812-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 6, 1998
To hold a successful annual 4-H Strawberry Roundup sponsored by the Rotary
Club of Lancaster requires a lot of people working together. From left, Heather Fletch
er and her mom stand In for second-place winner Chris Fletcher who was on a school
trip; Harold Keller, auctioneer and Rotary member; Linford Hershey holding the
champion strawberries purchased for $3OO by Rotary member John K. Herr III; Loren
Hershey, Mrs. Hershey, Lisa Hershey, and Dr. Tim Elkner, horticulture extension
agent.
$3OO Is ‘Berry’ Good
Profit For Two Quarts
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.)
Strawberries taste extra sweet
this year. The berries also carried
an extra hefty price at the annual
4-H Strawberry Roundup held at
the Farm and Home Center last
week.
Rotarian John K. Herr 111 of Ser
ta Mattress Company handed $3OO
to Loren Hershey of Kirkwood for
2-quarts of berries.
“I bid ever year but this was the
first time, I bought the grand
champion berries,” Herr said. “It’s
fun to encourage 4-H’ers,” he said
of lessons learned in
entrepreneurship.
Twelve-year-old Loren was out
in the strawberry patch at S:3O that
morning in anticipation of the ber
ry auction. He took care to pick
perfectly ripe berries. “You can
tell by their redness when they
should be picked,” Loren said. “If
they are too red, the berries are
overripe, and if they have some
white on them, they are not ripe.”
After picking 14 quarts from 75
Garli-glow plants on the berry
patch he shares with his brother
and sister, Loren carefully laid
each berry on the table. He exa-
rles to John K. Herr 111 for $3OO.
mined each one to make sure the
berries showed no bug bites. Each
berry needed to be uniform in size
and color to pass the judges scruni
ty. John Yokum and Dr. Tim Elner
judged the event
Elkner, horticulture specialist
for Lancaster County Penn State
Extension, said this year’s event
had 21 entries, the highest number
of entries ever at the annual
competition.
After paying $3OO for the ber
ries, Herr was left with the dilemna
of deciding whether to share them
with co-workers or take them
home to his wife. Either way, the
berries would be eaten one at a
time, without sugar, cream or other
toppings, which would tamper
with the taste.
“I’m health conscious and pre
fer to eat them plain,” Herr said.
Herr was especially pleased to
hear the berries were raised organi
cally without any spray.
“I pick the slugs off by hand,”
Loren said of an almost daily
chore.
All entries were auctioned off to
gamer a total of $1,575. Contes
tants pocket the money, some to be
used to plant more plants and cover
other expenses, some to save for
college, and, “to help me buy my
cab tractor,” said Loren’s brother
10-year-old Linford. Linford
received $65 for his berries that
placed third.
The brothers enjoy fanning with
parents Les and Lois Hershey.
Loren gets up at 5:30 every morn
ing to feed his 4-H steer, five pigs,
and five sheep before catching a
6:15 a.m. school bus to attend Day
spring Christian Academy where
he is in sixth grade.
A sister Lisa, 8, planted berries
this year, but needs to wait until the
plants mature to pick berries for
next years competition.
To encourage persistence in 4-H
members for the project that takes
two years of weeding, watering,
and maintenance before seeing any
monetary gain, Rotarians give a
cash award to first year students
who complete a record book.
Record books detail expenses,
labor, and a story about experi
ences. Traditionally two quarts of
berries of second-year members
are auctioned to the highest bidder.
The remainder, members sell or
eat
Reserve champion Chris Fletch
er’s berries sold for $2OO to Rote
rian William Heyn. Chris was on a
school trip and was unable to
experience the thrill of picking up
the cash {size, but his sister Heath
er was trappy to collect the prize
and money.
“These are the world’s greated
strawberry growers with their
trunks ready to take back a lot of
cash,” said the president of the
Lancaster County Club Rotary.
Leaders and parents volunteer
much of their time to make a
child’s participation successful.
Participants included the fol
lowing: $5O for Jimmy Mullen,
Peach Bottom; $65 for Heather
Fletcher, Mountville; $BO for Jen
nifer Henson; $65 for Lee Ressler,
for Lorelle Ressler, and for Lynn
Ressler, all of Peach Bottom; $4O
for Sarah Sauders of Nottingham;
$5O for Kenton Bucher, Master
sonville; $4O for Josh Keener, Ml
Joy; $45 for Jonathan Keener, Ml
Joy; $45 for Rochelle and Laura
Newcomer, Mt. Joy; $55 for Andy
Hoover of Lancaster, $45 for Jessi
ca Falk, Ml Joy; $55 for Meliss
Brower, Quarryville; $35 for Josh
Keefer, Marietta; $75 of Janie Lea
man, Lancaster; $lOO for Paul
Martin, Manheim; and $35 for
Garrett Martin, Manheim.
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