groundcover
Barren strawberry
Waldsteinia fragarioides
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Barren strawberry is a semi-evergreen groundcover hardy in zones 4–7. It grows 3–6 in tall and 1–1.5 ft wide, so plant it 1 ft apart. Give it part sun to part shade and average water. It flowers yellow in April to May. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the edge role: a low plant that finishes the front edge. It is native to the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest. Deer may browse it when other food is short, and it is not listed as toxic to dogs or cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in the Southeast, Florida and the Gulf, Texas and the South-Central states and the Desert Southwest, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Waldsteinia fragarioides
- Plant type
- Groundcover, semi evergreen
- Hardiness zones
- 4 to 7
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours)
- Water
- Medium
- Soil
- Average to dry, well-drained soil.
- Mature size
- 3–6 in tall × 1–1.5 ft wide
- Spacing
- 1 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Bloom
- Apr–May · yellow
- Roles in a bed
- Edge
- Styles
- natural, cottage
- Deer resistance
- Medium: browsed when deer are hungry
- Pets
- Not listed as toxic to dogs or cats. Not individually on the ASPCA list; its relative wild strawberry (Fragaria) is listed non-toxic.
- Native to
- Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest
- Pot size and price
- quart pot, typically $8–$14 (specialist nurseries)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Water deeply once or twice a week through the first summer, more in heat; keep the soil evenly moist but not soggy. Established plants need water only in dry spells.
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder; state extension service fact sheets; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Rutgers NJAES deer resistance ratings; state extension service; Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States; state noxious weed and invasive plant lists; US garden-centre and home-improvement retail listings (general knowledge, 2026 estimate); USDA PLANTS database; state extension service native plant lists. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Guides that include this plant
- Dog-safe plants for a part-shade bed in zone 5 (as a substitute)
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Barren strawberry, across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Arrowwood viburnum 'Blue Muffin'Viburnum dentatum 'Christom'shrub · zones 3–8
- Bee balmMonarda didymaperennial · zones 4–9
- Christmas fernPolystichum acrostichoidesfern · zones 3–9
- Pennsylvania sedgeCarex pensylvanicaornamental grass · zones 3–8
- Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'Cornus sericea 'Farrow'shrub · zones 3–7
- White wood asterEurybia divaricataperennial · zones 3–8
If you can't find it
Plants that do the same job and pass the same rules for the conditions Barren strawberry suits.
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants