Strawberry Monterey

Description

Monterey is a proven, high-performing strawberry variety widely regarded as the industry benchmark for day-neutral production. Developed by the University of California, it delivers excellent flavour, strong productivity, and consistent fruit quality across a wide range of growing conditions.

Plants are medium sized and highly productive, producing fruit that is, on average, larger than Albion, with a medium red skin colour and good visual appeal. While slightly less firm than Albion, Monterey is renowned for its outstanding flavour, making it a favourite for fresh market production.

Monterey performs reliably in container, tunnel, and open-field systems and has become the standard against which new day-neutral strawberry varieties are measured.

🔹 Key Characteristics

• Breeding origin: University of California

• Type: Day-neutral

• Plant size: Medium

• Productivity: Very high (more productive than Albion)

• Fruit size: Larger than Albion on average

• Fruit colour: Medium red with good appearance

• Firmness: Slightly less firm than Albion

• Flavour: Excellent

🔹 Strengths

• Industry-standard day-neutral variety

• Excellent flavour and strong market acceptance

• Consistent performance across growing systems

🔹 Limitations

• Produces plentiful runners in fruiting beds

• Moderately susceptible to root rots, including Phytophthora and Verticillium

🔹 Yield Performance in New Zealand

• Auckland trials:
  Average annual production (to December) over the past 12 years of 506 g per plant, with an average berry size of 27 g per fruit.

• Canterbury trials:
  Average yield of 729 g per plant, with an average berry size of 22 g per fruit.