Lanette Duval, age 13, of Portland, Ore., for her question:
DO STRAWBERRIES GROW FROM SEEDS?
The strawberry plant does not reproduce by seed. When the fruit is developing, the plant sends out slender growths called runners. These look like strings. They grow on the ground and send out roots in the soil. The roots produce new plants which grow and bear fruit.
Sometimes these plants are taken from the soil and replanted to start additional new plants.
,The fruit_o.f,,_ the strawberry differs from the true berry, such as the huckleberry. The strawberry does not have an outer skin around the seed. It has a fleshy, swollen fruit with dry yellow seeds on the outside. When the strawberry ripens, the petals of the flower fall off and all that remains is the calyx, a leafy substance shaped like a star.
Not every strawberry flower produces fruit, however. Some flowers do not have stamens. These must be planted near plants that have stamens, so that their pollen can fertilize the seeds. This type of pollination is known as cross pollination.
Strawberry plants can be planted in any garden soil. But the richer the soil, the larger the crop.
The plant grows best in a cool, moist climate and does not do well in warm temperatures. The strawberry is planted in rows. Young plants are used for setting the rows. The rows are usually three feet apart and the plants are set 18 inches apart in the rows to allow for the new roots and plants.
The plants may be planted in the spring or fall, but if the temperature is too cold, fall planting requires a lot of care. Some strawberries, called everbearing, produce berries throughout the summer and fall.
The strawberry fruit can be prepared in many tasty dishes. The fruit is an excellent source of vitamin C. Also, strawberries are exceptionally well adapted to quick freezing. The frozen berries, like the fresh ones, are used in ice cream, pastries, jellies and jams.
Strawberry plants belong to the rose family. The leaves grow on the stems in groups of three, the roots are short and the flowers smell sweet.
The strawberry fruit is considered to be one of the most important small fruits grown in the Western Hemisphere. It grows _ both as a wild plant and as a cultivated plant.
The greenish white fruits turn to a rich red color when they ripen.
The strawberry was originally grown in northern Europe, but wild types also are found in Russia, Chile and the United States.
The first American species of strawberry was cultivated about 1835. Every state in the U.S., and every province in Canada grows the strawberry plant today.
How did the strawberry receive its name? The berries seem to be strewn or scattered among the leaves of the plant. This may be why the plant was first called the strawberry. Gradually it came to be called strawberry.