Dear strawberries
From Mr Jocelin Crocker Sir: It is indeed heartening to read Simon Courtauld's praise of the English strawberry (Arts, 15 June), which is not to be confused with the cheap foreign import. After a lifetime in the industry, I have yet to come across a single instance of an English strawberry being sold in Holland. Belgium or Spain, blame for which cannot be laid exclusively at the door of a strong pound. Visiting numerous French markets over the years I have seen local produce selling at a premium of sometimes eight times that of their own Spanish imports — try that on your English housewife!
Incidentally, the Royal Sovereign has long since been superseded. Developed in 1892, the stock has deteriorated and is very susceptible to disease. Cognoscenti will find the flavour and resistance to virus of Cambridge Late Pine to their liking. When the strawberry was introduced from the Americas, it was highly prized for its pineapple flavour.
Jocelin Crocker
Mapperton, Dorset
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