Growing Alpine Strawberries by Michael J Wellik 1/ Version 2.0 February 2017

Growing Alpine Strawberries By Michael J Wellik 1/ Version 2.0 February 2017

The following information is based on nearly 30 years experience growing cultivars of Fragaria vesca ssp, Semperflorens commonly known as alpine strawberries. This is not meant to be a comprehensive guide to growing these plants but rather an overview to be adapted and tested in various localities. It is advised that anyone wishing to grow these plants familiarize themselves with local guidelines for growing strawberries available in most areas through the local county extension office. Alpines likely will not be mentioned in these publications but they are strawberries and have requirements and needs similar to common garden varieties of strawberries.

ALPINE STRAWBERRIES

We’ll offer a few introductory notes about alpine strawberries. Alpine strawberries are known by their scientific name Fragaria vesca and are called by their French name, fraises des bois. This species is a large and varied species that occurs in many parts of the world. Most of the cultivars that we sell and grow are cultivars or cultivars that have been cultivated and selected, and adapted over many years in many parts of the world.

One of the things that most people are not aware of about alpine strawberries is that these “wild types” were the ONLY strawberries available to man prior to the plant breeding that produced the large strawberries that we see in grocery and produce stores.

There are generally two growing types of alpine strawberries, those that are clump forming or non-runnering types and those that produce runners. All alpine strawberries are ever bearing and some are day-neutral types.

The non-runnering types tend to be day-neutral ever-bearing types. This means that day length does not influence the setting of flower buds. They tend to bloom in cycles from spring to fall.

Page 1 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik Many boast that they produce continuously but that is a marketing ploy. In a greenhouse environment, they can be grown and cropped for extended periods of time. The non-runnering types are available in red, white and yellow fruiting cultivars. Planting multiple cultivars will generally “even out” this cyclical nature of production due to overlapping fruiting cycles.

The non-runnering types increase their size by producing underground stolons. We have grown large plants in containers such as half barrels that have hundreds of these stolons which can be divided to produce more plants. These divisions will be true to the “mother plant” just as a runner is true to its “mother” for the runnering types. When we mention the division process below this is for these non-runnering types. A note here: If you notice a “new” or different plant or even a different colored fruit in a container or within a larger mature plant, this is most likely a “volunteer” plant from berries that were not picked and whose seeds sprouted to produce a new plant.

The majority of cultivars that we grow and sell are day-neutral ever bearing clumping types. They include Reine des Vallees, Mignonette, Yellow Wonder, White Soul, Red Wonder, Ruegen, White Solemacher and others.

We grow one type of runnering cultivars that is day neutral. It is called ‘Attila’. It is a prolific in its runnering and flowering.

The runnering types of alpines tend to be June-bearing cultivars. They are not always day- neutral. Fruiting and harvest occur in early spring and the harvest period is 3 or so weeks. The crops from these types of alpines can be relatively large. We are aware of red and white fruiting cultivars of this type. Propagation can be accomplished for this group by seed or by rooting the runners. One cultivar that we grow of this type is called ‘Rodluvan’.

SEED AND SOWING

Storage

Seed should be frozen to prolong life. It is advised to freeze the seed below 32 oF for at least 3-4 weeks prior to sowing to precondition the seed. All seed sold by The Strawberry Store, LLC has been preconditioned under these conditions. When you receive your order it is not usually necessary to refreeze the seed before sowing but may be needed under certain situations (i.e. if the seed has been exposed to prolonged periods of warm temperatures and when shipping internationally where shipping takes 2 weeks or more).

Seeds is best stored in resealable plastic bags to keep the seeds dry. Small quantities can be stored temporarily in paper packets.

Seed age effects germination. Old seeds may have a very low percentage of germination. Freezing may improve germination but it could also kill very old weak seeds. Most strawberry seed is good for at least two years from the time it was saved or harvested. I have sown seeds as old as 6 years successfully. It was successful in getting some seeds to germinate but the percentage germination was not something to brag about.

Seeds sold by us are tested for germination prior to the spring season, usually in November. These tests are designed to give optimal germination conditions. These same conditions are outlined below though some of the techniques used for germination testing may vary from those outlined. Germination percentages vary for each cultivar and vary for the age of seed and for different seed lots. A germination percentage of 60% is commercially acceptable. One rarely gets 100% germination even in well-designed germination tests.

It is recommended that sterile soilless media be used to reduce soil diseases and other pests that may attack seedlings. The size of cell or pot used is dependent on the preferences of the grower. The size of germinating container may necessitate varying techniques to maintain the conditions outlined. It is NOT recommended to direct sow seeds in the garden because conditions will most often not be controllable. It is also NOT recommended that seeds be sown in expanded peat pellets which tend to dry out which will cause death of emerging seedlings.

I’m often asked how to sow such tiny seeds. There are commercial seeders available that can get quite expensive. I don’t have the patience to use vacuum seeders. A simple vibrating seeder has worked for me for over 20 years. For small numbers of seeds a folded paper or postcard can be tapped to sow the seeds accurately with a little practice. Static can make it difficult to sow seeds of this size. Note: when a lot of seeding is done it may be more than worthwhile to use a metal surface to reduce static charges and make the process a little less frustrating.

Conditions

The following conditions are essential to successful germination. 1. Soil should be moist at all times during the germination period. This period can take as long as two months but usually initiates in 8 days and most germination is complete within 30 days of sowing. Soil moisture can be maintained with capillary matting, wick systems, humidity domes, or other similar systems or combinations of these methods. 2. Temperature is critical to germination. The acceptable temperature range is 60 – 75 oF. The lower range is suggested for night temperature and the higher end of the range for maximum daytime temperatures. Seeds will germinate outside this range but germination may not be complete or may be delayed or accelerated. Higher temperatures will promote germination but may also reduce germination and cause drying conditions that will threaten the continued growth of the seedlings. Note: the temperatures referred to above is the soil temperature, not the air temperature which may be significantly different. 3. Light is essential for optimal germination. Seed should be surface sown and if covered, covered very lightly with medium. I like to use white play sand that can be purchased at garden centers to lightly cover the seeds. The intention is to use the sand to hold down the media and parts of the media that seeds may be attracted to. The sand keeps the seeds in contact with the media and the color of the sand can be used to easily determine by color variation whether the media is wet or dry. We have found that far-red spectrum light accelerates germination. It is, however, extremely important that the seedlings are moved

I’ll mention here that we grow indoors in what is known as a vertical farm. We grow on light racks using flood trays and either LED lights or T5 fluorescent. We have been using the Philips Greenpower production fixtures for nearly 6 years. We use the T5’s for germination primarily and the LED’s for growing. Operation costs of HO type fluorescent bulbs are expense and fans must be used to dissipate the heat. We have recently started testing T5 LED bulbs. T5 LEDs offer flexibility over off the shelf LED strips because bulbs of different wavelengths can be used and changed to suit the current need. Heat generation of LED bulbs is minimal. This simplifies especially germination. When fans are needed they cause rapid drying of media surfaces which can adversely affect germination.

Getting rapid uniform germination is very important when initial growing is done as small plugs. Late emerging seedlings tend to get shaded out by surrounding plants that germinated days or weeks ahead of them.

The number of seeds per cell or container is a matter of preference. With rare seeds it is probably best to sow one seed per unit. If space is limited and one is aiming for at least one plant per unit it is recommended to sow 2-3 or more seeds per unit. This is also dependent on the germination test results. With low germinating seed or old seed it may take more that 3 seeds per unit to get the optimal number of units with at least one seedling.

Here we’ll mention a technique used by commercial growers to increase initial yields. Over- seeding with 5 or more seeds per cell increases the size of the initial clump. The larger the clump the higher the potential yield. Caution must be used when doing this. Cells with many seedlings can dry out rapidly. Extra monitoring and irrigations my be required. Unless the seeding rate is uniform there may be unintended consequences. For example, cells with low numbers of seeds and thus seedlings may stay wet too long which can promote algae growth and/or seedling or root diseases.

Pests

We have experienced a number of pests during the germination period. This is primarily because we use the same area to continuously germinate seeds. The primary pest has been fungus gnats. There are organic and mechanical methods to control this pest.

Because the media must be kept moist for long periods of time to successfully germinate seeds, algae may grow on the surface of the media. We have not found algae to be a problem in and of itself but algal growth does influence fungus gnat growth and does attract fungus gnats. We use multiple methods on a strict schedule to keep gnats under control. We use drenches of neem formulations, Gnatrol (Bti) and predatory nematodes. We also use Pyganic® to control adults if adult populations are large enough to warrant control. We have heard that hydrogen peroxide drenches can be effective but have not tried them yet.

Page 4 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik Yellow sticky cards are recommended in areas used to germinate seeds. Ready to use cards can be purchased or yellow cardboard can be coated with sticky substances. These cards should be hung in the growing area just above the crop. These cards will not control fungus gnat adults but are good indicators that the pests are present. We generally start our treatment regimes when we first see one or two adults on the yellow cards. By the point that the adults are caught there is already a population in the larval stage feeding on roots.

Root rot can also become a devastating problem in environments that are moist and cool for long periods of time. Winter sowing is an especially difficult time for root rots because the media does not dry out for weeks at a time. We have added heat mats to our germination beds and have been using vermicompost tea as a frequent drench. These steps are controlling the problem but have not totally eliminated the problem. There are biological fungicides that can be effective for root diseases but are not cures for these problems. One can never let down their guard when it comes to these potential problems. Even with the best management practices it can wipe out a crop in a matter of days.

Seedling diseases such a damping off can be a problem, especially when non-sterile media is used. We advise prevention of diseases rather than trying to control diseases. Cleaning of equipment and containers is essential to controlling diseases. Formulations of Trichoderma Harzianum, Streptomyces lydicus or Gliocladium virens are some treatments that offer significant benefits. Make sure and check the product label to make sure that the formulation you plan to use is registered for use on strawberries.

Aphids can be a problem on young seedlings. Aphids are an important pest to control because they can carry viruses. It can be difficult to introduce certain predators for this pest, especially in winter. Most of the predators need warmer conditions than we have during the winter. In addition, some of the predators are difficult to contain in an area and may fly off to other more attractive areas. We rely on preventative techniques almost solely. When aphids are not controlled by these methods we use an organic insecticide such as Pyganic or a neem formulation.

Spider mites can be a problem during the germination process, especially for summer or early fall crops. We rely on preventative methods but sometimes have to resort to organic pesticide programs and/or predator releases. Formulations of neem can be very effective for controlling spider mites.

We have noticed that there are other plants that are particularly susceptible and possibly attractive to certain pests. With experience, these cultivars can be used as “indicators” of a particular problem or might serve as effective “trap crops”. Crops like lettuce can be more attactive to aphids than strawberries for example.

GROWING ON

Once most seedlings have germinated humidity domes should be removed. If left on too long the high humidity can lead to seedling diseases. When seedlings suddenly wilt and die, seedling disease is the likely cause. Fungus gnats can also be a cause of what appears to be “sudden

Page 5 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik death”. Remove a couple of plants and wash off the roots. If there are roots that have been obviously eaten or lack of roots you likely have a heavy fungus gnat problem.

The seedlings should be allowed to grow in their cells/containers until they are root-bound enough to remove without the root ball falling apart. The time to reach this stage varies with many factors including the growing conditions and the size of cell/container.

Fertilization is needed especially in soilless media that has no initial fertilizer charge. Since we follow organic guidelines we do not use any inorganic fertilizers. We have found that mixing one part vermicompost to 9 parts of soilless mix works very well for growing in plug trays. We supplement this with a vermicompost tea that we brew. This tea has shown itself to help reduce pests and provides low levels of nutrition. We will discuss this in a separate publication.

Once the rootball can be removed from the cell/container, the plants can be transplanted to larger containers or to the garden. We do not recommend that small plants be planted directly in the garden. This is because at the recommended final spacing it is too much work and too time consuming to keep the area weed free. We recommend that plants be up-potted one or more times to larger containers before moving to the garden bed.

Fertilization of larger plants requires more nutrition than vermicompost tea can provide. We still use it for a variety of reasons but have found that a fertilizer made by The Espoma Company called Holly-Tone® works very well for alpine strawberries. We mix it with the soil when transplanting and then use it as a top-dressing in-season. It is best to scratch the fertilizer into the upper surface of the soil to aid in break down. We do not make specific recommendations about this fertilizer and only mention it as one of many possible choices. Most acid type fertilizers can be used successfully.

We get frequent questions about use of compost. Compost can be an important ingredient in a soil mix for growing alpine strawberries. Without an analysis it is virtually impossible to devise or recommend a compost mix. We have found that improperly aged compost is a common problem for home gardeners and even commercial growers.

A special note about planting depth: Strawberries in general are sensitive to planting depth. They should not be transplanted deeper than they were originally. Keep in mind that if you use one inch of mulch you should plant the plant 1” higher than the current soil surface. Deep planting leads to many problems including crown rots.

Container Growing

I have grown alpine strawberries for over 25 years in containers ranging in size from tiny cells in plug trays to half barrels. They can be successfully grown in nearly any container with a little extra care. When growing in containers or the garden we recommend drip irrigation. We also recommend a mulch be used to conserve moisture and provide a quick drying surface to reduce fruit diseases.

Page 6 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik We do NOT recommend planting alpine strawberries in strawberry jars if you are growing them for fruit production. The small openings for the plants restrict the size of the clump. This limits fruit production. You will get fruit from strawberry jars but it will not be much. Also, make sure that the strawberry jar allows drainage if you do use one. I have seen many pottery types of containers without drainage holes used with strawberries. Suffice it to say that the plants usually die in a short time due to lack of drainage.

Containers should be light colored, white if possible. Strawberries like to have their roots cool and are cool-season plants. Black or dark containers will superheat the media. I have seen many plants just die for no apparent reason in the summer. Most of these were in black nursery containers.

A few years ago we experienced what I came to call “sudden death syndrome”. We were growing musk strawberries in plastic containers and were rooting the runners. In July, when it was particularly hot, the plants were dying frequently. In a panic, we tried a number of containers in an effort to salvage our future crop. Some of the plants were transplanted into aeration containers. The particular ones we used were made of a felt-like material. Within two weeks the plants were thriving and producing runners again.

From there we launched trials with a number of aeration containers from several manufacturers and several soil mixes. Without getting into all the details we have now settled on Roottrapper II® aeration containers from www.rootmaker.com and composted pine bark. This combination produces remarkable and consistent results for us. We add Holly Tone to the pine bark mix.

Garden Planting

We recommend final spacing in the garden to be 16 – 18” between plants. The key word here is ‘final’ spacing. With this spacing plants will touch and rows will appear to be one continuous row when the plants are mature.

When we grew in a field for fruit sales to restaurants we used a double staggered row system with the spacing mentioned above. Row spacing between rows was 16” and 18” between plants in each row. Harvesting could then be done from both sides and driving rains had less effect on fruit on the interior of the canopy. This system also lends itself to 4’ wide low tunnels. We highly recommend a protected environment for producing fraises des bois commercially. Fruit quality, number and weight of marketable fruit are much higher when protected.

Pollination

If one intends to grow plants indoors, pollination can be an issue. Hand pollination may be required which we will not get into here.

We have be working with solitary bees for a few years, especially in our seed production efforts. We have used mason bees and alfalfa leaf cutting bees. Mason bees work very well in a high tunnel in early spring. When temperatures get high the mason bees tend to die off. The leaf cutter bees are much more adapted to higher temperatures.

Page 7 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik These solitary bees likely won’t stay where they are release for outdoor growing. Honey bees would be a good option for larger plantings. Strawberries are not a preferred nectar or pollen source for honey bees. Planting companion crops such as borage can help attract the bees to the area. These companion crops can also improve visits from solitary bees. We have not conducted controlled studies in this area. The value of the fruit makes such studies well worth the effort.

In the heat of the summer pollen is not active. We are not sure of the exact temperatures where pollen is ineffective. We suspect that the critical temperature in in the mid to upper 80’s. At these temperatures production decreases due to size of the fruit and the need to cull misshapen fruit. Plants that are well cared for will continue to bloom but there may be little or no fruit set during these times. If you are growing in containers you can do something about this by moving the plants to a cooler environment. In the field, addition of shade systems can be helpful but may not be enough to improve pollination.

Exposure

For optimal production alpine strawberries require at least 6 hours of full sun per day. Production will be much less with shorter exposure. Alpines will tolerate shade but the more shade they receive the more production will be adversely affected. Shade in the summer can be an advantage to some extent and may or may not affect production since production decreases with increasing temperatures anyhow. Shade may result in little or no production but plant survival will improve so that plants can make it through a hot summer and produce a fall crop.

Propagation

Seed and division are the two main methods of propagation of non-runnering (clumping) cultivars. With runnering cultivars, rooting the runners is the preferred method.

If you intend to propagate with seed, make sure to isolate the cultivars so that there will be no cross pollination. Also be aware of wild plants in the vicinity that could pollinate with your plants. If plants cross-pollinate the seedlings produced will not be similar to the parents. If you’re a plant breeder this is a good thing. If you want to increase your planting of tried and tested cultivars this is not a good idea. In fact, seed produced in a cross between non-runnering cultivars could produce plants that produce runners and may or may not affect fruit color.

Division can be a quick way to produce more plants. We divided a two-year old plant in a half barrel a few years ago and got over 100 divisions. We don’t recommend “maximum division” like this unless you have a rare cultivar or are trying to increase plants very quickly for another reason. These small divisions will be set back significantly and are weakened by the process and more susceptible to environmental changes and/or pests.

We don’t recommend dividing plants until they are at least a year old. Division can be done in spring or in fall but be careful. The divided plants need enough time to establish before winter so that they will survive the winter.

Page 8 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik Eventually we will publish information and pictures of the division process. Until then there are many available online articles with great pictures of division of clumping types of perennials.

Hardiness and Winter Protection

Most county extension offices have local recommendations about winter protection of strawberries. This information can be useful and can be used a guidelines for winter protection of alpine strawberries.

In general, many cultivars of alpine strawberry are hardy to -30F. We have found that some cultivars are more sensitive to cold and may not survive as well as other cultivars. We are not sure if this is due to temperature or to fluctuations in temperatures. We advise growers to test limited numbers of plants of different cultivars in their areas before planting large commercial areas. In general, alpines can be grown easily in garden zones as cold as zone 4. Some will survive in zone 3. Growing alpines as perennials in zone 8 is possible with extra care. Zones warmer (except for coast areas) than this alpines are grown as annuals.

In areas that get cold during the winter a mulch is essential to plant survival. We use wheat straw for winter protection. We know of growers who use pine needles and have heard that large commercial producers of bare root strawberry plants recommend corn stalks. Corn stalks have an advantage over wheat or oat straw mulches. The main one is that wheat or oats straw has seeds that were not removed during the harvest of the crop. These volunteers should be removed in the spring so they don’t compete with the strawberry plants for moisture and nutrients.

FRUIT PRODUCTION

This is a large area and one to which we are devoting a lot of research time and expense. We will take a quick look at this right now. More information and data will be published in the near future.

Alpine strawberries are portrayed in much of the available literature as cute little border plants. If the plants are crowded together and treated as cute little ornamentals, then that’s exactly what they will be. If you give them space and treat them like a crop, you will be rewarded with much more fruit than you might have expected. The same is true of growing alpines in containers. Smaller containers will result in lower yields.

Harvest Thoughts

Fruit should be picked when fully ripe for best taste and aroma. You should not pick less than ripe fruit unless a storm or other threat is expected to affect the crop. Picking less than fully ripe fruit will affect the quality and flavor of the fruit. All alpine fruit readily separates from its calyx when it is ready. Consumers are accustomed to seeing strawberries in the grocery store with their calyx or cap. Pictures of harvested alpines almost never are shown with their calyx. Some specialty growers cut the fruit stem so the calyx can be harvested with the fruit. This is usually done to improve visual appeal and the extra work required drives the price up.

Page 9 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik I frequently get asked how one can tell when white or yellow fruit is ready to harvest. Trial and error is one way to learn this and probably the most memorable. A less than ripe fruit will remind you of store bought strawberries, hard and tasteless. White and yellow fruit tend to get “plump” when they are ready and will easily separate from the calyx. The seeds on ripe fruit appear to be brownish colored and the fruit feels soft.

The same general information is true of red fruiting cultivars with the exception of the seed color. Seed color of red cultivars is almost always red and sometimes is a scarlet red.

Fruit should be chilled immediately upon picking. It begins deteriorating as soon as it’s picked. Much of the alpine fruit picked doesn’t make it out of the garden where it is eaten fresh. What does make it to the home refrigerator should be kept for no more than a day. Fruit can be frozen for use later or for making preserves. Be aware that when thawed it will be mushy. This is fine for a topping for ice cream but not as a berry added to the top of a cake or pastry.

Driving rain can damage ripe fruit. The damage may not be immediately visible but will show up during the post-harvest period and during storage. There is no way to say this delicately, alpine strawberry fruit is extremely perishable.

Picking fruit into small shallow containers will reduce damage. Fruit piled on top of fruit in multiple layers causes bruising, especially if it is being transported. A little extra care can pay off with fruit that has less damage and lasts longer in storage. I prefer picking into 4.4 oz half pint containers that have cloth or napkin on the bottom of the container. This same size container is the standard size for sale of the fruit as well. These containers are the same ones that raspberries are sold in.

There have been studies done in Europe on extending the life of fraises des bois during shipment. One method is called “active package”. Use those words in a google search to learn more. We will include references to this information in the expanded version of this document.

Pests

There are a number of fruit pests of strawberries that also are pests of alpine strawberries. At harvest time birds are our #1 pest. We grow limited numbers of red fruiting cultivars for this reason. Bird netting is a requirement for growing red fruiting cultivars. Birds tend to ignore white and yellow alpine fruit but birds can be seen pecking at fruit. If they learn that white fruit is tasty they will take it as rapidly as they would take red fruit.

We have mentioned aphids above. Slugs are also a problem as are ants. Late in the season with rainy weather botrytis can be a problem on the fruit. We have chosen not to control these pests with pesticides. We destroy fruit infested with pests. This does not eliminate the problem but does reduce it.

Most people prefer red strawberries over white or yellow. Some do not consider white or yellow strawberries to be on a par with red alpines for taste or aroma. To me, depriving the birds of berries is a huge plus for white and yellow fruiting strawberries. As for taste, I think the whites/yellows are sweeter in general than some of the reds. The “novelty value” of white or yellow fruit can have value and even be more valuable to some chefs and consumers. This is especially true since pineberries have become a fad. These white heirloom hybrids are being sold widely but are also fueling tricksters to sell alpine seeds with the pictures of pineberries. Pineberries are hybrids and should not be grown from seeds. Hybrids like pineberries will not be true to the parents characteristics when grown from seed.

I will mention here that Pineapple Crush is my favorite cultivar. It is very productive and the fruit has a noticeably different flavor and aroma than other alpines – at least in my opinion. Here is a picture of some of the fruit.

Yield

We get frequent questions about yield. We have done several studies and have not yet published the data. We are in the process of compiling and analyzing the data. We will say that there is a big, in fact significant difference in yield between cultivars.

We did a quick study a couple of years ago to determine the potential for production. Two-year old plants were chosen for several available cultivars. All conditions were optimized to the best of our knowledge and ability. One of these cultivars, for the spring only, the plant produced over 450 berries which totaled nearly a pound of fruit.

Considerable variation in yield was observed from the selected cultivars. A detailed discussion of these studies will be included in the expanded version of this document.

ALPINE CULTIVARS

Page 11 © Copyright 2017 Michael J. Wellik We currently have nearly two dozen cultivars of alpine strawberries. We do not grow them all every year nor do we offer every cultivar for sale either as seed or plants. We are constantly testing new cultivars for hardiness, production and fruiting characteristics. We offer the best traditional cultivars. When testing is complete on new cultivars and a cultivar possesses commercial characteristics better than those we currently sell we will offer that cultivar for sale either as seeds or as a plants.

Some say that one red alpine cultivar is the same as another. Of the cultivars that we have tested we have found that almost all cultivars have differences though some of the differences might be noticed only by someone who has grown them and worked with them continually for a long period of time.

We are often asked whether our cultivars are GMO. All of the alpine strawberry cultivars that we grow and sell are open pollinated cultivars so are not GMO. Most can also be referred to as heirloom cultivars whose selection dates back many decades or even centuries.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Growing alpine strawberries is not difficult but it does require attention to detail. I’ve heard some say that they are easy to grow while a small number of customers seem to continually have problems. I don’t think that starting alpine strawberries from seed is something that a novice grower would find easy. However, it can be a wonderful learning experience for such gardeners.

The thoughts mentioned in this publication are based on many years of growing these plants. You may or may not have the same experience. There is no substitute for experience. Take it a step at a time and enjoy Above all, enjoy the fruits of your labors – literally. The fruit which was not mentioned in detail is unlike store bought strawberries. It has true wild strawberry flavor and an unforgettable aroma. Bon Appetit!!