The Favored Strawberry

Description

Join WEDU PBS for the screening and Q&A session for Larry Foley’s The Favored Strawberry.
About the Film:
What could be sweeter than a freshly picked strawberry? Scarlett and sumptuous, and grown on a crown of green, this masterpiece among plants begs to be savored. Once a seasonal fruit, strawberries are desired and available year round, from sub tropical winter fields in the heart of central Florida, to sweeping ranches in a valley along the shores of Monterrey Bay, California. They’re grown on the windy plains of Texas and in the dirt of old Carolina tobacco plantations—in the flint rock hillsides of Oklahoma and on “you-pick-em” farms in New Jersey, and lots of places in between. The Favored Strawberry is a one-hour documentary, filmed in 8 states, including the winter strawberry capital, Plant City Florida. The story unfolds at farms, big and small, where strawberries are picked by hand, one by one, often by hard working immigrants chasing the American dream. Produced by the Emmy Award winning team of Larry Foley and Dale Carpenter, the program is narrated by Academy Award winner Ray McKinnon. The Florida story includes a visit to Fancy Farms, operated by third generation grower Carl Grooms, a straight talking farmer who operates a 230-acre plantation framed by Spanish moss, drooping from ancient live oak trees. Other highlights include a visit to the Florida Gulf Coast Research Center, where a team of scientists is testing a cultivar known as “Sweet Sensation,” that shows early promise; a field trip to Parkesdale Market, where folks stand in line for world famous strawberry shortcake; and a fun-filled celebration at the annual Florida Strawberry Festival, and the wild and messy shortcake eating contest. There’s an old saying– “Doubtless, God could have made a better berry, but doubtless God never did.” Wherever they’re grown, the best way to eat a strawberry is picked fresh from the vine. Or as soon off the truck as you can find them!