Virginia Wild Strawberry

Fragaria virginiana

Virginia wild strawberry is the original. the ancestor of every commercial strawberry on the market. The small white spring flowers appear in April and May, visited by every early native bee coming out of winter. By June, tiny red fruits ripen, sweeter and more intensely flavored than anything you can buy. They disappear quickly: birds, chipmunks, and passing children rarely leave them on the plant for long. It spreads by runners in a controlled, graceful way, forming a dense low mat that suppresses weeds and covers ground efficiently. The trifoliate leaves turn red and orange in fall, giving it a second season of color. A practical groundcover, an early pollinator resource, and a wildlife food source in one very small, very easy plant.