Bucking a trend that has hundreds of acres of Georgia farmland
moving from cultivation to subdivisions each day, Abe Banks
took part of his 21 acres that was zoned for housing and turned
it into a pick-your-own strawberry farm.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that over the past
five years, Georgia lost about 500 acres a day of farmland to
home and business development. Banks worked with his Houston
County neighbors to change land-use agreements so he and his
family could grow strawberries. Those neighbors are now some of
their best customers.

And the Bankses should have plenty of customers this year.

Strawberry Crop Good

“The crop is looking good,” said Gerard Krewer, a University of
Georgia Extension horticulturist. “The season is just starting in
north Georgia, and it’s been under way in south Georgia for
several weeks.”

Georgia’s climate usually makes for a long season for good
berries. “If it stays cool, they can last in north Georgia until
July 4,” Krewer said. “In south Georgia, it usually winds down in
early to mid-June. This is the peak season, so now is the time to
go pick.”

Berry pickers will see attactive prices for the vine-ripened
fruit. Prices average $6 to 7 per gallon across the state.

“Strawberries are an expensive crop to grow,” Krewer said. “But
growers can get a pretty good return on their investment.”
Strawberries cost about $5,000 per acre to plant, but can gross
over $15,000 per acre if nature cooperates. Georgia’s 50 growers
usually bring in about $3 million per year.

More Than Making Money

But for Abe Banks, growing strawberries is about more than making
money. Banks has been tempted to sell the land. Developers could
fit about 20 houses where he has his 40 rows of strawberries. But
he won’t sell. The 2-acre field reminds him of the Fayetteville,
Ga., farm where he grew up.

“All the lessons you learn on a farm are the type of things
you’ve got to have to get ahead in life,” he said.

Banks teaches basic life skills to his 5-year-old daughter Sara,
like learning to follow directions while looking for ripe
strawberries to pick. “Red, head to toe?” she asked. “Show me,”
he coached. “Red, head to toe. Let’s find another one.”

Unique Berry Farm

Banks bought 12 acres of the land at an auction. Later he added
9.5 acres more. Now surrounded almost entirely by houses, he has
an unlikely spot for 37,500 strawberry plants to call home.

“The Bankses’ farm is really unique,” Krewer said. “It’s a type
of reverse urbanization.”

Like many of today’s Georgia farmers, the Bankses have other
jobs, too. He is an engineering manager at Robins Air Force Base
in Warner Robins. His wife Janet is an operating-room nurse at a
Macon hospital.

To find the strawberry farm nearest you, check the Web site
at
www.cpes.peachnet.edu/strawberryfarms.htm or contact your county Extension
Service office.