Marshfield Farmers' Market

If you have never eaten local strawberries then it is time to wander into a famers’ market, farm stand, or you-pick location before this delightful season ends. The fragrant, small, tender berries are quite a different experience. Local farmers count on strawberries as their first crop to kick off the season of harvest and sales. Count on local berries being flavorful and nutritionally power packed for the next few weeks. This fruit is a nutrient and anti-oxidant powerhouse but eat them quickly, within 2 days they lose most of their vitamin C. Nutrient levels are also reduced when not stored in cool humid conditions or when not at optimal ripeness. Seek shiny bright red berries and store in the refrigerator drawer or a sealed container. Grocery store strawberries are not local, those California-grown berries are large, firm or even hard, picked before ripe, shipped for several days and while usually tasty they are nothing like the flavorful sweet and tangy sensation on the tongue that local strawberries provide. Strawberries have anti-inflammatory properties, but only when eaten repetitively, three times a week is recommended to get the benefits. Nutritionally best when eaten raw, but the flavor is intensified when baked in pies or roasted and drizzled with aged balsamic vinegar. Other health benefits include reduced blood sugar elevations from simple sugar intake and they are a great assist for those with type 2 diabetes as a fruit. Unless organic, store bought strawberries also rank high in pesticide residue after washing. The soil of conventionally grown California berries is pumped with poisons so the plant isn’t just sprayed it is actually growing in soil soaked in chemicals, uptaking the poisons right into the berries. It is so poisonous that growing strawberries near schools in California is prohibited. Local strawberry growers generally avoid sprays or additives. Know what you are getting by asking the farmer what is used on both the soil and the berries. Robbing by birds and chipmunks are the biggest risk to a good crop right behind New England’s unpredictable weather. The low precipitation this spring worked was beneficial, yielding slightly smaller but sweeter berries. Strawberry season only lasts a few blissful weeks so be sure to get to the farmers’ market soon. The Marshfield Farmers’ Market will have at least five farmers with their own strawberries, including organic ones. If the week’s weather cooperates then Freitas Farm, Cretinon’s Farmstand, Sunrise Gardens, Norwell Farms, and Sprig will bring lots of berries. The season started last week and sold out fast, but a plentiful supply is anticipated going forward.