For the past few weeks, it has been almost amazing to see how many different things are happening around Robeson County each weekend. It's as if we got so far behind during the winter because the weather was too bad to get outside, that we have to do lots of things just to catch up.

Two weeks ago, I shared with you that Kenny and Anna Floyd were planning a big Saturday morning Kids Festival at their strawberry patch in Fairmont. After visiting the Master Gardeners Plant Sale that was held that same day, my wife and I drove down to Fairmont to join in the festivities and to enjoy homemade strawberry ice cream. When we arrived, we could hardly find a parking place. Everyone was having fun, the ice cream was delicious, and it was great to have an opportunity to socialize with many old friends who must have been looking for ice cream as well.

If you have a special recipe that contains strawberries, you might want to get ready. Jimmy and Mitzi Powers, owners of Powers Farm Market on the east side of Lumberton, are sponsoring their first annual Strawberry Recipe Cook-Off. This contest will be held this coming Saturday morning, and they are offering cash prizes of $100 - first place, $75 - second place, and $50 - third place.

If you wish to enter this contest, you must carry your prepared dish, featuring fresh strawberries of course, along with a recipe to Powers Farm Market between 8 and 11 a.m. Judging will start at 11:15, and prizes will be awarded as soon as the judging is completed. If you need more information, please call Mitzi Powers at 910-738-9404.

I was not provided this information, but you might want to be there just in case they want to allow their customers to sample the leftovers after the judging is complete. In fact, you might want to be available just in case they might need a few extra judges.

I hope you are taking advantage of the delicious strawberries that are available at one of the eight strawberry farms in the county. You don't have to be very creative to enjoy them; you can pick them off the plant and eat them fresh out of the field. You can wash them off, cap them, and eat them as a delicious snack. They count as one of the five servings of fresh fruits and vegetables you should eat every day. You can add a piece of pound cake and some whipped topping for even more enjoyment. Or you can whip up one of the more complicated dishes like you will see at the contest at Powers Farm Market. No matter how you eat them, fresh strawberries are delicious.

Fresh local strawberries will be available for about four more weeks. After then, if you want a strawberry, you will have to try to find some in the grocery store, but they will have been shipped in from thousands of miles away.

So while the local ones are available, why not freeze some of them so you can enjoy strawberries until next season. Freezing strawberries is so easy even I can do it. All you have to do it wash them, let them drain dry, cap them by removing the green leaf looking attachment on the top of the berry, place them in freezer bags, and stack them in the freezer. Do not add sugar or anything else at this time. You can add sweetener if necessary when you thaw them for later use.

If you go to Powers Farm Market for your first visit, I encourage you to find out more about their fresh vegetables. If you have visited there before, you are aware that they offer a good assortment of fresh, locally grown vegetables in addition to strawberries.

There is an increasing interest in fresh, locally grown vegetables for several reasons. People want to eat more vegetables, because it is healthier. They are concerned about the safety of eating vegetables from commercial farms thousands of miles away. And they don't like the impact on our environment when vegetables are trucked for long distances when locally grown ones are available. However, many people do not know how to properly prepare fresh vegetables, and fewer still know how to can and freeze vegetables like our mothers and grandmothers did so they can enjoy them year round.

Janice Fields, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent from our staff, will be at the Powers' farm Saturday morning to provide information and recipes about how to prepare delicious meals using fresh vegetables. In addition, she will provide information and answer questions about preserving fresh fruits and vegetables.

As strawberry season gets in full swing, other fresh fruits and vegetables start becoming available as well. Watch this column each week, and I will provide information about the schedule and availability of various items at our farmers markets. I will also provide more detailed information about various vegetables as they become available.

If you have questions you would like answered in this column or if you would like to suggest topics that should be covered in more detail, please let me know by calling 910-671-3276 or E-mailing me at Everett_Davis@ncsu.edu.

Thanks for reading.

E-mail address: Everett_Davis@ncsu.edu

Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 2280
Lumberton, NC 28359-2280

Phone: 910-671-3276
Fax: 910-671-6278

Date Created 06/05/09