strawberries

It says Tampa Bay-based strawberry growers must move north by 2050 to chase the proper growing zone due to global warming.

This year's festival will be held Mar. 2-12, and will feature the signature headline musical acts along with rides and entertainment.

Vance Whitaker, with the UF/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center in Wimauma, discusses the science behind breeding the berries and offers insight into the … umm … field.

Currently, there's no cure for berries infected with leaf spot and fruit rot, but researchers are working on it: from experimenting with a spray to deciphering best crop management practices.

A new law that Gov. DeSantis signed this week at the Plant City Strawberry Fest designates strawberry shortcake as the official state dessert. That's leaving a tart taste in the mouths of Key lime pie backers.

The designation is an effort to promote the state's $1 billion strawberry industry.

Plant City was once known for producing lumber, cotton, citrus and cattle. Here's what changed.

But key lime could keep its title as the state pie.

A warming climate could bring more rain in the winter months, making berries more vulnerable to fungal diseases and pests.

Mid-October is the ideal time to plant strawberries in Southwest Florida. WGCU's Julie Glenn talked with Dr. Vance Whittaker with the Strawberry Breeding and Genetics program at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center.

Researchers with the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences are trying to reduce pests and diseases for Florida’s $300 million-a-year strawberry industry.

Why don't strawberries stay fresh as long as we'd like? It all has to do with keeping them cold.