Growing Conditions – Growing strawberries requires temperatures between 50°F–80°F and less than 14 hours of daylight for the strawberries to flower and produce fruit. In Florida, these conditions occur throughout the fall, winter, and spring. Strawberries in Florida are planted in September to early November, and flowering and fruit continue through April or May.
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Do strawberries grow well in South Florida?
Growing Strawberries in Florida (Central, South & North) 
Florida is a top strawberry producer in the US, so it’s a fact that the state’s climate suits this fruit well. However, farmers cannot plant strawberries here anytime they want, given these crops’ low heat tolerance and the Sunshine state’s hot spring and summer. In practice, fall is the best time for growing strawberries in Florida. As for how to cultivate them, continue reading below.
Do strawberries grow wild in Florida?
Pictured above: Wild strawberry ( Fragaria virginiana ) by Keith Bradley. Click on terms for botanical definitions. View post as a PDF Wild strawberry is a rare perennial wildflower that occurs throughout much of the eastern United States and Canada. In Florida, it occurs naturally only in open fields and woodland edges of Jackson and Leon counties.
- The plant is a larval host for the Gray hairstreak butterfly.
- Its spring flowers attract bees and butterflies, while its tiny summer fruits are a treat for humans and wildlife.
- They can be eaten right off the plant or collected and used in jams, jellies or pies.
- The leaves, which are high in Vitamin C, can be brewed to make tea.
Wild strawberry’s flowers have five overlapping white to pinkish-white petals, Both male and female parts are present, The pistil is greenish-yellow. Stamens are numerous and bear obvious bright-yellow anthers, Sepals are bright green and usually in numbers of 10.
- Leaves are trifoliate,
- Leaflets are deltate to obovate, thick, and slightly leathery with coarsely toothed margins,
- They may be bright green or bluish green and may have a glaucous surface.
- Pedicels, petioles and leaves are finely pubescent,
- Stems are smooth and procumbent,
- They produce many stolons that spread and form roots as they creep along the ground.
Despite its common name, the fruit is not a true berry. It is an aggregate accessory fruit, meaning the fleshy part is actually the plant’s receptacle, not its ovary ; and it is made of many ovaries formed from a single flower. What appear to be “seeds” covering the outside of the fruit are, in fact, achenes, or individual ovaries, each containing a single seed. 
Wild strawberry ( Fragaria virginiana ) by Alan Cressler, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center The widely cultivated strawberry ( F. x ananassa ) is a hybrid of F. virginiana and Beach of Coastal strawberry ( F. chiloensis), native to the Pacific coasts of North and South America.
The genus name Fragaria is from the Latin fraga, meaning “strawberry.” Family: Rosaceae (Rose family) Native range: Jackson and Leon counties To see where natural populations of Wild strawberry have been vouchered, visit florida.plantatlas.usf.edu, Hardiness: Zones 8A–9A Lifespan: Perennial Soil: Dry to moist, well-drained sandy or loamy soil Exposure: Full sun to partial shade Growth habit: 4–8″ tall and spreading Propagation: Cuttings, division, occasionally by seed (may require stratification) Garden tips: Wild strawberry may be used as a groundcover in open, sandy areas.
It spreads readily on its own, so make sure you plant it where it can proliferate. Plants are occasionally available from nurseries that specialize in Florida native plants. Visit www.PlantRealFlorida.org to find a nursery in your area.
What are the best strawberries to grow in South Florida?
Sally Scalera: Start seedlings now if you want to grow strawberries this fall When it comes to popular fruits, strawberries are often at the top of the list. Growing strawberries isn’t quite as easy here in Central Florida because we don’t receive many chilling hours each winter to initiate the flowers that produce the fruit. We do have options, though because the University of Florida has also been studying Alpine strawberries. Our Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide covers the growing of strawberries, and here in central Florida bare root strawberry plants should be planted between Sept.25 and Oct.25. Strawberry plants are typically grown as an annual crop in Florida, though if you add the biology back to the dirt (more on that later) they could continue to grow year after year. Recommended strawberry cultivars include Chandler, Oso Grande, Sweet Charlie, Selva, Camarosa and Festival. If you would like to plant some bare root strawberry plants this fall, order them now. Another option would be to grow Alpine strawberry plants from seed. The University of Florida conducted a study on Alpine strawberries and found that they are a potential niche crop for Florida growers and homeowners, too. For those who are curious to see what this bulletin has to say, go to and search for “Alpine strawberries.” Alpine strawberries are smaller and more fragile, so they can’t compete with the large strawberries we purchase in the grocery store. Though the strawberries are small, weighing only about a gram, they have an intense aroma and soft texture, so they could easily handle the trip from your garden to the kitchen. Alpine strawberries are typically grown from seed, so start the plants by placing a few seeds on the surface of the potting media in four-inch pots. It’s important that the seeds and seedlings aren’t allowed to ever dry out. That can be accomplished by placing a clear cover over the pots or spritzing the seeds and/or seedlings with water on a regular basis. The germinating seeds and seedlings will also need to be placed in a location that receives full sun throughout the day. The seedlings can be grown for a few months before they are planted in the garden in September/October or March/April. The plants will begin to produce flowers after a few months, with the fruits developing quickly after that. Allow the fruit to fully ripen on the plants, as they won’t continue ripening once they are harvested. The red fruiting varieties should be completely red, soft and smell so delicious that your mouth waters. Harvest the fruit continually so the plant keeps producing. The plants will produce fruit until the weather gets too hot. Once the heat arrives, the plants will stop blooming but will continue to grow and produce new foliage. It’s possible that the plants could die during the summer heat, so if needed, shade the plants through summer afternoons with a large umbrella, or grow them in containers so they can be moved into the shade easily. If this sounds like a fun thing to try this fall, look for the red-fruited Baron Solemacher, Reine des Vallees or Frasises Des Bois seeds. Germinate your Alpine strawberry seeds in four-inch pots, filled with a light-weight, fast-draining potting mix. I keep my pots in a tray so that when I initially water the dry potting mix, it gets thoroughly saturated, and it is easier to water them thoroughly as they grow. After watering the pots a few times, there should be an inch or so of water in the tray. This will be fine, since the seeds will be well above the water level. Scatter a few seeds on the top of the wet potting mix, in the center of each pot. Keep water in the tray and spritz the seeds with water regularly to keep them moist. Place the tray in a location that you will walk by often so you can keep an eye on the pots. Once the seeds germinate, water the seedlings as often as needed so they don’t wilt. If needed, nutrients can be provided by watering them with a dilute solution of a liquid organic fertilizer (i.e. Neptune’s Harvest Fish and Seaweed fertilizer, Jobe’s Organic All-Purpose water-soluble fertilizer). Before it’s time to plant them in the ground or a large container, purchase granular mycorrhizae (make sure the mix contains a good variety of both endo and ectomycorrhizae) so you can scatter some in the bottom of the planting hole. It would also be great to buy some earthworm castings and granular humic acids (which are a great food source for the mycorrhizae) to add to the planting hole along with the mycorrhizae. Don’t worry about amending the entire area with organic matter because the critical component missing in our soil are the beneficial mycorrhizae that establish symbiotic relationships with all the plants we want to grow. Make sure to keep an eye on your newly planted strawberry plants and water them before or when they begin to wilt. After the plants have become established, which you will know when they begin to produce a lot of new growth, inoculate the plants with a liquid product that also contains beneficial bacteria and mycorrhizae. A liquid product is mixed in water and used to water the plants. This could be repeated once or twice. For a copy of my bulletin on How to Add Life to the Soil, email me at [email protected], If you love the flavor of strawberries, why not try growing them? Try the bare root large fruiting type and/or the Alpine strawberries that are started from seeds. Though they may take a little effort, it sure will be worth it when you can go outside and eat them fresh from the plant. Sally Scalera is an urban horticulture agent and master gardener coordinator for the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences. Email, Support local journalism : Find offers for new subscribers at, : Sally Scalera: Start seedlings now if you want to grow strawberries this fall
What are the best strawberries to grow in South Florida?
Sally Scalera: Start seedlings now if you want to grow strawberries this fall When it comes to popular fruits, strawberries are often at the top of the list. Growing strawberries isn’t quite as easy here in Central Florida because we don’t receive many chilling hours each winter to initiate the flowers that produce the fruit. We do have options, though because the University of Florida has also been studying Alpine strawberries. Our Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide covers the growing of strawberries, and here in central Florida bare root strawberry plants should be planted between Sept.25 and Oct.25. Strawberry plants are typically grown as an annual crop in Florida, though if you add the biology back to the dirt (more on that later) they could continue to grow year after year. Recommended strawberry cultivars include Chandler, Oso Grande, Sweet Charlie, Selva, Camarosa and Festival. If you would like to plant some bare root strawberry plants this fall, order them now. Another option would be to grow Alpine strawberry plants from seed. The University of Florida conducted a study on Alpine strawberries and found that they are a potential niche crop for Florida growers and homeowners, too. For those who are curious to see what this bulletin has to say, go to and search for “Alpine strawberries.” Alpine strawberries are smaller and more fragile, so they can’t compete with the large strawberries we purchase in the grocery store. Though the strawberries are small, weighing only about a gram, they have an intense aroma and soft texture, so they could easily handle the trip from your garden to the kitchen. Alpine strawberries are typically grown from seed, so start the plants by placing a few seeds on the surface of the potting media in four-inch pots. It’s important that the seeds and seedlings aren’t allowed to ever dry out. That can be accomplished by placing a clear cover over the pots or spritzing the seeds and/or seedlings with water on a regular basis. The germinating seeds and seedlings will also need to be placed in a location that receives full sun throughout the day. The seedlings can be grown for a few months before they are planted in the garden in September/October or March/April. The plants will begin to produce flowers after a few months, with the fruits developing quickly after that. Allow the fruit to fully ripen on the plants, as they won’t continue ripening once they are harvested. The red fruiting varieties should be completely red, soft and smell so delicious that your mouth waters. Harvest the fruit continually so the plant keeps producing. The plants will produce fruit until the weather gets too hot. Once the heat arrives, the plants will stop blooming but will continue to grow and produce new foliage. It’s possible that the plants could die during the summer heat, so if needed, shade the plants through summer afternoons with a large umbrella, or grow them in containers so they can be moved into the shade easily. If this sounds like a fun thing to try this fall, look for the red-fruited Baron Solemacher, Reine des Vallees or Frasises Des Bois seeds. Germinate your Alpine strawberry seeds in four-inch pots, filled with a light-weight, fast-draining potting mix. I keep my pots in a tray so that when I initially water the dry potting mix, it gets thoroughly saturated, and it is easier to water them thoroughly as they grow. After watering the pots a few times, there should be an inch or so of water in the tray. This will be fine, since the seeds will be well above the water level. Scatter a few seeds on the top of the wet potting mix, in the center of each pot. Keep water in the tray and spritz the seeds with water regularly to keep them moist. Place the tray in a location that you will walk by often so you can keep an eye on the pots. Once the seeds germinate, water the seedlings as often as needed so they don’t wilt. If needed, nutrients can be provided by watering them with a dilute solution of a liquid organic fertilizer (i.e. Neptune’s Harvest Fish and Seaweed fertilizer, Jobe’s Organic All-Purpose water-soluble fertilizer). Before it’s time to plant them in the ground or a large container, purchase granular mycorrhizae (make sure the mix contains a good variety of both endo and ectomycorrhizae) so you can scatter some in the bottom of the planting hole. It would also be great to buy some earthworm castings and granular humic acids (which are a great food source for the mycorrhizae) to add to the planting hole along with the mycorrhizae. Don’t worry about amending the entire area with organic matter because the critical component missing in our soil are the beneficial mycorrhizae that establish symbiotic relationships with all the plants we want to grow. Make sure to keep an eye on your newly planted strawberry plants and water them before or when they begin to wilt. After the plants have become established, which you will know when they begin to produce a lot of new growth, inoculate the plants with a liquid product that also contains beneficial bacteria and mycorrhizae. A liquid product is mixed in water and used to water the plants. This could be repeated once or twice. For a copy of my bulletin on How to Add Life to the Soil, email me at [email protected], If you love the flavor of strawberries, why not try growing them? Try the bare root large fruiting type and/or the Alpine strawberries that are started from seeds. Though they may take a little effort, it sure will be worth it when you can go outside and eat them fresh from the plant. Sally Scalera is an urban horticulture agent and master gardener coordinator for the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences. Email, Support local journalism : Find offers for new subscribers at, : Sally Scalera: Start seedlings now if you want to grow strawberries this fall
What part of Florida are strawberries grown in?
Last Updated on February 12, 2023 You may associate strawberries with California, but did you know Florida is second in strawberry production? Florida strawberry farmers consist of 65 growers and over 10,000 acres that make up the Strawberry Growers Association! Source: Floral City Strawberry Festival Most Florida berries are grown in Plant City, also known as the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World. This is because Florida strawberry season runs from Thanksgiving to Easter with planting beginning in October! Florida’s moderate winter temperatures are perfect for growing the berries!