The nutritional value of strawberry is fairly well known. Vitamins A and C exist in this herb in abundance. Iron is also an important mineral in both the fruit and the leaf alongside Folate, several B vitamins, Manganese and Potassium. Strawberry fruit has a good balance of fiber to offset its sugar content. Strawberry fruit maintains most of its nutrient levels when dried, assuming the drying process and storage conditions have been optimal. You’ll find more Vitamin C in in fresh strawberries than in dried, as is expected since Vitamin C tends to diminish in all cooked or dried fruits and vegetables.
As a whole, Strawberry leaf and fruit are generally cooling and building. That’s part of why strawberry has been linked so strongly to fertility. Inflammation, especially in the reproductive organs, can lead to infertility. Strawberry is a good ally for protecting against that. Strawberry is generally nutritive, too, which makes it a good partner to women for building reserves prior to conception as well as sustaining health through pregnancy. The potential of strawberry fruit and leaf as a powerful but gentle medicine goes well beyond use in fertility, though.
In Ayurvedic Medicine, Strawberry leaf is cooling, astringent, and sweet with a pungent post-digestive affect. Strawberry in general is supportive or increasing of Vata and Kapha while it can be used to decrease Pitta. Overall, it’s one of the foods that can be considered fairly tri-doshic, as strawberry’s affects tend toward balancing rather than pushing strongly in one direction or another.
In Ayurvedic practice, strawberry is one fruit that should never be paired with diary or milk products. This is because strawberry is cooling and moistening, as is dairy. The two combined are hard to digest, as they challenge Pitta’s fire and can easily overcome it. In addition, they are both fairly strongly kapha-increasing. In most cases, one or the other is plenty to balance conditions of excess dryness or heat. Together, they can have a far too strong affect on the overall system, thus creating a climate of imbalance in which kapha becomes domineering.
Strawberry offers more help in recovering from a variety of conditions than you’d think, given how little modern media touts this humble berry. Homesteaders of old knew what we modern herbalists know and researchers are discovering; Strawberry is more than just a daily little treat.
Traditionally, strawberry leaf and fruit were used to ease the symptoms of gout. This may have been due to strawberry’s diuretic properties. In natural treatments, gout often responds to diuretic herbs, as these herbs support the kidneys. The many tannins in strawberry can help tone the urinary system, as well. These combined with strawberry’s diuretic action make strawberry a good go-to for preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs) and related conditions. The combination of traditional use evidence and modern scientific research suggests strawberry is a most helpful food-level ally for those who suffer from conditions relating to the urinary system, including kidney stones and gravel, gout, bladder infections and UTIs.
Strawberry plants are amazingly easy to grow given the right amount of sun. Wild strawberries are even easier to grow than cultivated strawberries. They grow naturally in shady woodlands, scorched sand dunes, or in the cracks of the driveway. These are North American natives that, although they don’t have more than 10 years to live, pack a lot of action into their tiny lives.
Basal Rosette of finely toothed, three-part palmately compound leaves with smooth texture. The stems are thin and the flowers are yellow to white depending on the variety. The berries are red with tiny seeds embedded on the outer flesh of the fruit. The roots are shallow and multiply by above-ground runners.
Tangy, fruity scent – distinctive strawberry scent.
Strawberry fruit and leaf are treated somewhat differently when you’re making them into medicine. Part of this is due to the general difference in their nature. Fruits are much more lush and juicy than are leaves in most plants, and strawberry is no exception. In addition, modern families and herbalists tend to think of strawberries, the fruits, as food and strawberry leaf as medicine.
Fresh Strawberries should be bright red and juicy. Size isn’t terribly important, although don’t let the smaller stature of wild strawberries fool you. They’re packed with as much as if not more nutritional and medicinal properties than their larger domestic neighbors.
Strawberries dry well. Slice them thinly and dry them in a dehydrator. I use the medium setting, around 130 degrees F (54 degrees C), and let them go for up to 24 hours, depending on environmental conditions and how thickly I sliced them. You can store dried strawberries in an air-tight container in the pantry or another cool, dark place. They’re terrific on later winter or very early spring salads, added to herbal teas through winter, and in yogurt or hot cereal for a taste of summer.
Vinegar of fresh strawberry is tasty. Steep fresh fruits in your favorite vinegar for up to a month, strain and bottle. My personal favorite is apple cider vinegar. The flavors of apple and strawberry pair nicely. Wine vinegars and rice vinegar blend well with strawberry as well. I aim for a 1:1 ratio, although if I plan to store the vinegar longer I’ll increase the vinegar to 2 parts to 1 part strawberry. The juices in strawberries will dilute the vinegar content a bit, making it potentially more susceptible to spoilage.
If you’re after the microbial compliment that comes with a fresh ferment, strawberry kombucha may well be just the ticket. Add fresh or thawed frozen strawberries, lightly mashed, to your kombucha when you add the tea leaves. Their flavor will permeate the kombucha, adding a breath of summer to your blend. If the sweetness is what you’re after, add the strawberries just a day or two before you bottle. Their sweetness will seep into the kombucha, but the microbes won’t have time to completely convert it. Be aware that if you choose this second option you’ll need to watch your bottles to be sure they don’t become over carbonated.
Strawberry mead is another delightful way to get a daily dose of strawberry’s nutritional goodness with the added bonus of some live cultures. When I’m aiming for the medicine of strawberry, I make a high-fruit methaglyn, which really means I use a pound or more of fruit per gallon of finished mead. That packs my finished product with loads of vitamins and minerals amid all that tasty strawberry flavor. I caution you, though, to let your strawberry mead stand in the cellar for at least two years to smooth enough to enjoy.
While you can tincture strawberry fruit, you won’t get as much of the nutrition from it as you might desire. You’ll get a lovely flavor, but most of the minerals won’t transfer into the alcohol well so you’ll lose much of the nutrition that’s strawberry’s main power. Cordials or brandies made with strawberry are delightful, though, so consider that as an alternative if what you’re after is a particularly tasty medicine. In days of old, herbalists often mixed less enjoyable herbs into cordials or sweetened wines and brandies to mask the flavor. It works especially well when you’re aiming to prevent illness or to treat a chronic condition…or when your patient has a particularly picky palate.
Strawberry Fruit Nutritional FactsServing Size – 1 cup = 152g
Key Ingredients (%RDA)
Vitamin C – 89.4mg (149%)
Vitamin K – 3.3mcg (4%)
Vitamin B6 – 0.1 mg (4%)
Folate – 36.5 mcg (9%)
Magnesium – 19.8 mg (5%)
Phosphorus – 36.5 mg (4%)
Potassium – 233mg (7%)
Copper – 0.1mg (4%)
Manganese – 0.6 mg (29%)
Total Carbohydrates – 11.7g (4%)
Dietary Fiber – 3g (12%)
Both wild and cultivated strawberry leaf and fruit are good friends to have about when it comes to caring for animals. Both leaf and fruit offer a lot of good medicinal properties, like the same anti-diarrhea, astringent, tannic, and anti-bacterial properties from which we humans benefit. The Nutrition, especially Vitamins A, C, and a complex of B vitamins alongside manganese and potassium, are as beneficial to most of our animal companions as they are to us.
Creating a home environment that feels warm, welcoming, and maybe just a touch decadent is one of Strawberry’s talents. The practical herbalist knows how to use Strawberry’s natural advantages to do so without compromising the health and wellness we so carefully work to create for ourselves and our families. Look first to Strawberry as a luxurious food and daily medicine.
Strawberry magic is the magic of dedication to fertility. Reproducing primarily through runners, Strawberry gives of herself until the young plants are well established. She is capable of sustaining those young plants, too, should the ground be immediately unsuitable for growth. I’ve seen young Strawberry plants bear fruit while hanging from mother plants in baskets or stretching across pavement. Strawberry teaches us the lesson of dedication to that which we long to produce no matter whether the conditions appear to be right.
Through her seeds, Strawberry amplifies this message of dedication. Strawberry seeds grow on the outside of the fruit and can germinate even when soil isn’t present. Strawberry knows deep down no matter what the present conditions appear to be, she has the power to succeed. Strawberry magic is the magic of success through inner vision that sustains until the outer world is ready to receive.
Success, as Strawberry teaches us, requires proper preparation of one’s self. How could she sustain so many at once if she weren’t properly prepared? Her habit of emerging early in spring to blossom and fruit at the very beginning of the season speaks to her preparation, so quickly does she shuck off her winter’s sleep in exchange for early spring’s fertile rush. People through the ages have recognized Strawberry’s gentle detoxifying, antibacterial, and astringent properties; those same properties encourage us to gently prepare ourselves for the projects or fertile periods ahead. If Strawberry has come into your life, perhaps it’s time to clear away the husks of what came before to make room in your mind, body, and spirit for the new season dawning in your life.
Strawberry plants are perennials. Cultivated Strawberries live for around three to four years while wild Strawberries can live as long as ten years. If Strawberry has come to you around a specific project, you can expect it to be a project of neither particularly long nor short duration. Strawberry projects are often projects for a period of time or a stage of life. The nature of the Strawberry who has shown up in your life, cultivated or wild, particularly if it corresponds with the nature of your project, can give you some insight into both the intensity and duration of the work.
Wild Strawberries tend to concentrate their energy and healing properties more intensely and in smaller fruits than their cultivated cousins. Thus, if your project has grown up or come to you through a wild, uncontrolled, undirected manner or source, you may be able to expect a longer duration of more concentrated energy and small-sized but intense fruits. Conversely, if your project has been carefully cultivated, you may enjoy large, abundant fruits for a shorter period.
An allergic reaction in the form of a rash to strawberry leaf contact is extremely rare but can occur. Strawberry fruit as an allergen is uncommon (found in less than one percent of the population) but a serious one. Avoid eating strawberry fruit if there is a known or suspected allergy to strawberries. People who are allergic to the leaves do not often report an allergy to the fruit and visa versa.
Strawberry leaf and fruit are generally safe for those who do not have an allergy to them. This includes pregnant women, children, the elderly, and immunocompromised people of all ages. As with all choices, it’s wise for you to consult your healthcare team before beginning a new therapy or medicinal path.
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