Garden Strawberry – 10 Seeds

The Garden Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) originated in Europe in the early 18th century. They are widely grown in gardens and commercially for the sweet red fruits. This specific strawberry is an early spring-bearing strawberry – it produces fruit during September/October. Spring-bearing strawberries produce a single, large crop per year during a 2 – 3 week period. The plants produce many runners and their fruit are larger than ever-bearing and day neutral strawberries.

Growing Garden Strawberry

Indoor Sowing: Cold Stratification and then transplant seedlings in Spring.

Direct Sowing: Winter.

• Garden Strawberry seeds need to be cold treated to encourage germination. Simply wrap your seeds, put them in an airtight container, and place them in a freezer. This simulates winter conditions, and the warming period lets the seed know it is time to come to life.
• After keeping the strawberry seeds below freezing for two to four weeks, remove the seeds from the freezer. Leave them in the jar or container as they gradually warm up to room temperature.
• Once your strawberry seeds are at room temperature they are ready to be planted. A good mix for starting strawberry seeds is 3 parts peat to 1 part organic-rich soil. Spread this out in your seed tray to a depth of about one half of an inch.
• Moisten the mixture with water until it is uniformly damp.
• Sprinkle your strawberry seeds over the damp mixture and then cover the seeds with a very thin dusting of peat moss. Ensure that the strawberry seeds are not completely covered and are exposed to light.
• Keep them indoors in a well-lighted room and in direct sunlight, if possible. In two to three weeks, the strawberry seeds should germinate.
• If the strawberry seeds sprout too close to each other, thin them when they are between 1 and 2 inches tall, keeping the biggest and most vigorous seedlings. Gently transfer the strawberry seedlings to larger containers or pots after they gain their 3rd leaves.