Virginia Strawberry

Taxobox
name = Virginia Strawberry

---

image_width = 240px
image_caption = "Fragaria virginiana"
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Rosales
familia = Rosaceae
subfamilia = Rosoideae
genus = "Fragaria"
species = "F. virginiana"
binomial = "Fragaria virginiana"
binomial_authority = Mill.

The Virginia Strawberry ("Fragaria virginiana"), is one of two species of strawberry that were hybridized to create the modern domesticated Garden Strawberry. Its natural range is confined to North America, in the United States (including Alaska) and Canada.

It is also sometimes called "Wild Strawberry", though this can also refer to several other species of "Fragaria", particularly "F. vesca".

;SubspeciesThere are four recognized subspecies:
*"Fragaria virginiana" subsp. "glauca" (formerly known as "F. ovalis")
*"Fragaria virginiana" subsp. "grayana"
*"Fragaria virginiana" subsp. "platypetala"
*"Fragaria virginiana" subsp. "virginiana"

Cytology

All strawberries have a base haploid count of 7 chromosomes. "Fragaria virginiana" is octoploid, having eight sets of these chromosomes for a total of 56. These eight genomes pair as four distinct sets, of two different types, with little or no pairing between sets. The genome composition of the octoploid strawberry species has generally been indicated as AAA'A'BBB'B'. The A-type genomes were likely contributed by diploid ancestors related to "Fragaria vesca" or similar species, while the B-type genomes seem to descend from a close relative of "Fragaria iinumae". The exact process of hybridization and speciation which resulted in the octoploid species is still unknown, but it appears that the genome compositions of both "Fragaria chiloensis" and "Fragaria virginiana" (and by extension the cultivated octoploid strawberry as well) are identical.

External links

* [http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?267 "F. virginiana" information from the GRIN Taxonomy Database]