Strawberries, the small red fruits clad in scarlet red, dotted with tiny seeds and wearing green little caps, make one of the most deliciously attractive fruits on Earth! Strawberries come in different varieties having different colors, flavors and shapes. Reportedly, the United States was the greatest producer of strawberries till 2005 but in Asia strawberries farmers growing rapidly. Look at some of the interesting facts about strawberries
Facts about Strawberries
How did a strawberry get its name? Some believe that the name hailed from the practice of placing straws around the growing strawberry plants. Other say that the name evolved around 1000 years ago from the word, 'strew' that means 'spread', applicable to runners that spread outwards from the strawberry plants.
Strawberries belong to order Rosales, family Rosaceae and genus Fragaria. The word, 'fragaria' comes from the Latin word meaning fragrant. Italians call strawberries by the name ‘Fragola’. Interestingly, strawberries are not fruits. They are enlarged receptacles of the flowers and are hence known as a secondary fruit.
Strawberries are planted during the months of September and October. Strawberry plants are handpicked after every three days. This is the time required for a strawberry to change its color from white to red. On picking, they are cooled and delivered to the markets in refrigeration.
Strawberry is the only berry that has seeds on its external surface. The other berries have seeds inside. A single strawberry has 200 tiny seeds. They are also the first ones to ripen in spring.
Strawberries are low in fat content and calorie. They are rich in vitamin C, fiber, folic acid as well as potassium. They can reduce the risk of cancers and heart attacks. Strawberry intake helps in the reduction of systolic blood pressure. Fresh juice from strawberry pulp helps in recovering from fever. Strawberry juice, if combined with honey can reduce inflammation. It has a curative effect on sunburns.
Originally, strawberries were known as heart-seed berries and eaten with cornmeal bread. The English and the French used strawberries to landscape their gardens. In the 14th century, Charles V of France had ordered 1200 strawberry plants to be grown in the Royal Gardens
