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  Potentilla indica 003.jpg  Duchesnea indica1.jpg  File:Korina 2014-08-19 Potentilla indica 3.jpg Scheinerdbeere (Potentilla indica)-1.JPG 

 

NAME:  Indian Strawberry

SPECIES / FAMILY:  Duchesnea Indica / Rosaceae

OTHER COMMON NAME(S): 

CONDITIONS: full sun to partial shade
 

PARTS:

EDIBLE cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

TASTE

RAW/COOK

SEASON

All

  

 

 

 

Shoots

 

 

 

 

Leaves

 

COOK

Summer

Buds/Flowers

        

Fruits

cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

bland to slightly sweet

RAW/DRY/COOK

Summer

Roots

        

Seeds

  

 

    

Nuts

 

 

 

 

Pods

 

 

 

 

Stalk

 

 

 

 

Bark

 

 

 

 

 

PORTION: small for leaves, medium for fruit

 

COMMENT:  Indian strawberries are a fun little fruit. In good growing conditions (good soil, drainage, shade & sun), the berries can be much larger than normal, plus more juicy and tasty. Fruit can be added to already sweetened recipes, floats well in punch bowls. // Berries raw, leaves raw in salads, leaves cooked as a green, leaves dried for tea.(2)

 

CAUTION: “Strawberry leaf tea is laxative. Do not use wilted leaves. Only fresh or totally dry leaves.” (2)

 

NUTRITION/MEDICINAL: “The fruits are used as a tooth cleaner. They are held in the mouth, or rubbed over the teeth, to remove tartar.” The fruit is 3.4% sugar, 1.5% protein and 1.6% ash. It has 6.3 mg of Vitamin C per 100 ml of juice. (2) Antiseptic;  Astringent;  Emmenagogue;  Galactogogue;  Odontalgic;  Poultice. The whole plant is anticoagulant, antiseptic, depurative and febrifuge. It can be used in decoction or the fresh leaves can be crushed and applied externally as a poultice. It is used in the treatment of boils and abscesses, weeping eczema, ringworm, stomatitis, laryngitis, acute tonsillitis, snake and insect bites and traumatic injuries. A decoction of the leaves is used in the treatment of swellings. An infusion of the flowers is used to activate the blood circulation[218]. The fruit is used to cure skin diseases. A decoction of the plant is used as a poultice for abscesses, boils, burns etc. (1) Also: https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-362/strawberry.

 

LOOK-A-LIKES:  There is a barren “wild strawberry” with yellow or white flowers that does not fruit and is not listed as edible. Yellow flower variety: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldsteinia_fragarioides   

 

POISONOUS LOOK-A-LIKES: 

 

OTHER USES:  Good groundcover. Perennial groundcover for zone 2 firebreaks.(1)

 

SOURCE LINKS (may include nutritional and medicinal info, plus other uses):

  1. https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Duchesnea+indica

  2. https://www.eattheweeds.com/potentilla-indica-mistaken-identity-2

  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_strawberry 

  4. http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/indian-strawberry.html http://www.aihd.ku.edu/foods/strawberry.html

  5. https://dengarden.com/gardening/Wild-Strawberries-Versus-Mock-Strawberries  

  6. https://herbalremedies.knoji.com/wild-indian-strawberry-or-mock-strawberry-plant