We’re offering five different varieties of strawberries this year, by customer request, and I want to plant all of them! Three of them are new for us, two are old favorites.
Ft. Laramie is one of the most cold hardy strawberries and recommended for Colorado gardeners by CSU-extension. The berries have good flavor and produce a long time in early summer and again in late summer. Classed as an ever-bearer. Zone 3.
NEW! Allstar is a June-bearer. That means it only produces one crop a year, but it is a big crop! The berries are big, too, and really sweet. Excellent disease resistance. Hardy to Zone 4.
Tristar is a day-neutral strawberry. Day-neutral berries produce even in the longest days of summer, and, for those of you who have greenhouses, in the shortest days of winters, too. Tristar has good flavor, it’s one of my favorites. Zone 4.
NEW! Eversweet is a day-neutral variety bred for heat tolerance. It can produce berries even when the temperatures reach 100 F. ! If your garden is in one of the hotter regions of Colorado, this strawberry might be the one for you. Sweet berries, too–ever-sweet! Zone 5.
NEW! Eclair is a sweet, juicy berry, producing in mid-season. It is a June-bearer, but has an everbearer in its family tree, so it produces for a longer season than many. It tastes really sweet, with hints of citrus and raspberry. Its unique flavor has quickly made this one of the favorite berries for gourmet cooks and strawberry aficionados. Zone 5.
Are strawberries difficult to grow? They like a rich, organic soil, weekly irrigation, and they prefer a slightly acidic soil. Despite that, they grow well in my alkaline soil, with sporadic irrigation. I think they’re easier to grow at my elevation (6500′) than in lower, hotter gardens. If I gardened in Pueblo I’d be tempted to try them in an area that receives afternoon shade, I’d mulch the soil deeply to help it stay cooler and hold the moisture, and I’d definitely try Eversweet for its heat tolerance. If I gardened in Westcliffe, or Cuchara, I’d pick Ft. Laramie for my main berry and experiment with others to test their winter hardiness. All strawberries like a winter mulch to prevent them from heaving out of the ground. And for my deer-challenged gardening friends, be warned, deer will eat them-leaves, berries and all! That’s one reason I always grow some in baskets where I can move them out of harm’s way.
