The Strawberry Farm

The Strawberry Farm is a family operation in Broad Brook, Connecticut. They irrigate at the root rather than overhead, and manage pests only when the situation calls for it rather than on a fixed schedule. Both choices keep the growing lean and the fruit cleaner.

What really defines the farm is the variety. Most Connecticut strawberries are June-bearing, which means a few concentrated weeks of harvest and then the season is over. Day-neutral berries work differently: they flower and fruit regardless of day length, so the harvest here runs from early summer well into fall, long after the typical local window has closed.

The berries tend to be smaller than the commercial kind, with flavor that's more concentrated and none of the wateriness that comes from varieties bred for shipping rather than taste. Strawberries also don't hold well in transit. A few days in a truck softens the texture and flattens the sweetness. These go short distances, which means they arrive much closer to how they left the plant.