweet. Sweet Charlie strawberry plants are June-bearers, and an excellent choice for use as a short-day variety in warmer climates. If you’re going to hunt for other varieties or buy plants at a big box store beware getting a variety that will produce in Florida during the winter, as many of the countries most popular varieties are meant for growing during the summer (when days are longer) in cooler weather climates.

The vigorous, high-yielding, June-bearing Chandler strawberry plants produce very desirable strawberries. Chandler strawberries are very large, firm, and produce early-season to mid-season. The strawberries vary from being long and wedge-shaped to large and conical. They are a brilliant red color, glossy, and have an exceptional flavor profile. Chandler is a desirable Florida Strawberry because it has been bred to flower and fruit even during a short day season, like our winter months. It is technically a “june bearing” but since its hotter here than most of the U.S., expect your strawberries to come on earlier in the spring.

Cut your plants runners off before they get too big and make the parent plant use its energy to make fruit & flowers instead.