What Type of Strawberries Are Best for Shady Spaces? (+ Varieties)

Strawberries are sun-loving plants. For maximum production and yield, strawberries need full sun. The minimum amount of light they can tolerate is six hours per day, but really, most production strawberries should receive at least 8 to 10 hours of sunlight per day, with more light being even better.

This is to say, most strawberry varieties will not do well in shady areas. They will not even do well in areas that are sunny, but that get more than a few hours of shade cast upon them per day (such as shade that falls when the sun moves behind a house, building, or large, light-blocking tree).

This is too bad because strawberries make excellent landscapes as well as productive plants. They’re great in edible landscapes and so much more. But landscapes often come with shady spots, too.

There’s good news, though! There is a type of strawberry that can tolerate partial shade and filtered sunlight. This could prove a pretty and useful plant for you!

This Type of Strawberry Plant Can Tolerate Shade

The only type of strawberry plant that can truly tolerate shade to any significant degree is the woodland strawberry.

As the name suggests, woodland strawberries are largely heirloom berries that grow in more naturalized areas. They are the parent plants to many of today’s hybrids, at least somewhere in their lineage.

Through selective breeding, we’ve been able to develop these hybridized strawberries into high-yielding, high-production plants with very large berries. But that has largely come with some change in growing conditions (primarily in the form of light requirements to support that large plant growth and high strawberry production).

Several varieties of woodland strawberries do exist. You can even grow them from seed yourself (which, for some varieties, is the easiest way to find them).

Alpine or woodland strawberries can often be quite well suited to cooler climates, too.

The Woodland Strawberry by its Other Names

Woodland strawberries go by several names. You may see them listed for sale or labeled by any of these names:

• Woodland strawberry
• Alpine strawberry
• Fragaria vesca
• Fraises de bois
• Wild strawberry
• European strawberry

All of these refer to the same basic type of strawberry, which is either the same or a very close relative to wild strawberry varieties. For the purpose of this article, the names have been used interchangeably. So, if you see a plant referred to as one or another of these names, just know we’re talking about the same types of strawberry plants!

Some Details and Characteristics of Woodland Strawberry Plants

• Woodland or alpine strawberries are day-neutral plants
• They can continue to produce all season long until frost (though you may be more likely to see production on the earlier side of the season rather than late)
• The plants may slow or stop if temperatures become high (above 90 to 95 F, or 32.2 to 35 C)
• Production should rebound after temperatures moderate
• Expect woodland and alpine strawberries to produce two or three berries per plant per week
• Berries are small, similar to wild strawberries
• Berries are usually rounded, but there are varieties that are more elongated and pointed
• Strawberries on most woodland and alpine varieties are about one-half inch in length and diameter (some smaller, some a little longer but not as wide)
• A few varieties may grow as long as one-inch long
• Alpine and woodland strawberries are often grown from seed, even if you find them for sale as transplants in a garden center
• Growing from seed and sometimes unclear parentage or pollination means that the plants may or may not produce runners
• Most woodland strawberries do not produce runners
• If this is important to you, check seed descriptions, but know that it is not always well-known or described
• There are varieties that produce runners, so if that feature is important, be sure to select a seed that lists runners as a plant characteristic
• Varieties that produce runners are less common, and alpines are considered by many sources not to produce runners at all
• Alpine strawberries spread by seed and by root growth, growing into clumps of expanding plants
• Alpine strawberries can be propagated from seed or divided into more plants
• Division will help to keep plants productive, similar to how dividing keeps rhubarb, asparagus, and other perennial edible plants productive by keeping them from becoming too root-bound
• Alpine strawberries still require good, rich, fertile soil
• Soil should be well-draining
• Conditions that mimic humusy forest floors work well for woodland strawberries
• Alpine strawberries can continue to produce for up to four years

How Much Shade Can Alpine Strawberries Take?

All strawberry plants need at least some sun. Alpine strawberries (woodland strawberries) are the best type to grow if you have a more shady spot where you want to grow them, but they will still need some sunlight.

Light conditions alpine/woodland strawberries will tolerate:

• Full sun (in cooler locations and more northern zones)
• Partial shade
• Dappled shade
• Areas with as low as four hours of sunlight per day
• Half day sun
• Areas with long hours of filtered sunlight but that receive no real direct sun

Overall, the more sun woodland strawberries have, the better their production will be. In hot climates (zones up to zone 10 and its equivalents), half a day of sun or less can actually be the key to optimizing alpine strawberry production.

This is because they are native to cooler locations and temperatures, so in hot southern climates, shade can act as a protection that counteracts what the hotter, more intense sun and temperatures might bring.

Aim to place your alpine strawberry plants where they will get some good sunlight, but keep these other factors in mind, and also let the plants work with you to solve some of your landscaping, garden, and edible landscaping challenges.

Are Woodland Strawberries Good for Fresh Eating? What About Preserving?

Alpine or woodland strawberries do make excellent eating, especially fresh.

Though they are small, they are mighty in flavor.

Alpine strawberries tend to be sweeter, with a stronger, more intense strawberry flavor. Basically, you get the high flavorfulness that you get with small wild strawberries.

In France and much of Europe, alpine strawberries are a delicacy.

The only “downside” to alpine strawberries is that they are small. The plants produce fewer berries, and they are smaller compared to the larger hybrid varieties that have become mainstream. It takes eight alpine strawberry plants to produce two to three cups of strawberries per week under the best conditions.

So, they are considered a bit of a delicacy, but they are quite delicious little fruits.

On the other hand, because they produce such a small volume and it takes either a lot of plants or a lot of time for the berries to add up, they are not a great choice for preserving. Besides that, they shine the best as fresh fruit.

If you want more berries for preserving (or fresh eating), consider growing alpines in your shady spaces and hybrid strawberries for your preserving needs.

Where and When Woodland Strawberries Can Be Useful

• As edible groundcovers
• In shaded to partially shady areas (the shadier they are, the lower the berry production tends to be)
• In perennial beds
• Along walkways
• In container planters (they can look quite decorative, especially some of the varieties with colored blossoms)
• In window boxes or patio boxes (where they’re nice to pick and eat as you relax!)
• Consider mixing different types of plants in containers for color and interest. For example, you can mix plants that grow different colors of strawberries (like the yellow alpine pineapple strawberry with the Mignonette red alpine strawberry).

Alpine or Woodland Strawberry Varieties to Explore:

• Mignonette
• Pineapple
• Pineapple Crush
• Alexandria
• Rugen
• Yellow Wonder
• White Alpine
• Regine Alpine
• Reine de Valles
• Baron Solemacher
• Scarlet Wonder