Strawberry picking in Ile-de-France is back, starting in May!

Attention strawberry lovers, the season is here! And if you want to treat yourself to freshly-picked strawberries, head for one of the many Chapeau de Paille pick-your-own strawberry stands in the Paris region. Local, seasonal, varied and affordable, we're all for it.

Cueillettes Chapeau de Pailles offer an average of ten varieties of seasonal strawberries and 3 to 4 varieties of remontant strawberries. Darselect, Cigaline, Sonata, Charlotte, Mara, Anaïs or Gariguette... These are just some of the varieties you'll find in our different spots.

Cléry, Deluxe, Joly, Gariguette, Salsa, Malwina, Darselect, Asia, Sonata, Magnum, Rubis des jardins, Faith, Flair, Korona are the stars of the season, from spring to mid-July. The fresh, fragrant Cléry is the first to appear, and Malwina the last.

We love the authentic, tasty and rustic varieties, and the advantage of going to the pick-your-own is that you can taste them all before filling your basket.

After that, it's up to the remontantes to take over until autumn. Charlotte, Mara des Bois, Cirafine and Mariguette are the stars of the post-season, less productive but tasty.

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With Chapeau de Paille, the time between harvest and consumption could hardly be shorter. No airplanes, no transport, as few pesticides as possible, thanks to the sustainable agriculture of this network of French agricultural producers. The self-service pick -your-own service offers you a real sense of freedom, just a few minutes from Paris.

There are no fewer than 10 Chapeau de paille pick-up points in the Paris region. You're spoilt for choice, so don't hesitate to share a pleasant, flavorful moment with your future child:

• Cueillette de La Grange (77)
• Cueillettes du Plessis (77)
• Cueillette de Rutel (77)
• Cueillette de Servigny (77)
• Cueillettede Compans (77)
• Cueillettede Gally (78)
• Picking inViltain (78)
• Picking inCorfou (91)
• Picking inCergy (95)
• Cueillettede la Croix-Blanche (95)

Also note that on certain weekends in June, during the Fête de la Fraise, a number of events are organized at the cueillettes du Plessis: tastings, a tombola, potting workshops, and recipes and coloring books for children!

So, are you in the mood for strawberries? A word of advice: pick them with their stalks for better preservation. And since it's also the season, we're thinking of asparagus, carrots, white onions, lettuces, peas and rhubarb...