We have white asparagus, so why don't we have white strawberries?
We get white asparagus by restricting sunlight to the stalks. The same is true of Belgian Endive. That's what they do with some white strawberries, but that's not the special ones.
There are upwards of 50 white strawberry varieties, including the popular Japanese jewel strawberries. That's one that is naturally white.
There are also white subspecies of wild strawberries - alpine strawberries and beach strawberries (also called coastal strawberries).
Pineberry is one of the really special ones. It is a hybrid of the white strawberry - a cross between a wild Chilean white strawberry and the classic North American strawberry. They can ripen in the sun, leading to a more pinkish hue. Pale pink or pale orange berries dotted with red seeds, pineberries can easily be mistaken for white strawberries - aka jewel strawberries.
Pineberries are smaller than jewel strawberries and bear a closer resemblance to traditional wild strawberries.
Are there any regular strawberries available yet? I don't think so. We'll have to do some investigative work to find this very pretty little berry - it is those pink seeds, isn't it.
This picture is on the Linden Farms website - note that they are shipping only to western Canada.
This is Chanticleer Gardens near Philadelphia. Here's a place where these pretty white strawberries would be plentiful.
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