Top 5 Types of Strawberry Plants

Last Updated on February 2, 2023 by Derek

How Many Types of Strawberries Are There?

There are different types of strawberries that are grown in various parts of the globe. The shape, size, and flavor of the fruits mainly distinguish the different varieties. Here are some of them.

Day-neutral strawberry

Day-neutral strawberry is an annual crop that keeps producing flowers and fruits throughout the season when the average temperature lies between 40 and 90 degrees. Unlike June bearing strawberries, day-neutral berries are planted each season like vegetables.

Everbearing strawberry

The everbearing strawberries begin to form flowers when the day is twelve or more hours. They have three different yields, one in spring, another in mid-summer, and the last in early fall.

However, this variety of berry does not tolerate high temperatures during summer; they thrive in cold and mild temperatures.

June-bearing strawberry

This variety of berries thrives in a hot climate. June bearing strawberries begin to form flowers in late summer when daytime hours are less than ten hours.

The flowers bloom and produce large and tasty berries in spring and early in the season, as a result, they risk getting damaged by the cold weather.

The commonly grown type of strawberry is the hybrid botanically (Fragaria x ananassa.) New strawberries are being released almost every year within the Fragaria x ananassa family.

However, all the strawberries have seven common types of chromosomes distinguished by determining the number of pairs each has. 

Video – Different kinds of strawberry plants

What Are 5 Varieties of Strawberries?

There are more than six hundred varieties of strawberries grown in different parts of the world under different climatic conditions. 

Here are five varieties of strawberries.

Strawberry variety	Fruit color	Details
Honeoye	Orange-red	They produce fruits in June and are famous for their early-season production. They are hardy enough to withstand cold climates. They are among the top strawberry producers, and they produce big orange-red or red fruits.
Earliglow	Red	They are highly productive June-bearing plants with large, juicy, and sweet berries that ripen earlier than any strawberry variety. They can bear more yield each year under the right conditions. They are resistant to diseases such as root rot and red stele
Jewel	Red	They are easy to grow in a wide array of climatic conditions. They bear huge wedge-shaped berries in June, and the yield lasts long. There are excellent for commercial growth due to their attractive color.
Surecrop	red	They bear medium to large, hard, glossy red berries in June. Their hardness makes them ideal for commercial purposes, while their flavor qualifies them for deserts. They do well in a wide range of soil types and conditions.
Sparkle	Bright red	They are late-season producers that bear flowers in spring. The fruits are bright red and tasty in a medium size. They can flourish in containers and pots.

Which Strawberry Is the Sweetest?

The sweetest variety of strawberries is the alpine, followed by Honeoye, sparkle, diamante, and others. One factor that determines the sweetness of berries is the fruit size. Small and medium-sized fruits are sweeter than large ones.

Growing Strawberry in Pots

Any strawberry can thrive in a pot provided it is kept in the right conditions. Day-neutral and everbearing strawberries produce more berries than the June-bearing berries. However, they tend to have fewer runners and smaller fruits.

 In addition, planting in pots helps to keep away pests like slugs and keep your plants healthy. They are not prone to fungal and bacterial diseases when growing directly from the garden.

Not all strawberry varieties will thrive in pots, though. Here are the most suitable types to grow in your pot or hanging basket.

• Everbearing strawberries 
• June bearing strawberries
• Alpine strawberries
• Day neutral strawberries 

The type of container has a significant impact on the health and yield of your plant. The following are features of the ideal pot for growing strawberries.

• A pot with sizeable holes for excellent drainage 
• Plastic pot for retaining moisture. You can insert it inside a terra cotta container if you want the look
• Find the stackable strawberry containers if you want to place them on the patio or deck

Infographic – 5 types of strawberry plants

How Long Does It Take for a Strawberry Plant to Produce Fruit?

A bare root strawberry plant takes approximately three months to produce fruits. The plants that grow from seeds will start bearing fruits in the second summer.

Such plants need the first year to grow and establish themselves. Summer propagated runner strawberries also behave the same way as the bare root plants. 

Do Strawberry Plants Come Back Every Year?

Strawberry plants are perennial, meaning they come back each year. After fruiting in summer, they pass through a dormant period in winter and come back in spring, ready to start another life cycle. 

The effort you need to prepare them for winter depends on the type you are growing. The strawberry plants in pots will produce as much as those in typical gardens with minimal preparation for winter. 

The following tips and steps will help you winterize your plants.

• Apply 6 to 8 inches of mulch when winterizing strawberries in a pyramid
• Use bubble wrap or burlap to wrap large barrels or strawberry plant pots. Add a layer of straw, 6 to 8 inches deep, to the top opening. 
• Place the pots in a shaded garage all through winter
• As spring sets in, remove winter mulch to allow growth to resume
• You can rake the winter mulch in rows or around the plants to serve the growing season

What Is the Best Way to Grow Strawberry Plants?

Garden strawberries (Fragaria x ananassa), which entail almost all plant cultivars, are an easy-to-grow and maintain perennial. It is a slow-grower but spreads and flaunts ridged deep green leaves. It bears white blossoms and fruits that grow at the tips of leafless shoots. 

The following are the most suitable growing conditions for strawberry plants.

• It grows best in hardiness zones 4 to 9 
• It appreciates well-draining loamy soil with an acidic pH (5.8 to 6.2)
• It loves full sun exposure; ideally 8 hours of sunlight, but it can survive on any site with 6 to 10 hours of sun daily. Less sunlight will reduce the yield
• Provide up to 2 inches of water weekly to get juicy strawberry fruits. Regular watering is necessary when fruits are developing; from the first flower to the last harvest

Under the right conditions, this plant attains a mature size of 4 to 12 inches in height, and 6 to 24 inches spread. It blooms from spring to early summer. The fruits start from late spring to early summer, though some species can extend to fall. 

Best Strawberry Plants for a Home Garden

Enjoying strawberry fruits from your garden in summer can be one of the greatest pleasures. Various cultivars of strawberries will grow excellently in your home garden. Here are some of them.

AC Wendy Strawberry

It is an early-season fruiting plant famous for its high yield and runner production. It can flourish in heavy soils and full sun exposure.

Albion strawberry 

 It is a day neutral strawberry whose fruits have a high sugar level. It bears a long, firm-textured conical fruit famous for its pleasant flavor.

All Star

It bears white blooms and large mild or sweet fruits. It is resistant to verticillium wilt and red stele and can thrive in sandy or clay soils. It produces fruits in June.

Alpine Alexandria

It flaunts beautiful white blooms and tiny delicious fruits with a distinct texture and flavor. It is an ideal ground cover due to its spreading habit. If you do not want it to spread, grow it in containers. 

Alpine Yellow Wonder

The fruits are pale yellow when ripe, have a gourmet flavor and smell like pineapples. They are less attractive to birds than the red ones, so their yield is higher. It performs best in hardiness zones 6 to 8 and full sun.

Alpine White Soul

The fruits are ghostly white when ripe with an extraordinary flavor. While some people say it tastes like tropical fruit, others argue that the flavor is similar to a rose or grapes. Below are more strawberry plants you can consider for your garden.

• Camarosa
• Rutgers Scarlet
• Sweet Kiss
• Berries Galore Pink Hybrid
• Chandler

How Do You Take Care of Strawberry Plants?

Caring for strawberry plants is one of the simplest tasks. The following steps will help you.

• Please place them in a sunny area to bloom and bear high yields; morning sun is preferable.
• When you are planting them in pots, you can take advantage of the sun by moving the pots during the day
• Water them regularly, especially during fruit formation
• Guard them against strong wind and extreme weather conditions
• Ensure pots drain properly
• Check for weeds
• Fertilize them for the best harvest

Bare Root Strawberry Plants

They are dormant strawberry plants that do not need to be grown in soil. They appear as bare roots with shrinking leaves. It would be best to plant these plants well to ensure that they get back from dormancy in spring. 

Other resources relating to strawberry plant types

Strawberry Plants – Flavorful Fruit Plants – Burpee

Strawberry Plants – #1 Strawberry Resource

Strawberry Plants from Stark Bro’s