This is the first year I have grown strawberries at home. Mine are in pots. I had my first ripe strawberry yesterday and I was blown away by how good it was. I had never eaten a home grown one before (always store bought) and I just could not believe how tasty it was. Pretty much the difference was the same as store bought tomatoes vs home grown ones. If the rest of them taste that that one did, I will double how many plants I grow next year!

Andrew, I am no expert either but I will share my experiences with you and maybe it will be helpful. All my strawberry were obtained by Nourse two years ago. I ordered Earliglow, Cabot and Evie 2. Quality plants, timely shipping and 100% survival. I followed all care instructions provided. This was my first bearing year. The Cabots were large, productive and tasted great. Since they are so big, they are great for fresh eating, especially for your kids. They runner well and fill in nicely although the runners seem shorter than other strawberries I've grown. The Earliglow and Cabot seasons overlapped nicely. As one was slowing down the other was just heating up. When the Earliglows were totally fizzling, the Cabots were at their peak. Both beds were renovated a couple weeks ago and are already nearly fully leafed out again. Here is a photo of a bowl of Earliglows. The two larger berries on the top are the first few edible Cabots of the year. For reference, this picture was taken on 6/4/11, I am in Zone 5, southwest suburbs of Chicago. My only complaint about the Cabots is that the first berry in each cluster was very strangely shaped and sometimes had a hollow center. Tasted the same, just ugly. For an ever-bearer, I have had good experience with Evie 2. Here is a photo of a bed of them in the left of the picture. The bed is dense and the leaves are big and glossy which hides them from the birds. They runner well even though I keep them contained in that area. Production has been steady even through this past week of hot, humid days with temperatures in the high 90's.

Should add to what was said above and let you know that this plant is related to the true strawberries, which is why it looks so much like them. It's not poisonous, just tastes pretty bland/blah, kind of like eating kleenex.

Lois, I can only venture a guess that you are either watering them overhead or that you have had a lot of rain. It doesn't take a lot of water on the berries to get them waterlogged and tasteless. If it's overhead watering, switch to a soaker hose or drip irrigation. If it's rain, hope it's drier next year. And make sure to mulch them to preserve soil moisture. Granny Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden