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GALLERY: Florida Strawberry Festival

Two girls wait for the Robinson’s Pig Race to begin at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon. Mar. 9, 2014. The pigs are coaxed to race around the track with the aid of Oreo cookies.
Two girls wait for the Robinson’s Pig Race to begin at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon. Mar. 9, 2014. The pigs are coaxed to race around the track with the aid of Oreo cookies.

PLANT CITY — Each spring, the Florida Strawberry Festival draws patrons from across the state for agricultural exhibits, crafts, livestock, fine arts and horticulture.

This year, from Feb. 27 to March 9, guests fl0oded the festival on the weekends to learn about and celebrate the Florida strawberry. On the last day, musical guests including Easton Corbin and The Band Perry performed at the event.

Other country recording artists including Kelly Pickler, Rascal Flatts, Little Big Town and Josh Turner performed throughout the last month.

Other highlights of the festival included carnival rides, pig races, animal shows and homemade strawberry dishes.

Central to its focus, the festival preserves and enhances the agricultural and historical legacy of the Florida strawberry each year. From fried butter to veggie gyros, the event catered to all audiences.

Flip through the photos above to get a taste of the Florida Strawberry Festival.

<i>Baily Lewis, 6, rides the Ferris Wheel at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014</i>

<i>10-year-old Kaleigh, left, and her brother Kyle, 5, ride on a carnival ride at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014</i>

<i>A crowd of people walk through the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9. 2014</i>

<i>Strawberries sold for as little as $5 a flat at the festival.</i>

<i>“Wild About Monkeys” host Kevin Keith performs with Dagnee the baboon at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014. The act also included a border collie, birds and other monkeys. </i>

<i>Country recording artist Easton Corbin performs at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014.</i>

<i>Easton Corbin sings with a fiddler in his band while singing Alabama’s hit song. “If Ya Wanna Play in Texas,” on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014</i>

<i>Two girls wait for the Robinson’s Pig Race to begin at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon. Mar. 9, 2014. The pigs are coaxed to race around the track with the aid of Oreo cookies. </i>

<i>Miniature Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs race around the 150-feet track at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014. </i>

<i>A vendor hands a customer two ears of buttered corn at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014. Also sold at the festival were turkey legs, gyros, fried butter and fresh squeezed lemonade. </i>

<i>A family walks through a strawberry patch at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday afternoon, Mar. 9, 2014.</i>

<i>Reid Perry of The Band Perry strums his guitar during a performance at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday night, Mar. 9, 2014. </i>

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<i>Lead vocalist Kimberly Perry sings her hit sing, “Better Dig Two,” as an encore performance at the Florida Strawberry Festival on Sunday night, Mar. 9, 2014.</i>

Amber is a reporter for WUFT News and can be contacted by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news@wuft.org.