"Strawberry Fields Forever"

Text and photographs by Kathleen Walls

An excited young visitor points out her favorite detail of the Eastbay FFA booth at the festival.

The old Beetles song, "Strawberry Fields Forever" embodies the purpose of Plant City's annual Strawberry Festival. However, it would take a lot more than one song to convey what the festival offers to visitors. It provided a feast for all the senses. Even before you enter the fairgrounds you are visually excited by the color and movement. The sounds beckon you in different directions at once. The whirring, slamming sound of the roller coasters, the sounds of music drifting from stages placed all over the grounds, Your fingers ache to touch the crafts, many with a strawberry motif. The baby animals in the petting just beg to be stroked. The particular smell of cotton candy, sausage and onion frying, popcorn popping and as you venture closer to the heart of the complex, the distinctive smell of fresh strawberries. Your choices for tasting the strawberries fresh from the field are endless. As promoters of the festival tell you, "It doesn't get any sweeter than this."

First and foremost the guest of honor here is King Strawberry. The festival, 2004 will be the 69th, represents a chain of events and people leading back to the birth of the festival in 1930 as a community get-together to promote the area's favorite crop. Plant City's earliest roots are celebrated at the festival at Cracker Corner. Here, you will find chair caners, thread spinners, weavers, basket makers, blacksmiths and all the other skills needed to survive in an earlier era.

Spinner explains her skills

A fun combination of old and new is the post office. The Post Office contains old mailboxes, a desk, and similar furniture that was used in early Post Offices. It is none the less an official U.S. Post Office where letters and cards you mail will be hand stamped "Florida Strawberry Festival Station, Plant City, Florida 33567."

An authentic log cabin dating from the mid-1800s is located nearby. The cabin was moved from its original site on Knights Griffin Road, seven miles northeast of Plant City, and reconstructed on the festival grounds. It's furnished with authentic turn of the century furniture.

Caners weave new chair bottoms & baskets

One of the many pieces of equiptment on display

An ancient tractor caught my eye. It was not a showpiece rather, an old work horse that was used but maintained. A middle-aged couple watched me admire it. They introduced themselves as Chuck and Rita Schofield, local planters. Chuck explained "It's a 1948.tractor."

Rita broke in, "That was the year I was born. It belonged to the family and when they decided to sell it we bought it."

Chuck picked up the thought; "I still grow strawberries. But l use it in my vegetable garden. It does a lot of things those big new ones can't do."

They both agreed that strawberries were their favorite fruit. Chuck gave his opinion that the easiest grown and best tasting berry is the Camarosa. Another favorite is the Sweet Charlie. A friend named Charlie Howard who recently died of cancer developed this berry.

Anna Wright whips up some "eggless Egg Salad."

People, like Anna Wright and Jeanne Mathews at The Neighborhood Village, show still another part of the same spirit. These women and others offer festival goers demonstrations of healthful ways to prepare food. Of course they fix some strawberry dishes but that's not all. Anna cooks up some tofu dishes that almost make you turn into a vegetarian. Jeanne offers some tips on caring for strawberries while she prepares her Cream Filled Strawberries. "Do not wash or cap until you are ready to use. Store in a plastic bag 40% is the perfect temperature for them. Remember that strawberries do not ripen after picked."

At the Neighborhood village you will find ten categories of contests for homemaking skills. The products created by adult contestants are great but when you look at the winning cakes baked by the children, you will be astounded at the skill level.

In spite of the old adage, "You can't please all the people all the time," the Strawberry Festival caters to all ages and tastes. Opening day honors those who have lived long enough to be considered "Senior Citizens." If you are over 60, you get a reduced admission. When you gravitate to the Chrysler Sound Stage, set in the middle of the fairgrounds, the entertainment is geared to please you. Your admission entitles you to enjoy free shows.

The festival brings in really big name entertainers like Mel Tillis, Glen Campbell, Boots Randolph, The Oak Ridge Boys, Charlie Daniels, Vince Gill and the like. As the festival likes to outdo everyone else, there are two shows by each artist. Admission to the fair always includes free access to the grandstand section. Of course, if you want to pay a premium, you can upgrade to reserved seating for your favorite entertainer.

The Southern Star Bluiegrass is just one of the many bands that preform at the festival

For those of you who like to discover new talent, there are three other tents featuring less famous, but top notch, musical talent. If you're not musically inclined there is still lots of entertainment like acrobats, dancing groups and ventriloquists. Of course, there are those who consider Robinson's Racing Pigs entertainment rather than livestock but for the livestock aficionado, this is heaven. As you expect there are beef and swine livestock competitions but you will also find rabbit, lamb and poultry contests. Even a dog show.

The festival doesn't leave out the younger crowd. On Kids Day, youngsters through high school age are admitted free and given reduced admission to rides. In fact, children under ten are always admitted free when accompanies by an adult. Just as all other ages find plenty to enjoy, kid friendly attractions abound. Of course, the midway is a perennial favorite with that age group. They love to revoke the law of gravity for those few breathtaking moments on the roller coaster when you hang suspended between heaven and earth. The Strawberry Patch Kiddy Corral provided rides for the tiny tots in their own special midway.

The Diaper Decorating Contest offers scope for imagination and allows even the youngest fairgoers to become a part of the festivities in an unusual way.

The two petting zoos cater to the child in all of us. Who can resist the big eyes and soft fur of a baby lamb? In addition to the traditional farm animal petting zoo, be sure to visit the exotic petting zoo. You will find unusual babies from around the world.

Eating strawberries appeals to all ages. The only problem is deciding which booth has the best treat. One favorite is the St. Clement Catholic Church Build Your Own Strawberry Shortcake Booth. Volunteers like Paul DeWitt help encourage any laggards, not that there are many. As he waves his "Shortcake Line Begins Here" sign, he sports a small strawberry sticker on his cheek. He tells passerbys that "the strawberry grows there every spring just for the festival." He and his wife, Gerry, have worked the booth for the past eight years.

Hillsbrough County 4H club booth.

The booths are imaginative and colorful. Most are tiny wonderlands showing their organization's contributions to strawberry growth or production. Perhaps the most moving booth in 2002 had nothing to do with the luscious berry. It was the one manned by local firefighters who displayed a tattered flag from Ground Zero and raised money to provide a suitable frame for the relic. Perhaps that inspired the theme for the 2003 event which was Let Freedom Ring.

The artistically inclined will revel in the festival's photography exhibit. From landscapes to portraits and everything in between provide a feast for the eyes.

Everybody agrees parades are fun but with an eleven-day festival, visitors pick the days they want to visit so the festival has spread its parades, yes there are three of them, throughout the festival time. The Grand Feature Parade, the Youth Parade and a Baby Parade.

The Grand Feature Parade stars the Strawberry Queen and her court plus all the marching bands and spectacular floats. Beyond all the fun there is a serious purpose. The finest young ladies compete for the covet title of Strawberry Queen which offers a generous scholarship for the winner.

So include the Florida Strawberry Festival in your plans this year. It is doubly appropriate in these times since there is nothing more American than festivals and eating fresh picked strawberries.

Contact and pertinent information.

The Florida Strawberry Festival
P.O. Drawer 1869
Plant City, FL 33564-1869
Telephone: (813) 752-9194
Email berryinfo@flstrawberryfestival.com
http://www.flstrawberryfestival.com/

Plant City, Florida

GATE ADMISSION to the Fairgrounds is $8. Children ages 10 and under are admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult.

GATES OPEN DAILY AT 10:00 a.m. - Exhibits close at 10:30 p.m. daily. The midway closes at midnight except on Friday nights when we have a ride special called Moonlight Magic from 11:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m.

During the festival, many of the homes and businesses nearby offer parking for RVs as well as autos in their yards and parking lots. Prices are very negotiable and may vary drastically from one house to the next so ask before you pull in. Private homes are more amendable to full time parking as opposed to just daylight hours. If you are looking for proximity and not amenities this is the way to go. If you can get there the day before the festival and arrange a spot it will be easier driving as the area is gridlocked during the festival times.

If you prefer a real RV park there are at least two in the area.

Citrus Hills RV Park
State Road 60, Plant City, FL 33565
(813) 737-4770

Sundial R V Park
3601 Paul Buchman Hwy 39 N
Plant City, Fla 33565
Phone: 813 7546541
Sites: 50
Sewer: Groceries: Dump Station: Electric: Playground: Rec Room: Laundry: Pets Host: Lenard Crosby

Senior rates