Fragaria x ananassa 'Framberry'

Framberry Rosaceae

An unusual strawberry producing relatively small, rounded to heart-shaped, deep-red fruits with prominently sunken achenes and an exceptionally rich flavour reminiscent of raspberries. The resemblance is entirely in the fruit and flavour: Framberry is a strawberry, not a strawberry × raspberry hybrid. It makes a useful addition to the fruit garden for its distinctive flavour and novelty.

Framberry should not be confused with ‘Mieze Schindler’, also marketed as ‘Strasberry’. ‘Mieze Schindler’ was bred in Germany by Otto Schindler in 1925 and is the celebrated old strawberry renowned for its intensely flavoured, raspberry-like fruit. It is a pistillate cultivar producing no fertile pollen, and consequently requires another strawberry for pollination. ‘Strasberry’ is a later commercial name associated with this historic cultivar.

‘Framberry’ is a different strawberry. Although its history and fruit characteristics are closely associated with the Mieze Schindler tradition, it should not be catalogued as a synonym of ‘Mieze Schindler’ or ‘Strasberry’. Contemporary commercial and legal records show Framberry emerging as a distinct name in the Netherlands in 2011, when it was being developed for commercial propagation and promotion. The RHS now lists Fragaria × ananassa ‘Framberry’ separately, with its name status currently unresolved. 

The precise breeding pedigree and original breeder of Framberry remain poorly documented in reliable published sources, and the frequently repeated claim that it was simply a self-fertile form of ‘Mieze Schindler’ should therefore be avoided. What is clear is that the two are distinct named plants, despite their remarkably similar raspberry-like fruit and the persistent confusion in the nursery trade.

• Hardiness: H6, -20 to -15°C
• Height: 10–30 cm
• Spread: 30–45 cm
• Flowers: April–May
• Fruit: June–July