THE STRAWBERRY. 271 



mentioned, wliich also ripens later in the season; but 

 it is bv no means ])ro(hictivc, and is accordinsrly not 

 much cultivated. 



The Alpine strawberry is, in its native situation, a 

 more vig:orous plant, and produces larger and more 

 hig-hly flavoured fruit than the common one of the 

 woods. It is often much darker in the colour than 

 any of the other strawberries ; and when it is so, the 

 llavour has. a sharpness bortlering; upon austerity. — 

 Still, however, it is an excellent fruit ; and it has this 

 advantage, that it continues bearing- from June until 

 stopped by the frost ; and, in very open seasons, fruit 

 has been gathered from it at Christmas. 



The Hautbois was the first known of the larger 

 variety of strawberry. Its history has never been well 

 ascertained, though it is generally believed to be the 

 mountain strawberry of Bohemia, and to have been 

 first improved by cultivation in France. The hautbois 

 is very productive; and the fruit is highly flavoured, 

 with a peculiar kind of perfume ; but some care is 

 necessary in order to prevent the plants from dege- 

 nerating. The name of this strawberry is probably 

 derived from the circumstance of the scape wliich 

 bears the fruit standing higher than the leaves, and, 

 consequently, being called hautbois (high wood). In 

 the old gardening books it is written hautboy. 



In the early part of the last centur\% the Alpine 

 strawberry of Chili was introduced into the Royal 

 Gardens at Paris, and from thence found its way over 

 many parts of Europe. It grew to an immense size, 

 and had a finer colour than the hautboi<; ; but in the 

 southern countries of Eiuope it was soon neglected, 

 because it ran greatly to leaves, produced compara- 

 tively little fruit, and what it did produce was defi- 

 cient in flavour. The " old scarlet strawberry," 

 which was an original introduction from North 

 America, has been an inhabitant of our gardens for 



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