Remontant strawberry Alexandria is a sought-after variety with delicious aromatic berries and an extended fruiting period, without whiskers. It is grown as a balcony and garden crop, frost-resistant and little susceptible to diseases. Propagated by seeds or dividing bushes.
Description and characteristics
Bearded strawberry plants bear fruit from early summer until frost. For productive cultivation of the Alexandria variety as a potted crop, you need to take care of fertile soil, preferably black soil with the addition of peat.
The powerful bush of strawberry Alexandria is semi-spreading, densely leafy, grows up to 20-25 cm in height. The leaves are serrated along the edges and folded along the central vein. No mustache is formed. Peduncles are tall, thin, with small white flowers.
The conical berries of Alexandria are the largest for a small-fruited type of alpine strawberry, very fragrant, bright red. The average weight is up to 8 g. The oblong fruits do not have a neck, the apex is sharply pointed. The skin is shiny, glossy, with moderately pronounced red seeds. The sweet pulp has a characteristic strawberry taste.
The Alexandria strawberry bush bears fruit in waves from May or June to October. During the season, up to 400 g of berries are collected from one plant.
The berries of the Alexandria variety are universal in use. They are consumed fresh and homemade for the winter. Having planted strawberry seedlings of the Alexandria variety grown with your own hands, after 1.5-2 months you can already try the signal berries. If all agricultural technology requirements are met, the strawberry bush of the Alexandria variety is capable of producing up to 700-1000 berries. One plant bears fruit up to 3-4 years of age. Then the bushes are replaced with new ones.
The compact size of the Alexandria strawberry bush has made the variety a favorite of balcony and indoor gardens. Peduncles and ovaries are formed throughout the warm season. The berries ripen even on the windowsill. The plant does not take up much space. The hassle of caring for Alexandria strawberries is also small, because the plant is resistant to fungal diseases. Gardeners who bought seeds of the Alexandria variety agree that the suppliers “Aelita” and “Gavrish” are reliable.
Small-fruited beardless strawberries: choice for different regions
Victor grapes: variety qualities and cultivation nuances
Varieties of garden strawberries with medium-sized berries have excellent taste. At the height of fruiting, fragrant berries shower the bushes, filling the air around with an incredible strawberry aroma.
Alexandria
Developed in the USA, it is known for its long-lasting fruit production.
Bushes with spreading flower stalks, tall and thin. The berries are conical, rich red in color with gloss, weigh 6-8 grams (for small-fruited varieties this is a lot of weight). The achenes are red, slightly depressed. There is a characteristic strawberry aroma. The approximate fruiting time is from early June to mid-October. 350-400 grams of berries are harvested from the plant per season.
Yellow miracle
The yellow-golden berries of this strawberry look original against the background of green foliage. The variety is German, propagated by seeds or by dividing the bush, since there are no mustaches on the plant.
The berries are elongated, elliptical in shape, with golden achenes on the surface. They weigh no more than three grams. The taste is sweet, with a characteristic pineapple aftertaste and aroma. Since the fruits do not contain red pigment, they can be eaten even by allergy sufferers.
Baron Solemacher
A time-tested variety from Germany, it is famous for its excellent taste of berries with a bright strawberry aroma. Plants are small, well leafy. The leaves have serrated edges, light green with a silvery tint. Fruiting begins in the first year after planting, the highest yield is in 2-3 years. Transplantation – after 4 years.
The fruits are small, up to 3-4 grams in weight, bright red. They ripen in the middle zone in early June, bearing fruit until early September. In the southern regions, the last collections are in November.
Rügen
Winter-hardy garden strawberries were bred many years ago in Germany. The bushes grow up to 18-20 cm, the peduncles are strong and erect. During the ripening period, the berries do not lie on the surface of the ground, they are always clean, and do not rot.
The fruits are small, up to 2.5-3 grams, scarlet-red in color. The tip of unripe berries is slightly whitish. The achenes are large and located on the surface. The taste is excellent, the flesh is dense and sugary.
Planting requires rejuvenation every three years. The variety is demanding on watering and soil fertility. With proper agricultural technology, it bears fruit until frost.
Ali Baba
These delicious garden strawberries are famous for their abundant harvests (up to 0.5-0.7 kg). The bushes are powerful and leafy. They bloom and bear fruit in the first season. During the flowering period, the plants are strewn with numerous white “caps” of inflorescences.
The berries are slightly elongated and resemble wild strawberries in shape. Weight – 6-8 grams, achenes are small. The skin color is bright red, the core is milky white with pink splashes. The bushes tolerate cold weather well and quickly adapt to different climatic conditions.
Forest fairy tale
According to reviews from those who grew this variety, it is very similar in taste and aroma to the berries of real wild strawberries. The name is one hundred percent justified. A medium-sized plant with tall peduncles and bright green foliage.
The fruits are dense, juicy, weighing no more than 6 grams. Color – red, shape – conical. The bushes bear fruit until autumn and do not form mustaches. Use - desserts, freezing, making jams.
Golden
Zolotinka bushes do not form mustaches either. This garden strawberry attracts with the unusual color of its fruits; they are creamy-yellow, weighing 9-11 grams. Plants reach 18-20 cm, the leaves are dark green, with teeth.
The berries are formed from June to mid-October. The taste is pleasant, sweet. Many summer residents note that small-fruited yellow-white varieties are superior in taste to their red-fruited “brothers.”
Ruyana
Strawberries from Czech breeders, productive, easy to care for. The plants are compact, up to 18-20 cm high. Peduncles rise above the leaves, so the berries do not lie on the ground when ripe. The leaves are light green in color and shiny.
The first flowers appear at the end of May and continues until September. Fruiting is continuous, the berries are collected as they ripen throughout the summer season. The fruits are small, 5-7 grams, conical in shape. The dense berries taste sweet and aromatic. They are stored fresh without losing their presentation for 5-7 days.
By planting vineless garden strawberries on your plot, you can greatly simplify care while still getting a high yield of berries. You just need to remember about the mandatory rejuvenation of plantings and take care of obtaining crop seedlings in advance.
Growing from seeds
The most convenient way to obtain new Alexandria strawberry plants is to sow seeds for seedlings.
Seed production technique and stratification
Leaving a few of the ripest Alexandria strawberries for collecting seeds, the top layer with seeds is cut off, dried and ground. Dry seeds spill out. Another method is to mash ripe berries in a glass of water. The pulp rises, the ripened seeds remain at the bottom. The water and pulp are drained, the remainder is filtered, retaining the seeds on the filter. They are dried and stored until stratification.
Attention! A detailed description of growing strawberries from seeds.
Gardeners who have a heated greenhouse sow the resulting seeds of the Alexandria variety immediately, in the summer, so that they do not lose their germination. In winter, seedlings are grown in a greenhouse.
- At the end of January, beginning of February, Alexandria strawberry seeds are prepared for sowing through cooling, bringing the conditions closer to natural ones;
- For the substrate, take equal parts 3 parts of garden soil and leaf humus, add 1 part sand and ½ part ash. The soil is watered with Fundazol or Fitosporin according to the instructions;
- Place the Alexandria strawberry seeds on a wet napkin, then fold it and place it in an unclosed plastic bag in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Afterwards, the napkin with the seeds is laid out on the substrate. Cover the container and keep it moderately warm – 18-22 °C.
Seeds of the Alexandria variety are sown on the site before winter, lightly covering with soil. Natural stratification occurs under the snow.
Warning! Purchased seeds are also stratified.
Obtaining seedlings and planting
Seeds of the Alexandria variety germinate after 3-4 weeks. They are carefully looked after.
- Thin sprouts need to be illuminated for up to 14 hours a day using fluorescent or phytolamps;
- To make the bushes more stable, they are sprinkled with the same substrate up to the height of the cotyledon leaves;
- Watering is regular, moderate, with warm water;
- When the seedlings grow 2-3 true leaves, they are planted in pots or in compartments of a seedling cassette.
- 2 weeks after picking, Alexandria strawberry seedlings are fed with complex fertilizers, such as Gumi-20M Bogaty, which contains Fitosporin-M, which protects plants from fungal diseases.
- In the phase of 5-6 leaves, the bushes are transplanted a second time: into large containers on the balcony or on the plot.
- Before planting in a permanent place, seedlings of the Alexandria variety are hardened off, gradually leaving them longer in the fresh air.
Important! If strawberry seedlings turn their leaves vertically, there is not enough light for them.
Scheme for growing seedlings
Rose caramel: description with photos, reproduction, cultivation features and care rules
After waiting for the sprouts to appear, they begin to ventilate, creating conditions as close as possible to natural ones. In addition, it is useful to expose them to the sun for a short time every day. Each time the duration of stay on the windowsill can be increased.
There is no need to worry too much about the appearance of mold on the surface of the soil. It can be easily removed with a regular match. After this, it is advisable to ventilate the seedlings and dry them. To avoid additional difficulties, it is useful to treat the soil with an antifungal agent.
Excellent conditions for the growth of strawberry seeds can be provided using a drip irrigation system. However, you need to keep in mind that this will have the opposite effect on the leaves. It is advisable to periodically remove condensation from the surface of the shelter; it is recommended to water from a small container, for example, an ordinary spoon. Moisture should fall strictly under the root.
With the onset of April, you can begin the procedure of hardening strawberry seedlings. Containers with seedlings are taken out to a greenhouse or glassed-in balcony and left there for 2-3 hours. Once the seedlings get used to it, you can even leave it overnight.
Planting in open ground and caring for bushes
The site for the Alexandria variety is chosen to be sunny. Humus and 400 g of wood ash per hole are mixed into the soil. The most optimal method of cultivation is a two-row placement of strawberry bushes of the Alexandria variety in a bed 1.1 m wide. There is an interval of 0.5 m between the rows. The bushes are planted in holes measuring 25 x 25 x 25 cm, spilled with water, and spaced 25-30 cm.
- The first flower stalks on strawberries are carefully cut off so that the plant gets stronger. The next 4-5 peduncles with 4-5 berries on each are left to ripen;
- In the second year, bushes of the Alexandria variety produce up to 20 peduncles;
- At the end of summer, remove reddened leaves.
Advice! About how to prune strawberries and prepare them for winter.
Mulching of plantings
After compacting the soil around the planted Alexandria strawberry bushes, mulch the entire bed. For organic mulch, take straw, dry hay, peat, pine needles or old sawdust. Fresh sawdust needs to be shed with water and left for a while, otherwise it will take on all the moisture from the soil. Over time, organic matter becomes a good fertilizer in the garden beds. After 2-3 months, new mulch is applied and the old one is removed.
Comment! The rosette of the Alexandria strawberry bush is not deepened or covered with soil.
They also mulch with film and agrotextiles. They stretch the material on the bed and cut holes in the holes through which the strawberries are planted. This mulch prevents the growth of weeds and retains heat in the soil. But during prolonged rainy periods, strawberry roots under polyethylene may rot.
Attention! More information about mulching.
Soil care
Until the mulch is laid, the soil between the rows is systematically loosened and weeds are removed. Loosening provides easy air access to strawberry roots and also retains moisture. Before the berries begin to ripen, you need to loosen the soil at least 3 times. During fruiting, soil cultivation is not carried out.
Advice! Garlic, a favorable crop for strawberries, is often planted between rows. Slugs avoid areas with a pungent aroma.
Watering
After planting, Alexandria strawberries are watered abundantly 2 times a week. It must be assumed that to sufficiently moisten the hole and all the roots of 10-12 bushes, 10 liters of warm water, up to 20°C, is enough. During the growth phase of young leaves, water once a week. Strawberries do not like too high humidity.
Feeding
The Alexandria variety is fertilized with a humus solution or an infusion of bird droppings in a ratio of 1:15 every time the ovaries begin to form. The retail chain offers ready-made organic-based fertilizers. The EM series (effective microorganisms) is popular: Baikal EM1, BakSib R, Vostok EM1. Targeted mineral complexes for strawberries are also used: Strawberry, Kristalon, Kemira and others, according to the instructions.
Attention! How to properly feed strawberries.
Ways to combat diseases and pests
Strawberries Alexandria are resistant to fungal diseases. If the plants are infected, they are treated with fungicides after picking the berries.
Important! Read more about strawberry diseases.
Protect from pests by spring tillage of the soil with Bordeaux mixture or copper sulfate solution. Spray vitriol carefully, without touching the plants.
Attention! More detailed information about ways to control strawberry pests.
Planting
The soil for strawberries is prepared in advance. Apply fertilizer and lime. Do not plant after tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes. Grows well after onions and carrots.
The recommended width of the beds is 1.2 m, in a row - 30 cm. The rows are located at a distance of 40 cm from each other. Next year the bushes will grow and cover almost the entire territory. They will be easy to care for.
It takes a week for the bushes to adapt, but soon they begin to produce young leaves. In September they produce weak berries. This will allow the gardener to taste the variety. But the bush will produce its main harvest only from next year.
Each leaf lives for 2 months. Then it needs to be removed.
Reviews from gardeners do not advise doing this too early in the spring. Otherwise, young leaves may be damaged by spring frosts.
Features of growing in pots
Seedlings of the Alexandria variety are planted in containers with a diameter of 12-20 cm, 2-3 bushes each. Strawberryless strawberries do not take up much space. Containers should have a tray and a drainage layer of up to 4-5 cm. Water in the morning and evening so that the soil does not dry out. The soil is periodically loosened with a stick. When the strawberries bloom in the room, pollination is carried out manually. Pollen is transferred with a brush from flower to flower.
Attention! Tips for growing strawberries in pots.
History of the development of strawberries Alexandria
Strawberry Alexandria is a variety of American selection, bred by the agricultural company Park Seed Company. The seeds were first introduced to the world market in 1964.
The work was based on the principle of cross-pollination; classic varieties of remontant garden strawberries were used as mother specimens. There is no data on mother plants. In Russia, seeds are distributed by Aelita and Gavrish companies. You can find out about other varieties of remontant strawberries here.
Park Seed has been developing and distributing planting materials since 1868. During this time, more than 1,100 varieties and hybrids of garden and ornamental plants were bred.
Reviews about the variety
Review: Seeds of remontant strawberry Gavrish “Alexandria” - This is just some kind of fairy tale! Advantages: Unpretentious, bears fruit all summer Disadvantages: no disadvantages Several years ago we switched from growing strawberries to wild strawberries and have never regretted it. We grow several varieties, but the main one is Alexandria...Strawberries are unpretentious and survive frosts and heat well. Fruits continuously from June to September. And frankly, it tastes much better than strawberries! The plant is perennial; after 2–3 years you can plant a new one, or you can simply divide the old bushes.
Meg452 https://otzovik.com/review_3594196.html
It produces berries the same year; last year I grew strawberries of the Alexandria variety from 2 companies - I didn’t notice a difference, although in the pictures of the bags they were different - from RO they were rounder. The berries are tasty and fragrant. Baron Solemacher also planted, but later - in March. I dumped the baby out of the bowl onto the garden bed like a rug. This variety produced only a couple of berries at the end of summer.
Tatyana https://www.forumhouse.ru/threads/93593/page-27
As for the varieties: from small fruits I tried Alexandria, Baron Solemacher, Ruyana, Roseya, some white (I don’t know the variety, donated seedlings), Ali Baba. I liked Ali Baba and the white one the most. The most aromatic, sweet and large. Alexandria is simpler in taste, but more productive. Rosea and Ruyan - there are practically no berries, and the taste is not very good. One of them with a mustache was tortured with a mustache!
judgia https://www.forumhouse.ru/threads/93593/page-27
Today, thanks to Alexandria strawberries, I visited paradise called MOTHERLAND. Today I picked the first few berries from the bushes grown from seedlings since February. And remember how in the cartoon “RATATOUILLE”, having tasted the berries, I somehow miraculously moved back in time 40 years ago, when every summer in the Urals my parents and I collected this fragrant berry in buckets in the forests teeming with buzzing chambers, which at that time At the time, mosquitoes seemed like huge monsters.
222bagira https://forum.vinograd.info/archive/index.php?t-4761.html
Wherever you decide to grow strawberries - on a plot or in a pot on the balcony, the little miracle will not leave you alone. The tantalizing aroma of sweet berries will settle with you, promising tart sweetness.
