In Israel, due to the warm climate, the strawberry season is winter. Usually strawberries available from December until March (including). And towards the end of this period, some farms allow strawberry picking (self-picking).
Strawberry Picking At Stalbetut In Hod HaSharon
Most strawberries grow in the Sharon area, and we went to Stalbetut (and their Facebook page) in Hod HaSharon.
Map of the area:
They are open on weekdays and Saturdays as well. Entrance costs 20 NIS per visit and 40 NIS if you want to take a box of strawberries home (around 300 grams of berries fits in the box). Also, you can not buy only the cheaper entrance tickets, and there was some binding ratio (for every several more inexpensive tickets you have to buy one more expensive one).
And of course, regardless of the purchased ticket, during strawberry picking you can eat on site as much as you want.
We bought one ticket with the box and two the only entrance ones. We also got scissors to cut the fruits from the plants.
During our visit, we saw two kinds of strawberries. We started with Orly.
Strawberries are different from other fruits and berries. The do not become ripe together. When you come to a plant, you can see beautiful ripe red ones and green one growing together.
The strawberries grow in rows with narrow passages and close to the ground. Thus kids can quickly pick them up, but less suitable for people with back pain.
The only place I am familiar with, where strawberries grow above ground level is at Self-picking Raspberries at Gedera.
I took pauses from eating the berries and tried different shooting ideas 😉
With the strawberry flower:
Overall view of the field:
As you can see it’s not big, but there are plenty of fruits.
We ate the strawberries straight from the plants. The farm is organic. But if you worry about sand and dirt (unlike most Israelis), then I have to disappoint you. I have not seen any place where you can wash the fruits (as opposed to other agritourism attractions, for example: Picking Cherries at Odem).
I think that at this point we changed rows and started picking other types of strawberries. If I remember correctly it was “Angel.”
Fan type berry:
Shooting up:
Besides picking strawberries there were several activities for kids (drawing and makeup), but these were quite short and served as a small addition to the self-picking experience.
Summary
We spent around two hours at the Stalbetut’s field. As long as you do not expect anything besides strawberry picking, most chances that you will enjoy this experience.
We enjoyed this experience. It is both educational and teaches kids to eat more fruits (a problem that many parents have).
Hod haSharon Park
If you are already in Hod haSharon and looking for a beautiful place either for a picnic or a short walk, I would suggest checking the new park.
Map of the area:
The new park is located behind the industrial sector, not far from road #5. And there is one big lake with a small island for birds and bridges for people.
Here is a map:
The park is not finished, but it is already a beautiful place for a short visit.
View of the lake and the garbage mountain that will be restored in the future.
Another view of the park and Southern industrial area.
Have you visited a self Strawberry Picking farm? Tell us about your experience in the comments below.
For additional similar places check out agrotourism category.
That’s all for today, and I’ll see you in future travels!
Stay Tuned!