The strawberry was grown on a farm in New Zealand by Peter Glazebrook, who had set out to create the world’s largest fruit for over ten years before finally succeeding this year with his “Giant” variety of strawberries. He says that he began cross-pollinating different varieties of strawberries from around the globe together to breed a bigger berry that would still taste good enough for commercial sale.
His goal is to eventually grow the new variety of giant berries to the size of a melon, which would weigh about 20 pounds. Two years ago, his wife Christine Glazebrook accidentally grew one that weighed in at a mere five pounds.
World’s Biggest Strawberry
There are currently three different types of these giant strawberries that are cultivated on the farm. One of them is referred to as “Aunty New Zealand,” which was responsible for this year’s record-breaking fruit.
It is a cross between the New Zealand-bred variety known as “Hort16A” and a wild species from Chile called “Fragaria chiloensis.” The other two types were created by pollinating this first type with its own seed, which yielded a mix of red and gold berries.
Although the fruit is impressive to look at, Christine says that its flavor does not match the size. In fact, she finds the taste to be rather bland and hard to describe. She compares it to a particularly watery blueberry in terms of texture, but notes that they have a more neutral flavor.
By weight, world’s largest strawberry are about one-third sugar and two-thirds water . While that may sound like a lot of water, it is actually quite low compared to most other strawberries. The largest strawberry in the world weighs about 20 pounds, which was grown by Peter Glazebrook. That’s only one-third sugar and two-thirds water!
Glazebrook was not the first to attempt growing the world’s largest fruit: an Australian strawberry grower and a Japanese farmer had both previously claimed the title in previous years, but those large strawberries-only weighed about 2 pounds each.
It is reported that the strawberry originated in France, which is where it got its name because “strawberries” are known as fraises in French. The etymology of the word itself comes from an ancient Germanic tribe called the “Strobiloi,” who were well-known for their cultivation of strawberries back in classical antiquity.
Peter Glazebrook’s farm is in Newark, England. He has been a plant breeder for over thirty years, and his major work has been with fruit trees and strawberries. He started growing giant strawberries to find a variety that tasted good but would still be commercially viable.
Furthermore, he has successfully bred several new varieties of strawberries with his work. His first giant strawberry fruit was grown in 2009, but it only weighed 1 pound and 8 ounces (816 grams). His second attempt in 2010 weighed 1 pound and 15 ounces (933 grams). And his third giant strawberry, grown in 2011, was the first to weigh over 2 pounds at 2 pounds and 3.4 ounces (1050 grams).
However, it did not meet Guinness World Record requirements due to its size being “only mostly round.” This year, his new “Giant” variety of strawberries reached the world record size of 2,270 grams (5 pounds).
Two years ago, his wife Christine Glazebrook accidentally grew one that weighed in at a mere five pounds.
Peter’s farm is in Newark, England. He has been a plant breeder for over thirty years, and his major work has been with fruit trees and strawberries.
His first giant strawberry fruit was grown in 2009, but it only weighed 1 pound and 8 ounces (816 grams). His second attempt in 2010 weighed 1 pound and 15 ounces (933 grams). And his third giant strawberry, grown in 2011, was the first to weigh over 2 pounds at 2 pounds and 3.4 ounces (1050 grams).
However, it did not meet Guinness World Record requirements due to its size being “only mostly round.” This year, his new “Giant” variety of strawberries reached the world record size of 2,270 grams (5 pounds).
He got the idea for growing giant fruits from reading about gourds that were grown to be larger than a man could lift. He would like to see a team of American farmers grow a larger strawberry to beat his record.
In the article, Christine Glazebrook describes growing giant strawberries as a hobby. It never occurred to her that she would grow one weighing five pounds until it happened by accident.
Although other fruit farmers have tried growing giant fruits, none have been able to repeat their earlier successes. In the past, people have attempted to grow other types of fruits such as cucumbers, carrots and pumpkins to be larger than normal.
How Big Is The Biggest Strawberry In The World?
The Fukuoka, Japan resident and Guinness World Records holder for weighing in at 250g of pure deliciousness is Koji Nakao. His strawberry measured an impressive height of 8cm with a length that ranged from 12-30 centimeters making it easily one if not THE largest or most colossal strawberries ever recorded!
He was presented with a certificate by Guinness World Records for his accomplishment. Mr Nakao has been growing organic fruit and vegetables since 1989, and this is the first record he has set! Having now obliterated the previous world record held by another strawberry, which measured a measly height of 8cm.
This record setting strawberry had the honor of being placed on display at the Kyushu National Museum in Dazaifu City, Fukuoka Prefecture for a period of four months until September 9th.
Grown inside Nakao’s farmhouse, this colossal berry was grown using organic methods; by ingesting cow manure , Nakao made the soil nutrient-rich and he constantly swapped his crops around to create a healthy growing environment.
This strawberry actually takes over 1,000 days to grow from seedling into fruition that is large enough for consumption. The average time it takes a strawberry to grow to its ripest state is usually 100 days. It was a long arduous road for Nakao, who had to hand pollinate the plant with a paint brush.
