Arkansas Fruit, Vegetable and Nut Update

2026 Strawberry Variety Trial Preliminary Results

by Dr. Amanda McWhirt, Taunya Ernst and Keilah Barney - June 15, 2026

2025-2026 Strawberry Season Observations

Here are some observations and rough data on strawberry variety performance during the 2026 season. The fall in 2025 was very warm, and plants had a long establishment period. We had a very dry fall, winter and early spring which helped keep disease relatively under control. Though there were some reports of Fusarium and Neo-P in a few places. The dry weather did lead to some issues with spider mites in some spots and a lot of plant bugs early in the season which led to some high rates of cull early on. Overall, for many it was an “ok” season, and Neopestalotiopsis leaf, fruit, and crown rot (Neo-P) was not a major factor in as many places as previous years. However, strawberry growers know that no two years are alike and 2027 could bring a very different weather pattern and crop. As you plan for the next season, here are some comments on what we saw in our variety trials conducted at the University of Arkansas (UA) Vegetable Research Station (zone 8a), Fruit Research Station (zone 7b) and grower trials around the state.

Ruby June

When plants were healthy there was good production and good flavor like normal. When Neo-P was present in the field plant health suffered even in the dry fall, dry spring and with fungicide apps starting in the fall (Figure 1). In our trial where Neo-P was present yield ~0.25lb/plant. My concern with ‘Ruby June’ is that if we have a wet fall and Neo-P pressure is moderate or high, survival could be very poor on this cultivar.

Ruby June with Neo-P, showing significant plant loss in late winter/early spring 2026

Figure 1 Ruby June with Neo-P, showing significant plant loss in late winter/early spring 2026.

Camino Real

When Neo-P was present, plant health suffered for Camino Real even during a dry fall and spring. We did have some plant loss on ‘Camino Real’ due to Neo-P in our trials, and as a result plant health on this cultivar was worse than ‘Chandler’ (Figure 1). In our trials we averaged around ~0.65 lbs. marketable yield per plant. Plant availability for this cultivar may be limited for some growers for the 2027 season.

Chandler and Camino Real emerging from dormancy

Figure 2 Comparison of plant health of 'Chandler' and 'Camino Real' coming out of dormancy in February 2026

Chandler/ Camarosa

Both of these old standards had good plant health, flavor and yields (~1 lb. per plant). The plant canopy on these cultivars is dense and fruit size drops quickly compared to some other cultivars, though ‘Camarosa’ retains size better than ‘Chandler’. Also ‘Chandler’ does not hold well for extended periods after harvest. Both did well in high tunnels this year. In 2026 both of these cultivars had low disease pressure in my observations and likely benefited from the dry season. In previous years in very wet weather when fungicides weren’t being regularly applied we have had plant collapse on both of these cultivars due to Neo-P.

Fronteras

Very good production (>1.4 lbs. per plant) and a long season (we cut plants off when they could have gone for 2 more weeks- so yield could have been higher!). Fruit is large and consistent in shape, size decreases over the season but retains good size into late season. Good plant health and well liked for flavor in taste tests. We had Neo-P in the field but did not observe Neo-P symptoms on this cultivar in our trial during the relatively dry year. This cultivar did well in high tunnels.

Fronteras on-farm in Arkansas

Figure 3 Fronteras on-farm in Arkansas.

Surfline

Very good production (~1.25 lbs./ plant). This variety has been billed as a ‘replacement for Fronteras’ so I will tell you about my observations on how the two compare: This variety has more early fruit load but smaller fruit size overall than ‘Fronteras’. I think on average it has slightly less uniform fruit shape, an earlier end to the season and higher cull rate than ‘Fronteras’. It also has more fall runner production than ‘Fronteras’ and produces a similar number of runners as ‘Chandler’. It has a slightly leafier canopy than ‘Fronteras’. Overall, I think it is a nice choice and a nice compliment to being planted with ‘Fronteras’. In our taste tests it was sometimes better than ‘Camino Real’, and sometimes as good as ‘Chandler’, so it was fairly well liked for flavor, though tended to be ranked lower than ‘Fronteras’ for flavor. This cultivar also had good plant heath and no Neo-P was observed.

Surfline plants on farm in Arkansas

Figure 4 Surfline plants on farm in Arkansas

SB 14.028.025

This is one I think we need to continue to trial. It was loaded with nice sized fruit (Figure 5) in several locations, but was seen to have significant problems with spider mites at other locations which generally lead to poor performance at those sites (Figure 6). This cultivar will consistently flower and fruit in the fall. In our trials no Neo-P was observed on the plants and there was good production of around 1.0lb of marketable fruit/ plant. There were some significant losses of marketable fruit due to rain in our trial, and this cultivar may need a tighter harvest window (we harvested twice per week), particularly as the harvest season was fairly compact in our observations. The fruit size started large but tailed off fairly quickly. Flavor was ‘ok’ and similar to ‘Camino Real’ in taste tests.

SB plants in early spring planted on 12'' centers

Figure 5 SB plants in early spring planted on 12'' centers.

Figure 6 Reduced plant health on SB 14.028.025 with two spotted spider mite pressure compared to another cultivar (Victory) that had lower spider mite populations.

Keystone

This cultivar has some odd plant growth characteristics in early fall but seemed to establish fine and have good plant health. The fruit is conical or “pointy” and orange in color. Flavor was rated as “nice” to “ok”. And production was around ~1 lb./ plant. It performed better in the field than in the tunnels in our trials. It doesn’t appear that this one will be widely available for planting in the fall of 2026.

Keystone in research trials in Arkansas

Figure 7 Keystone in research trials in Arkansas.

Renewal

Here is my overall impression of ‘Renewal’ after 1 year of trial: Production is less impressive compared to ‘Surfline’ and the canopy is too dense. The plant architecture reminds me a bit of ‘Chandler’ and this cultivar yielded similar to ‘Chandler’ at ~1 lb/ plant. Fruit size dropped fairly quickly during picking, but it seemed to have a slightly longer season than ‘Chandler’.

X08 (GF Bell)

When plants are healthy this cultivar makes BIG fruit with nice flavor. If Neo-P is present you will know it, as this cultivar is highly susceptible to Neo-P across several years of our observations. This year in our trials where Neo-P was present we averaged only ~0.38lbs of marketable yield per plant, and berry size was small and there was significant plant death. However, several growers had good luck with this cultivar during the dry season we had in 2026. If you like a gamble, this may be the strawberry cultivar for you.

Monarch

The plant appearance and growth habit reminded me of ‘Albion’ up until fruiting, it is a very compact plant throughout the fall and winter. This cultivar made lots of berries, but fruit size, color and shape were very non-uniform; one team member described it as an ‘ugly berry’ at one point. This in part may be related to its very high cull rate. When it started raining later in the season we had ~75-100% culls (Average of 48% cull over the season). It also had fairly high cull rates in our high tunnel trials. It was also not a favorite for flavor, I wrote down ‘grassy’ as a comment about its flavor. We got about 1.0 lb of marketable yield per plant on this cultivar. Availability of this cultivar may be limited for the 2027 season.

Victory

Will it produce fruit? Who knows! We had good production at the UA Vegetable Research Station (warmer climate) (~1 lb per plant), but nearly zero fruit at the UA Fruit Research Station (cooler climate). I have heard it performed well in Missouri (even cooler climate). There was obviously something going on that has not been worked out yet. Where it fruited, we had good mid to late season volume. It was rated well for flavor but had softer or less firm texture. The plant canopy is dense like ‘Chandler’, which in my opinion makes it less fun to pick than ‘Surfline’ or ‘Fronteras’. Until we have a better handle on the lack of flowering and fruit production at some locations, this one seems risky to me.

Overall Recommendations for 2027

I would like to see more of ‘Surfline’, ‘Fronteras’, ‘SB14.028.025’ going into next year. I think ‘Chandler’ and ‘Camarosa’ did fine this year and are reliable but likely benefited from a very dry year. I think ‘Renewal’ is one to potentially include in a small amount of your acreage due to having some resistance to Neo-P, but in our observations across the state in 2026 it wasn’t as impressive as others we evaluated. “Wild cards” or ones you may want to “roll the dice” on (or run for the hills away from!) are ‘Ruby June’, and ‘X08 (Bell)’. These fit in the ‘gamble’ category because of their susceptibility to Neo-P. Both could do well if plants start off disease free, are kept clean with fungicides AND the weather cooperates but if disease is present and it stays wet, it could be a bad situation. There are strong predictions of an El Niño pattern moving in later this year which could mean a wetter and cooler fall for the Southeast- only time will tell. The varieties I don’t think worked well for us after just one year of data are ‘Monarch’ and ‘Victory’. ‘Monarch’ made a lot of fruit but had significant losses when it rained and wasn’t well liked for flavor. ‘Victory’ was too variable in fruit production and for that reason a potential risk. As always growers should consider their own observations of what works well on their farm or their specific area. Looking forward to a successful 2027 strawberry harvest. Reach out if you have any questions.