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Wild Strawberry

Wild Strawberry

Fragaria vesca

Identify the Wild Strawberry from a photo and log your finds with Florapass.

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How common: Very common

Wild Strawberry is a small, low-growing plant with white flowers and bright red, aromatic fruits. It spreads by long runners and often forms patches. You can spot it in sunny, open places such as meadows, forest edges, roadsides and clearings.

Did you know?

  • It spreads quickly using long runners that can reach up to 2 m.
  • Its winter leaves stay green and can even keep working under snow.

About the species

Identification

A perennial forming a low clump 5–20 cm tall, sending out thin runners that root and make new plants. Leaves come in threes, each small oval leaflet (1–3 cm) with sharp teeth; the end tooth is about the same size as the others. Flower stalks stand about as high as the leaves and carry white, five‑petalled flowers. Later, small red fruits 0.5–1 cm long ripen with tiny yellow seeds on the surface and a strong scent. Similar species: mock strawberry has yellow flowers; barren strawberry has dry, not fleshy fruits and often drooping stalks. Flowers in Finland from June to August.

Plant group

Herbaceous plants

Habitat

meadow

Flowering

Jun–Aug

About the habitat

Prefers dry, sunny, open ground: meadows, road verges, forest edges, rocky slopes, clear-cuts and light woods; also grown in gardens. Common in South and Central Finland, rare in southern Lapland, absent from northern Lapland.

Sources

Photo: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fragaria vesca - metsmaasikas.jpg

Text: Pinkka: Kasvien talvi - Koululaisille: talvivihreät kasvit, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Pinkka: Yläkoulun Pinkka - Lehto, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Pinkka: BIO-503 Suomen kasvisto ja kasvillisuus - Kulttuuriympäristöt: kedot, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Pinkka: BIO-516 Hyötykasvit - Kotimaan villivihanneksia ja marjoja, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Pinkka (Luomus), CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Pinkka: Kasvien talvi - Talvivihreät luonnonkasvit, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38869

Text: Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahomansikka

See also