For most people, strawberries, strawberries and Victoria are “one berry field”. The inhabitants believe that these are just synonyms of a single berry - strawberries. After all, the taste is almost the same for all berries, and the appearance. Is only the color slightly different, but the size.
But more meticulous citizens no, no, and they will be interested: is the same thing strawberries and Victoria?
This is of particular interest among gardeners, when for some reason some acquired bushes are all covered with fragrant berries in the time allowed for fruiting, and there are practically no berries on others planted in two or three years. So what's the reason?
A little excursion into the past ...
If we consider the origin of these berries from the point of view of the family tree (to make it clearer), it turns out that strawberries, strawberries and Victoria belong to the same genus of strawberries.
But a very long time ago there was a division “into branches”.
For example, several centuries ago strawberries were called strawberries for their round berries. These berries felt great not only in the fields, but also near the house, where it was safely grown.
But later attention turned to nutmeg strawberries, which are believed to have come from crossing with wild strawberry. It was not only more fruitful and hardy, but also very tasty, smelling like nutmeg. She began to grow in all of Europe (and not only), even she came up with the name - “European Strawberry”. It was here that a separate species was fixed - Strawberry.
Strawberries are found wild in the forests and on the edges from the south to the north, both in Russia and in other countries.
But the nutmeg strawberries (strawberries) "did not come to court", since it was supplanted by garden strawberries.
Garden large-fruited strawberries appeared due to the crossing of wild virgin strawberries with Chilean wild strawberries. She won the hearts of many gardeners thanks to larger berries and increased frost resistance.
Garden strawberries became the progenitor of the many varieties that appeared later. After all, before there were breeders who took care of the breeding of more productive varieties. So there was a variety of Victoria.
Our time ...
Victoria is a variety of garden strawberries, which has become a favorite among gardeners for its cold resistance and endurance. Victoria has larger bushes, wide leaves, large flowers, and, accordingly, large berries.
How does a strawberry differ from Victoria?
Garden strawberries, and therefore Victoria - monoecious plants. That is, both women's flowers and men's flowers are located on the same bush. And with cross pollination, numerous large berries appear.
What about strawberries?
Branch Strawberry remained on its own. That is, its origin comes from the genus Strawberry, but the Strawberry view is much different from garden strawberries, and even more so from the improved variety of Victoria. Strawberries are a completely different type of berry. Strawberry is a dioecious plant. That is, only female flowers bloom on one bush, and only male flowers on the other.
And in order to get at least some crop of berries, it is necessary that 15-25% of male plants should be planted for pollination.
Strawberries are different from Victoria and the size of the fruit. Strawberries have small berries (2-5 g). They are reddish-purple on the sunny side, and whitish-pink on the other, shaded side.
In Victoria, the berries are large, fragrant, and when ripe, they turn completely red.
Strawberries are different from Victoria and low yields. Indeed, unlike Victoria, in which all the bushes bear fruit, in the beds with strawberries berries, and small ones, appear only on female sockets. For this reason, strawberries are unprofitable to grow in industrial quantities. Therefore, it is found most often in the fields as a wild-growing berry or at the dacha of some amateur gardener who, well, just loves strawberries!
And the berry, which is sold in the market (and Victoria too), is nothing but numerous varieties of strawberries.
