I’m getting ready to start some new strawberries in a raised bed. I’ve “heard” that everbearing are the way to go as far as quality & taste, one person even going so far as to say the June bearing are “just awful.”
That being said, I know someone who highly recommended Shuksan plants, ironically a June bearer…
Thoughts of very good to outstanding varieties?
Zone 5B
I think there are good varieties of both kinds. AC Wendy does really well in my area. The main reason I like June bearing though is because later in the year I’m so busy with tree fruit. Personally I don’t want to mess with strawberries once the tree fruit starts coming in heavy. But if you live for strawberries it probably makes sense to have some June bearing and everbearing.
I’ve only gotten paltry results with ever bearing strawberries. The June bearing ones I planted last year are loaded with flowers. The pineberries I put in look like they’re not even flowering, and probably going to die shortly.
I tried Christina White from Edible landscaping and I’m not happy. easy to grow and the plants are vigorous with lots of production but the fruit are miniscule and very difficult to tell when fully ripe.
Next year I’ll try some seeds from the strawberry seed store. likely Hawaii 4. I found this table helpful.
I ran a test crop my first 2 years growing strawberries. no matter what anyone says about zones, you need to discover what will perform well in your area. I planted 8 varieties, and at the end of the trial, Charlotte and Cabrillo were the clear winners. Both Everbearing. I am in zone 8b in the hot humid south.
Hmm. I just planted Cabrillo and I’m in an opposite summer climate, where it’s relatively cool and dry all summer (coastal PNW)… I wonder how they’ll do here.
Dont be discouraged. Strawberries will surprise you. 
they were not recommended for my area but I tried them anyway
I grew Camino real last year and was unimpressed. This cultivar lacked much flavor and the plants weren’t very vigorous. This year I grew chandler and the plants were much more vigorous and the fruit was delicious and productive. I did have some fungus issues on the berries earlier in the late winter and early spring. The heat is coming on quickly here and yesterday was likely my final strawberry harvest of the year.
I’ve got about 100 strawbs in 3 raised beds mulched with Black Plastic. My kids love them. I started with Seascape and Albion everbearing/day neutrals before adding Earlyglo June bearings a couple years later.
Taste-wise I think they are all very good, the key is to let them get completely ripe before picking. Beats the pants off anything you’ll get in the grocery store. Seascapes for me have been bulletproof, they are very vigorous and productive and great when ripe. Albions are a little bit less productive but make much larger berries. I’ve only had 1 year of production on the Earlyglo so I can’t report too much on them yet, but no complaints on taste
I prefer the everbearing and getting berries spread through the summer but I added Earlyglo too to get a crop of strawbs early in the season before the everbearings get going
i can save you some money and time. i have rodluvan, regina, yellow wonder, pineapple crush, and Alexandria. i need to thin then so i can cut you a cluster from each one. only thing is i dont remember which is which.
I’ve grown sparkle, galetta, archer, earliglow and evie 2. all were great producers and tasted great. evie 2 was a everbearing but would produce a bunch at 1 time so it was convenient to harvest. got galetta runners transplanted into a new 4’ x 12’ raised bed. in another few years ill trial something else.
Looks like you’re in northern Maine and I’m in Maryland so you would have to ship live pants down to me($) and I already have seeds (Hawaii 4, Pineapple crush, White Soul, White Soulmacher and Yellow Wonder in the freezer) and all the equipment to start them. no time or place to plant them right now anyway so I’m at least a year off from getting started. thanks anyway
they are easy to start from seed but take a few years to start to produce.
You may not need these since you are way up north there…
But here in southern TN eversweet has been a dependable everbearing cropper… and as advertised even thru the hot part of summer and early fall they still produce some berries.
I have mine planted in a food forest bed… where they are mulched good but get no special attention (no watering) and still i collect berries thru the hot months.
They are the most true to the term (everbearing) strawberries that I have found yet.
If you had them in a raised bed and could water them thru hot dry spells… i expect you would see very good production.
Not sure how they would do up north there.
June bearers… sure crop, ozark bueaty have done well for me in the past…
I have some Earliglow that I started last spring that are producing now. They really are early and taste good. Ate the first one last week.
Where do yo get your seeds?
Where do yo get your seeds from?
How deep does a raised bed need to be for strawberries?
The strawberry store is retiring… It’s my understanding that there will be no next year.
I was given three or four different blueberry suckers, three different
Black berry plants & one Strawberry plant. the giver did not know or remember the name of the variety. So I have no name, but they all do well in my area.
