Fragaria vesca
(Otherwise known as Wild or Woodland Strawberries or Fraises de Bois)
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Since much of my garden has a “wild” touch to it, these fit very well into the landscape. The name is misleading as they grow in open sun, and not only woodland. They are, however, very wild! They send out runners and spread quickly, and as ground cover are wonderful. Not only is the greenery welcome, but the pretty white flowers from May onwards and the first fruit a few weeks later create a magical, fairytale look.
Moreover, they taste and smell delicous, although they rapidly lose their flavour when picked.
Sweet treats for the gardener!
(And for the dogs – one of which has learned to pick them herself) 😀
Words and Herbs 
Oh I love that one of your dogs picks these….what a treat to have them in your garden.
We all get a lot of pleasure from them – they look pretty, smell divine, and taste nice too!
I had a dog like that…she even learned to pull carrots out of the ground!
Love the smell of wild strawberries…there’s just no equal!
I’m glad ours doesn’t try and uproot anything! Yes, the smell is wonderful. 😀
Just now I nibbled some of the sweet “Wild Strawberries” in our garden. Yes, the covering of the ground with wild strawberries somehow looks like a picture in a book of fairy-tales.
The dogs get to eat most of ours! 😉
We have tiny strawberries like this in the grass. I have never seen them grow tall like yours. They have the best taste, though. Much better than the large ones.
My friend used to bring her German Shepard blueberry picking with us, and he would eat the berries right off the bushes, faster than we could pick. Don’t bears do that, too?
That’s funny – we once had a dog who ate beans off the stalks too! And raspberries off the canes if given the chance!
Dogs are just so clever! I had no idea that they lose flavour so rapidly after picking.
Well ours really do taste best eaten immediately, but I have seen recipes using them in jam and desserts, which puzzles me!
We had very few, very small ones in our garden as well. Unfortunately I haven´t seen any this year. I like your pictures!
Thanks Simone! We have more than ever this year!
I’ve had these growing in my garden going on five years and this is the very first summer that I might…just might…get some fruit! Usually the hares nibble them down first thing in the spring and the plants are so set back that they don’t even flower. This year I have a fabulous grouping of runners and blooms and I have such hope! 🙂
I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you! They are a delight if you can eat them from your own garden!