Marshall strawberry

Marshall strawberry
Species Fragaria ananassa
Origin Massachusetts, 1890

The Marshall strawberry is a cultivated variety of Fragaria ananassa,[1] that is known for "exceptional taste and firmness"[2] and had been described as "the finest eating strawberry" in America.[1][2]

The variety was discovered by Marshall F. Ewell of Massachusetts in 1890[1] and flourished in the Pacific Northwest throughout the early part of the 20th Century, where it was an important crop in the region's berry industry. It was, however, especially sensitive to virus diseases[3] and its commercial qualities were particularly harmed by gradual degeneration by the strawberry crinkle virus.[4] The Marshall Strawberry is currently being maintained at the USDA National Clonal Germplasm Repository in Corvallis, Oregon, and by very few private growers.[5]

Renewing America's Food Traditions, a coalition of sustainable agriculture organizations, listed the Marshall strawberry as one of "700 plant and animal foods at risk of extinction".[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Marshall strawberry: The Forgotten Flavor", Slow Food USA.org
  2. 1 2 Oregon Strawberry Commission
  3. ↑ Scott, D. H. Strawberry varieties in the United States, US DASEA, 1979, p.11
  4. ↑ Station Bulletin of the Agricultural Experiment Station, Oregon State College, 345-359, 1936, p.47
  5. ↑ "Marshall plan fails", Portland Tribune, July 10, 2007
  6. ↑ "Group publishes book listing endangered foods"

External links

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