Barren Strawberry

Barren strawberry is the low, spreading perennial groundcover that looks like a strawberry plant, three-part leaves, yellow flowers in spring, but produces no edible fruit (hence 'barren'). It grows four to eight inches tall, spreading by runners into a dense, semi-evergreen mat. The yellow flowers are small but cheerful in April and May, and the foliage turns bronze in fall and winter. Native to eastern North America from New Brunswick to Minnesota and south to the Appalachians.

In Western Washington, barren strawberry is a useful groundcover for part shade to full shade with well-drained soil. It tolerates dry shade better than most flowering groundcovers and fills in at a moderate pace, faster than bunchberry but slower than periwinkle. No significant disease or pest concerns are tracked. It is not invasive and stays where you put it, which is an advantage over more aggressive alternatives. For a low, semi-evergreen, flowering groundcover in shade that provides the look of wild strawberry without the fruit mess or the invasive tendency, barren strawberry is a well-behaved choice.