This one has to be a weed (I think)

Jodi
by Jodi
It's growing in front of the garage. Just a small patch. I see clover and what looks like dandelion but what is the plant that looks like something that isn't a weed?
close-up
This is the size of the patch
  26 answers
  • Judy Judy on Oct 07, 2014
    Wild strawberry. Fruit tastes nasty & the plant will spread like mad.
  • Pamela Pamela on Oct 07, 2014
    Yes definitely strawberries! They look just like mine that I have had for years in pots...but I bought mine. The fruit is small but very tasty....
  • Jodi Jodi on Oct 07, 2014
    Do the critters have use of these wild strawberries before I attempt to eradicate them? We feed birds, squirrels, bunnies, and ground squirrels outside, year round. I had strawberries years ago but they grew by the back fence and got pulled out when the old fence came out. I wonder how they wound up by the garage? It's all graveled out there.
    • See 1 previous
    • Jodi Jodi on Oct 08, 2014
      @Judy Awesome! We've been feeding over 30 years at our house at I've never seen these before.
  • Cindy Cindy on Oct 08, 2014
    wild strawberries
  • Nancy J Nancy J on Oct 08, 2014
    Wildlife definitely consume them.,. great photo opportunity!
  • Patches Patches on Oct 08, 2014
    If it's not harming anything I'd be inclined to leave it.
  • Diane F Diane F on Oct 08, 2014
    Birds and any ground critter will eat the wild strawberry's.
  • Jodi Jodi on Oct 08, 2014
    Thank you everyone! We will leave it for sure.
  • Bonnie Barranco Bonnie Barranco on Oct 08, 2014
    Don't fight them! I had a big patch that did take over but they have tiny yellow flowers(tiny) that turn into red berries. Southern Living featured it one time as a ground cover. So I am using it as such and friends constantly ask what it is and can they get a start. Don't fight it-- cultivate it or put it where u can enjoy it. Some of our "weeds" are considered flowers in some other parts of the world. I was surprised that Lowes was selling the common "buttercup" calling it primrose.
  • Denise LaChance Denise LaChance on Oct 08, 2014
    I say get rid of them as fast as you can if you don't want them taking over your yard. They are very invasive. If it doesn't matter of course leave them.
  • Pat Pat on Oct 08, 2014
    Get rid of it as fast as you can....it will take over the lawn and kill the grass.
    • See 1 previous
    • Jodi Jodi on Oct 08, 2014
      Thank you to all who responded! Hubby and I agree we will let the strawberries grow. It's just a little spot in front of the garage that may not make it through the winter.
  • Michaela Mc Carthy Michaela Mc Carthy on Oct 08, 2014
    Wild strawberries. Have those in europe a lot. Taste good sometimes remind me of soap. Let grow and try them...
  • Melody McLaughlin Melody McLaughlin on Oct 08, 2014
    Wild strawberries are tasty little morsels; no different from regular strawberries. Unless you are allergic to strawberries I would transplant them to garden boxes and keep them trimmed. They will eventually grow into larger plants and produce larger berries. Keep them controlled and enjoy their produce.
    • Judy Judy on Oct 09, 2014
      @Melody McLaughlin Why not just spend a few bucks & get some strawberry plants from one of the local stores? I planted 3 starts in a bowl type pot & set it on the corner of a raised bed. They sent out runners, which made new plants & now the original plants are long gone but their "babies" are all over the place.
  • Robinshay4 Robinshay4 on Oct 08, 2014
    We lived in PA up until a year ago. We had a very large garden which included strawberries. Well, we would find "wild" strawberries around our house and through out our two acre + grounds all the time, because of the wild animals eating them and then, well you know, spreading their seeds through out our property. You might not get berries off of them the first year or two, but you will begin to get berries off of them. Watch and see. And they will grow and spread. You can transplant them if you wish, in the early spring, but after the chance of any frost. Hope you get some berries off of them :)
  • Ellen H Ellen H on Oct 09, 2014
    Many years ago, I had a townhome in Birmingham, AL and the ground around the foundation had been sloppily filled in in the back -there was a metal strap (from some building material) sticking up out of the packed clay. I tried and tried to pull it up to no avail. I concentrated my efforts on the front beds and the wild strawberries moved in in the back and one day I went out and pulled that strap and it came right up out of the soil (just like the sword and the stone, lol). Time and wild strawberry roots had broken down the clay into something resembling soil. I have had a soft spot for wild strawberries ever since. So y'all please don't tell me the wild strawberries had nothing to do with it.
  • Gail lichtsinn Gail lichtsinn on Oct 09, 2014
    Thats ornamental strawberries..As far as I know you cant eat them..There awful tasting and they are also invasive
  • Sherry R Sherry R on Oct 09, 2014
    Yeap, I am thinking wild strawberries. They taste awesome, but so tiny you can't find the time or energy to pick enough to use. I keep them when they crop up in a wild area.
  • Sheila Sheila on Oct 10, 2014
    I have a couple on my patio. Looks just like my wild strawberry plant. Makes a great ornamental plant for a patio or small garden area!
  • Gail lichtsinn Gail lichtsinn on Oct 10, 2014
    ornamental strawberries look like wild strawberries but if you try to eat one there so bitter your mouth draws up and your tongue goes numb sp if your going to try one just rub a tiny bit on your tongue..you will know right away if there wild or ornamental..Ornamental has long roots and is very invasive
  • Lee Cunningham Green Lee Cunningham Green on Oct 10, 2014
    they could be wild strawberries as well, they are quite good I lived in PA, and had them growing all over my yard.
  • Chris Sabol Chris Sabol on Oct 10, 2014
    I get this in my yard from the house next door...imo, it's a weed. It gets little berries that look like miniature strawberries. It is invasive and I have a hard time getting rid of it.
  • C Valentino C Valentino on Oct 13, 2014
    Even regular strawberry plants are invasive. If you want to grow strawberries & have a finite space, you will need to clip runners and they develop frequently
  • Melanie Pennock Melanie Pennock on Oct 13, 2014
    These came up in my yard about 2 years ago. They are great to keep the weeds down! I just let it grow as a ground cover, and trim the runners from time to time.
  • Pat Pat on Dec 20, 2014
    I have these in Minn. Too and they are weeds!
  • Dianne Dianne on Dec 20, 2014
    Love these. My son eats the fresh berries everyday in the summer.
  • Nancy Nancy on Jul 13, 2021

    How do you get rid of these wild strawberries. I have large areas in my grass that are starting to grow all over?