are strawberries native to britain?
Answers:
Prior to the relatively recent development of F. X ananassa, wood strawberries (F. vesca) and Musky strawberries (F. moschata,) were cultivated in Europe and Russia for centuries. Wood strawberries are small and have both red and white colored fruits. Musky strawberries are light red to purple, and are said to have a strong vinous flavor like muscat grapes. These species were largely supplanted by cultivation of F. X ananassa over the last 250 years.
In many fruit crops, the precise origin and time of domestication of the species is not well known. Modern cultivated strawberries represent an anomaly in that we know almost precisely when and where the species arose. In 1714, a French spy named Frezier returned from duty in Peru and Chile with 5 plants of Fragaria chiloensis, a large fruited species native to coastal areas of South America. These plants were female, and unfruitful unless cross pollinated by other species with perfect flowers such as F. virginiana, the Virginian strawberry. Inter-planting of F. virginiana (male) with F. chiloensis (female) in the Brittany region led to production of hybrid seedlings that came to be known as Pineapple or Pine strawberries, progenitors of the modern cultivated strawberries. French Botanist Antoine Duchesne published a book in 1766 detailing the origin of the Pine strawberry, and became the authority for the botanical name - Fragaria ananassa Duch. Around that time, Pine strawberry culture spread to other European nations, particularly England, where the first cultivars were produced during the early 1800s. Selections of these were imported to America in the 1800's and provided the germplasm for more cultivars.
Other answers:
yes
yes
I don't know if they were originally British, or introduced, but you get plenty of them here.
I am almost certain that they are native to britain,even if not,the british varieties taste the best,the spanish,are agood size with plenty of juice but are to acidic,german, dutch and french are rather insipid.
The wild wood strawberry is indigenous to Britain. Other strawberries originate in other countries. You can read about strawberries at the link below.