If you answered E, congratulations, you get the prize—of those five choices, the banana is the only true berry in the bunch. And what is a “true” berry? Botanically speaking, a berry is the simplest fruit, grown from the ovary of a single flower, as in the grape and the tomato, which are also true berries. The blueberry (and the cranberry, for that matter) are “false” berries, growing from another part of the flower. Raspberries and blackberries are clumps—each little juicy sac is an individual fruit. And the strawberry? It’s technically a vegetable, a spectacular swelling of the stem where the flower parts attach, and the little seedlike things on its surface are actually fruit.
But don’t tell that to Barry and Jan Fitzgerald, purveyors of Charles City County-based Barry’s Berries and Jan’s Jams at Rose Tree Hill Farm. They are firmly among the vast majority of the population who simply don’t care about any technically correct definition of “berry.” “We’ll just go with the colloquial one,” says Jan, a smile in her voice.
There’s ample reason that the colloquialism “berry” so strongly ties together this group of small fruits (and a vegetable), with their vivid colors and bright flavors and iconic things to be made from them. You bake berries into pies. You douse them with cream. Cook them down to gooey goodness and seal them into jars. Or skip cooking entirely—just pop them into your mouth and let their flavor burst on your tongue, the taste of summer. Maybe you’re even lucky enough to pluck them right off the plant, sun-warm.
That’s how Barry Fitzgerald likes berries best. And, for the last handful of years, he’s had more access than most. Up until 2006, Barry and Jan had always grown blueberries in their home garden. “They did so well,” says Barry, “we decided to become blueberry farmers.” The couple started with two acres. Since then, with some help and encouragement from Virginia State University’s Small Farm Program, the Fitzgeralds have diversified. Six of their 21 acres are now planted with blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, mulberries and strasberries.
Yes, that’s strasberry, which reputedly falls somewhere between the strawberry and the raspberry, but which, says Barry, is really a wild strawberry native to South America and cultivated in Europe. “They have a lot more old-fashioned strawberry taste,” he adds. “Much better than the ones they’ve bred all the taste out of.” It’s Jan’s favorite. “It has a real sparkle to it,” she says.
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