{"id":181,"date":"2026-02-05T17:16:46","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T17:16:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/?p=181"},"modified":"2026-03-19T17:14:45","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T17:14:45","slug":"%f0%9f%8d%93strawberry-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/?p=181","title":{"rendered":"&#x1f353;Strawberry PYO Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Strawberry Season starts late May and lasts for about 4 weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Rules<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Do NOT throw the berries.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Children must be monitored at all times.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>As with other fruit, sampling is OK, but gluttony is theft.\u00a0 We want you to know what you are picking, but\u00a0<em>please<\/em>\u00a0do not eat more than a few.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not wander to other fields. \u00a0Only pick the fruit that is advertised as being ripe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It is OK to sit a short while and enjoy our farm.\u00a0 But please understand that we are not a park, and need to cover our costs by selling food.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How to Pick the Best Berry!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Color is a primary indicator of ripeness.\u00a0 If it isn\u2019t red, it isn\u2019t ripe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Go for berries that are red all the way to the tip.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Pale or white shoulders = underripe (they won\u2019t get sweeter later).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They should feel firm but not hard.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mushy spots = overripe or starting to spoil.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Pro Tip<\/strong>: Smaller strawberries often pack more flavor than the giant show-offs!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>After Picking Care<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Washing is always recommended before eating fruit.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Make sure the berries are fully dry before putting them in an air tight container in your fridge.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You can even place a towel at the bottom of your container to catch any lingering moisture.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>First, wash and dry them, then cap the berries (slice off the green foliage), <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Freezing Instructions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you wish to freeze your strawberries;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>First, properly wash and dry you berries as instructed above<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Next, cap the berries (slice off the leafy crown and bit of white flesh). Feel free to even slice or dice them at this point.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Then, lay them out on a baking sheet, make sure they aren&#8217;t touching.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>After that, place the baking sheet in a freezer overnight.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Finally, scoop them into a plastic bag or container of your choosing.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>You now have berries that will keep for up to a year and can be used for pies, jam\/jelly, or any baked good of your choosing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Varieties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Earliglow &#8211; Small to medium, very early, the &#8220;reference&#8221; berry for great taste!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Flavorfest &#8211; Medium to large, firm, very sweet, developed in Maryland<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keepsake &#8211; A new improved version of Flavorfest, developed by USDA in Maryland<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>AC Wendy &#8211; Medium to large, sweet mid-season berry<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>AC Valley Sunset &#8211; Large, glossy red, sweet. Late season berry<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Strawberry Season starts late May and lasts for about 4 weeks. Rules How to Pick the Best Berry! Pro Tip: Smaller strawberries often pack more flavor than the giant show-offs! After Picking Care Freezing Instructions If you wish to freeze your strawberries; You now have berries that will keep for up to a year and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"","footnotes":"[]"},"categories":[9],"tags":[11,12],"class_list":["post-181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-infield-links","tag-pyo","tag-strawberry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=181"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":214,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181\/revisions\/214"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}