Where Does the Time Go?

Where does the time go? It’s about time for our growers to get their strawberry beds ready for planting in preparation for our new year. It seems like we just wrapped up the picking process. Harvest begins in Florida around Thanksgiving each year, but there’s a lot to do to get our fresh and flavorful strawberries ready to sell.

Florida strawberries are known as winter strawberries because they are in the fresh market from November through the winter months and into early spring. The length of the season each year is dependent on the weather and market demand. Here’s some information about Florida strawberries that you may find interesting.

Plant City, Florida is recognized worldwide as the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World. Hillsborough County, Florida is the dominate region in the U.S. that produces winter strawberries.

Make sure you’re buying USA, strawberries by reading package information. Geographical origin information will be found on package labels. It will tell you if the strawberries you are selecting are Florida strawberries or if they have been imported from another country or state.

Here are a few more strawberry tips and facts:

Eating eight strawberries a day has been shown to lower blood pressure and improve memory and heart health.
When you’re on the run, take strawberries with you in a plastic container or sandwich bag.
Strawberries taste best at room temperature.
Strawberries are picked at full ripeness. Unlike some other fruits, they don’t ripen once they are harvested.
A dash of balsamic vinegar, lemon or orange juice will bring out the flavor of strawberries.
Strawberries are the only fruit that have seeds on the outside —about 200 of them.
Each seed has the potential to become a new variety. Strawberry seeds are all those little bumpy spots on the surface of the berry.

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