Packed Crowds On Strawberry Festival's Last Weekend

  Just next door to Orlando lies the Strawberry capital of the world, Plant City, where Central Floridians celebrate their annual pilgrimage to the mecca of a fruit adored second only to Oranges in the sunshine state. It’s the final Saturday of the strawberry festival and packed crowds eagerly lined up for their fair share of rides, strawberry tastings and shortcake.

  Each year the event offers guests not only the chance to gorge on the bounty of the springtime harvest, but also the opportunity to play a menagerie of games and competitions, providing fun activities for all ages. Fans of country music and rock enjoyed concerts from many of their favorite artists as well as lesser known amateurs. Musical impersonators, such as Mike Walker of Branson, MO, also entertained the crowd on several occasions throughout the festival.

  For those longing for an escape from the carnival like atmosphere of the strawberry festival, the agricultural building presented the perfect venue for lovers of livestock and animals. Beef and poultry competitions take place throughout the festival and exhibits featuring cows, bulls, roosters and chickens amazed onlookers with their size and appearance.

  For nearly 100 years, the Florida Strawberry Festival's presence in Plant City rallied residents from everywhere around the town's agricultural industry thanks to the dream of a small city club in the early 1900s. The event began back in 1930 when members of the newly organized Plant City Lions Club conceived the idea of an event to celebrate the bountiful harvest of strawberries. In 1948, the American Legion Post #26 helped get the Florida Strawberry Festival reactivated following a six-year hiatus during and immediately following World War II. The Lions Club and other civic organizations have participated in the Festival ever since.

  You can still visit the Florida Strawberry festival on its final day this year, March 14, 2021, and get your fill of this bountiful harvest of fruit and fun. Visit flstrawberryfestival.com to find more information about times and prices.