Strawberry 'Fairfax'

This cultivar is now again available in commerce. Not a viable commercial cultivar, but an option for the home garden.

The...Read More flavor is unsurpassed. Less productive than modern cultivars, and more prone to bruising in harvesting. The variety is resistant to leaf spot and other leaf diseases, but is susceptible to red stele root disease and virus infections.

Bred by George M. Darrow in 1923, selected in 1925, and released in 1933.

I have been growing this amazing variety for 2 years. The fruit flavor and aroma is phenomenal. The berries are not as soft as many have ...Read Morereported. I'm sure they wouldn't withstand a cross country trip in a truck but I believe that are suitable for market gardeners, pick your own operations and definitely home gardens. The season is way too short but the harvest is fair sized. I grew the plants in aeration containers where they have thrived. The plants produce moderate numbers of runners starting as the fruit season winds down. I now am rooting runners for sale in the fall of 2016 and beyond.

Grew here, just north of Madison, Wisconsin. The strawberries were perfection--in taste and in perfume. I was told Fairfax disappeared be...Read Morecause it was another victim of the need for fruit that ships without damage. We found that it was absolutely true that Fairfax could hardly survive the trip from garden to kitchen without bruising. Seriously. Although we usually ate most of them on the way to the kitchen, we learned to eat the rest soon after as refrigerating them reduced the amazing quality. Bottom-line, Fairfax is one of those ephemeral, seasonal treats you dream about all winter, and greedily gobble up when its time finally arrives. So, is Fairfax worth the trouble? Absolutely. Grow Sparkle strawberries to freeze; grow Fairfax strawberries, if you're lucky enough to find them, for a sublime strawberry experience. And please get in touch if you find any as we'd love to grow them again.

Another ancient cultivar noted as a dessert berry. It is a small dark red berrt. The plant is not very vigorous and is not as easy to gro...Read Morew as most other cultivars. Flavor is excellent, performance iffy.