Edible fruit of the herbs

Strawberry, common name for low, perennial herbs of a genus of the rose family, and also for the edible fruit of these herbs. Strawberries, which are native to temperate regions throughout the world, were first cultivated in the United States about 1835 and have since become an important and widely distributed crop on farms and in home gardens. The white flowers, which are borne in cymes, have a five-cleft calyx, five rounded petals, many stamens, and numerous pistils. The fruit is an aggregate of numerous nutlets distributed on an enlarged, pulpy, scarlet receptacle.

All cultivated strawberries were developed from four principal species. The first of these, the wood strawberry, is a fragile woodland species native to the mountains of Mexico, South America, and the West Indies. The meadow strawberry of eastern North America was introduced into Europe during the 17th century. The beach strawberry is native to mountainous areas in the western hemisphere, and the fourth species of strawberry is common in central Europe. Most of the numerous varieties of strawberries under cultivation today were developed from the North American varieties, known as the Wilson, Crescent, Sharpless, and Longworth.