The alpine strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is not a small garden strawberry but a species of its own. The berries are 1 to 2.5 cm, the aroma is far stronger, and the varieties sold as seed today crop from June right up to the first frost instead of for three weeks in July. Sow in February or March and you harvest the same year. One mistake ruins most sowings: the seed gets covered.
The seed must not be covered
Alpine strawberry seed needs light to germinate. Scatter it on the surface of moist seed compost and press it down lightly with a finger. Cover it with compost and it will not come up, however long you wait.
Germination takes 14 to 30 days at 18 to 22 degrees and is uneven. Do not throw the tray out after two weeks.
One trick that lifts germination is cold first: put the seed packet in the fridge for two to four weeks before sowing. It imitates winter and wakes more of the seed.
How to sow
Sow in February or March. That gives the plants time to crop the same summer.
Fill a tray with seed compost and water from below until the surface is evenly moist.
Scatter the seed thinly on the surface. Press it down, do not bury it.
Cover the tray with a lid or film so the surface cannot dry out. Lift the lid once a day.
Keep it bright at 18 to 22 degrees. A window in February is rarely enough, see the guide to grow lights.
Prick out at two or three true leaves into individual pots.
Plant out after the last frost, 25 to 30 cm apart.
There is more on keeping a sowing going indoors in our guide to raising plants from seed.
Position and soil
The alpine strawberry grows wild on woodland edges and in clearings, and it shows in what it asks for. It takes part shade better than a garden strawberry and manages on three to four hours of sun. In full sun you get more berries, but the plant also needs more water.
The soil should be rich in humus and hold moisture, pH 5.5 to 6.5. Work in compost before planting. Avoid places where water stands over winter.
Runnerless varieties and running ones
This confuses a lot of people. Wild alpine strawberries spread by runners and take over a bed in a few years. The varieties sold as seed today are usually runnerless: they build dense clumps instead and stay where you put them.
| Runnerless | With runners | |
|---|---|---|
| Habit | A clump that widens year by year | Runners that root all around |
| Suits | Bed edge, pot, raised bed | Ground cover under shrubs |
| Propagated by | Division or seed | Runners |
| Upkeep | Divide every three years | Has to be kept in check |
Both our varieties are runnerless. Baron von Solemacher gives red berries of 3 to 5 grams that reach up to 2.5 cm, and it crops in the first year after planting. Yellow Wonder gives creamy yellow berries and keeps cropping into autumn.
Birds take the red ones but leave the yellow
Blackbirds learn quickly where red berries are. Creamy yellow varieties are almost always passed over, because the bird reads the colour as unripe. If you have a bird problem and would rather not net the bed, that is the simplest solution there is.
We at Florea grow both colours side by side, and it is the yellow ones we get to first.
Cropping from June to frost
Everbearing alpine strawberries flower and set fruit all season. Pick every other day at the peak, or the berries go over on the plant.
The berries keep about a day in the fridge and lose aroma if rinsed. Rinse them just before serving.
A bed of alpine strawberries does not give kilos. Reckon on a handful per plant per week in high season, which is the reason to plant 10 to 15 and not three.
Pots and raised beds
Volume: at least 3 litres of compost per plant and 20 cm of depth.
Watering: a pot dries out fast. Check daily in July.
Feeding: a high-potassium feed every second week from flowering, the same type you would use for tomatoes.
Winter: the plant is hardy but the root ball in a pot is not. Stand the pot in shelter or sink it into the ground.
The same applies in a raised bed, where alpine strawberries work well along the edge.
Divide every three years
A clump gives most in its first three years. After that the crop falls off. Lift the clump in spring, split it into pieces with both roots and shoots and replant on a fresh spot with a little compost.
Cut off old brown leaves in March too. It lets air around the plant and cuts the risk of grey mould on the berries.
Month by month
| Month | What you do |
|---|---|
| January | Put the seed packet in the fridge |
| February | Sow on the surface, bright at 18 to 22 degrees |
| March | Prick out into individual pots |
| April | Harden the plants off outdoors by day |
| May | Plant out after the last frost |
| June to September | Pick every other day and water evenly |
| October | Leave the leaves on as winter cover |
Alpine strawberries are also the crop that works best with children, because the berries ripen right through the school holidays. There are more ideas in growing with children, and more berry species among our berry seeds.
Author: Emma Vogiatzi
Fact checked by Erik Hoekstra
Last updated 2026-08-31