I love a good conspiracy theory. Did you know that the US Government conceals proof of aliens, that Barack Obama was actually born in Africa, and that global warming is just a fabrication of the world’s climate scientists?
Just kidding 🙂
But these theories really do capture the imagination. In fact a good friend of mine is looking forward to heaven almost as much because she’ll find out who shot JFK as the fact that she’ll be there with God.
Lyndon Johnson’s never really occupied that much of my thoughts personally…
Earlier this year I planted a Hokowase patch kit from the Digger’s Club. It has started producing abundantly over the past week, and I’ve been picking about a punnet of strawberries every second day.
These strawberries are absolutely amazing – nothing like the crunchy, tasteless specimens you get from the supermarket. They are both ridiculously sweet and also amazingly soft. You can pick them half ripe and they still taste amazing.
There’s no way you could transport these things without them turning to mush before even reaching the supermarket shelf.
But the thing I find the most remarkable about these fruits is just how light they are. A punnet worth in size weighs about 125grams – half the weight of a supermarket variety.
So I must ask the question – are the supermarket strawberries just heavy, or are they pumped full of water to make them weigh more for sale?
It certainly explains why they taste like they do.
500m2 in Sydney 
ooh! I think we might have to come over for a visit and some strawberry shortcakes and tea!
Oh, please do! Although I might need to stop eating them as fast as they are harvested…
Strawberries certainly aren’t the way they should be in the supermarket. And I wouldn’t put it them to pump water into them. Though I was thinking it could be the variety they grow, hard and heavy so they transport well rather than taste good. I have yet to grow strawberries successfully in Melbourne, but hopefully will try again this year if I get a chance to get to the nursery – and I have a plan this time! Enjoy yours.
Barbara, I think that buying to bare rooted ones are really the way to go. At the nursery they cost about $5 per plant! I think having several months to establish over winter really helps too.
I have just clearly planted them waaay too close together – they are trying to escape their boxes already!
The conventional strawberries certainly are pumped full of water because that is how their artificial fertilizers are distributed. but it is more likely the breed of strawberry that has been developed for transport, as you said, your lovely light weight soft one would never stand transporting!
That’s really interesting Kate – are they hydroponically grown?
I think it might be a variety thing as well – the couple of home grown berries my plants produce don’t seem that light…..I’m feeling the geographical distance between Sydney and Melbourne – my berries are only at flowering stage – sigh oh for a warmer climate…..