This site is an archive of ChiotsRun.com. For the latest information about Susy and her adventrures, visit the Cultivate Simple site.
Thank you for all your support over the years!

Little Yellow Wonder Strawberries

July 2nd, 2010

Last year, on a whim, I purchased a packet of ‘Yellow Wonder’ strawberry seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I started the seeds mid-summer and planted them in my garden in the fall.

The plants are compact, about 8-10 inches tall and very lush. I’m using them as a ground cover and edging in the front foundation garden. ‘Yellow Wonder’ is an alpine strawberry, so it doesn’t put off runners. This is why they’re in the front garden, I don’t have to worry about them taking over like some strawberry plants might.

The best part of these strawberries is that they’re everbearing, meaning they’ll bear fruit all summer long and into fall. They started producing a few berries in the spring, when the regular strawberry plants fruited. I wasn’t sure I would like them at that time, the fruit seemed a little mushy and they weren’t producing very many berries. About mid-June things changed. They started producing nicely and the fruit tastes much better, I’m actually quite fond of them now. They have an exotic flavor much like passion fruit, they’re really wonderful topping a salad.

Being able to grow interesting varieties of thing is one of the reasons I garden and grow edible things. I’m quite certain I never would have tasted a yellow strawberry had I not planted them in my own garden. Now I’ll be enjoying these little yellow beauties on my salads all summer long!

Do you have any interesting varieties of fruits or vegetables you’d discovered?

19 Comments to “Little Yellow Wonder Strawberries”
  1. Mangochild on July 2, 2010 at 5:31 am

    Beautiful. How do they taste as compared to the red strawberries? I agree, getting unusual varieties is a lot of the fun of growing things oneself, and especially if it is one of those “surprise” attempts.

    Reply to Mangochild's comment

    • Susy on July 2, 2010 at 6:29 am

      They’re quite good, very exotic. Not strawberry flavored, necessarily. I’d say kind of like mango, or something similar. The texture is softer than most strawberries, more along the lines of wild strawberries.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  2. pam on July 2, 2010 at 7:26 am

    I have never heard of such a thing! They are so cool!

    Reply to pam's comment

  3. Donna B. on July 2, 2010 at 9:09 am

    eee! I actually bought a packet of these seeds too! Although… sadly, I wasn’t successful in getting them to germinate.
    Is there any special way that you got them to sprout? I am not sure if my slightly-on-the-cool-side basement was the proper place to start these particular seeds in the spring… I do have some left over, so I might try one more time before I resort to purchasing a plant from Annie’s Annuals… hehe!

    And they taste of mango/passionfruit?! That makes me happy beyond belief, and I need these strawberries right now! Mmm. They look amazing on that salad too, so does your sandwich as well… mmm;

    Reply to Donna B.'s comment

    • Susy on July 2, 2010 at 9:59 am

      I simply sprinkled them in a flat, lightly pressed them into the soil, put them on my front porch (that gets afternoon sun) and kept them watered, they germinated nicely.

      It’s a venison sloppy joe on a homemade roll (although we call them sloppy juans because we make them hot & spicy).

      Reply to Susy's comment

  4. Mija on July 2, 2010 at 9:26 am

    Those do look yummy! How about the birds and the chipmunks – do they leave them alone better than the red ones? We’re about to institute a Chipmunk Relocation Program around here!!!!

    Reply to Mija's comment

    • Susy on July 2, 2010 at 10:00 am

      I haven’t noticed the birds and the chipmunks bothering them. Our outdoor cat is doing a wonderful job with our chipmunk population.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  5. tj on July 2, 2010 at 9:44 am

    …Too cute! :o)

    …I with Donna B. up there, is there anything special you have to do to get strawberry seeds to germinate? I never thought to try and growing them from seed, I always purchased plants…

    …Thank you and enjoy your berries!

    …Blessings… :o)

    Reply to tj's comment

  6. Turling on July 2, 2010 at 9:49 am

    Those look really good. I thought strawberries were just strawberries. Once again, completely mistaken.

    Reply to Turling's comment

  7. Jaspenelle on July 2, 2010 at 11:15 am

    I love heirloom pole beans, they are my primary garden obsession and the reason I first put a seed to ground. I give a new variety a try every season (this year it is Hidatsa Shield Beans.) I keep meaning to sow strawberries but forgetting, maybe next Spring, now that I know I can control alpine strawberries, maybe I will put them along the bed where I’ll be planting asparagus.

    Reply to Jaspenelle's comment

  8. Wider Sky on July 2, 2010 at 11:58 am

    I bought some wild strawberries this year. They’re much smaller than cultivated ones, and have a slightly sharper taste, but they’ve produced lots and lots of berries so far. They do put off runners, so I’m hoping to have many more next year!

    Reply to Wider Sky's comment

  9. Kendra @ A Sonoma Garden on July 2, 2010 at 12:47 pm

    Wow! Yellow strawberries, I’ve never seen those before. I don’t think we have any exotic fruits growing. But I’m tempted to try those yellow strawberries now!

    Reply to Kendra @ A Sonoma Garden's comment

  10. mamaraby on July 2, 2010 at 3:08 pm

    Interesting!

    Reply to mamaraby's comment

  11. Sandy on July 2, 2010 at 3:13 pm

    Very neat — never heard of yellow strawberries. And I never heard of Baker Creek either – but after looking at the link you provided I’m really interested in trying some of their seeds for next year. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply to Sandy's comment

  12. Renee on July 3, 2010 at 11:34 pm

    Very neat! I for one am looking forward to my yellow pear-shaped cherry tomatoes this summer :)

    Reply to Renee's comment

  13. Pat on September 15, 2010 at 9:52 pm

    Would you have 6 -plants to sell of yellow wonder strawberry?

    Reply to Pat's comment

  14. Daniel on January 26, 2011 at 11:22 am

    Ive read that you must deflower the ever-bearing type of strawberries for the first six weeks they put out flowers, this will help the plant establish itself. perhaps this practice will help with the mushy early season berries.

    Reply to Daniel's comment

  15. A Taste of Summer | Chiot's Run on June 1, 2011 at 4:47 am

    […] ‘Yellow Wonder’ – a yellow alpine strawberry that produces small yellow pineapple flavored berries all summer long. Compact, about 8-10 inches tall and very lush, perfect for edging gardens. Do not produce runners. (source: started from seed a few years ago originally from Baker Creek) […]

    Reply to A Taste of Summer | Chiot’s Run's comment

  16. Tara on April 23, 2012 at 8:08 am

    I planted these too; my seedsd were from baker creek as well. I started them in the same flats as my peppers (8 wks before last frost date), in plug trays. I have a grow-light setup, and I just sprinkled the tiny seeds on top of the soil (seeding mix) exactly as you did, and kept well watered. I’ll be honest, I was totally not expecting any germination. They were last year’s whim purchase as an ‘online special’ that Baker creek often offers. Imagine my suprise when the little leaflets broke through! I had to double check my chart because I had forgotten I planted them even….And, they true leaf out basically right away which I imagine gets them off to a hardy start. I’ll separate the bunches a little bit later for transplanting much as regular strawberries, and throw them into a patch in the garden. Anyway, my point is that even with one year old seeds, a little warmth (they were covered with plastic and heated by the grow lights) they came up wonderfully. Good luck to anyone trying these! There’s enough seeds in the package to get an abundance of plants :)

    Reply to Tara's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

Admin
Read previous post:
Signs of Summer

One of the best signs of summer (besides bare feet) is berry stained hands. I have many fond memories of...

Close