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In order for NC to be third in the nation's strawberry growers, agricultural researchers have developed technologies to help the strawberries bloom and produce fruit in a less than ideal climate. For more information: http://science.unctv.org/content/strawberry-mania or http://strawberries.ces.ncsu.edu/2014/05/strawberry-update-with-some-thoughts-about-merced-and-radiance-5-pm-sat-may-31-2014/ In order for NC to be third in the nation's strawberry growers, agricultural researchers have developed technologies to help the strawberries bloom and produce fruit in a less than ideal climate. Debby Wechsler, executive secretary of the North Carolina Strawberry Association, explains that it takes intense planning, management and care to keep NC ranked third. Mark Waller, owner of Waller Family Farm in Durham, NC receives help from soil scientists to learn the best PH level, lime amount, fertilizers and other nutrients to place in his soil at the end of selling season. The strawberry plants need to be in the ground by the end of September or the beginning of October for the crop to be ready by spring. If all goes well, the plants begin to flower in March. Frost becomes a problem at this point, which is where NCSU Professor Emeritus Barclay Poling's research comes in. Poling has found the average critical temperature for strawberry blooms in the state is 28 degrees. The irony is that for all of the help science has provided to North Carolina's strawberry farmers, Mother Nature is still full of surprises and challenges. With continuing research, new types of technology and luck, strawberries continue to be a major cash crop in NC. Watch as NC researchers discover new ways of keeping strawberries in season. Funding for North Carolina Science Now provided by GSK.