Our favorite strawberry varieties
Disease-resistance, date of
bearing, and size of berries are all relevant factors for the organic
strawberry grower to consider. But if I'm being honest, I'll tell you
that I make variety selections based 95% on taste.
With that in mind, we've ripped out multiple varieties that just didn't
make the cut. Fresca, Jewel, and Allstar simply weren't tasty enough
for my palate.
At the other extreme, delectable keepers have included:
- Honeyoye --- a big berry with a more subtle (and slightly sourer) flavor than most. On the downside, this variety is prone to diseases, and those diseases accentuate the sour. But an undiseased, sunkissed Honeyoe is a delight!
- Ozark Beauty --- a small
but ultra-sweet berry that melts in your mouth. I snack on these the
most when I'm out and about in the garden because they're just so
dependably good. On the downside, I'm not 100% sure the plants actually
are that variety since I bought them at Wal-mart and the big box stores
are notorious for mislabeling edibles, so you might not get the same
results I have....
- Sparkle --- this
late-fruiting variety is like Ozark Beauty on steroids. Some fruits are
small, but many are big, all are sweet, and they are actually too soft for some applications.
These plants benefit from daily rather than my usual bidaily picking
and I'll admit that a few end up rotting on the vine.
- Galletta --- this
ultra-early variety lost most of its blooms this year to freezes.
Perhaps that's why the berries that did set are humongous rather than
small as I'd understood they'd be? They're also quite firm --- nearly
the consistency of storebought --- but are almost as sweet as Ozark
Beauty and feature a hint of Honeyoye's tartness. I find myself
snacking on these almost as much as on Ozark Beauty.
How about you? Which strawberry varieties have turned you into a fruit
connoisseur?
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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.
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I agree that Sparkle is excellent in flavor, but a little tougher to deal with growing and harvesting. As you point out, it is pretty soft when ripe, and hard to pick without damaging it. The softness of the fruit I think makes it more prone to mold and rot. It also tends to want to grow too dense even with aggressive thinning the previous year, which exacerbates the mold issue.
Maybe give Earliglow a try; flavor is very good and they are easier to keep manageable and not as soft. I think Sparkle tastes a little better, but my wife thinks Earliglow is just as good.