1. What does it mean in French when you walk to the strawberries “aller aux fraises”?
- Going for a short walk
- Wearing trousers that are too short
- Not shaving your legs
- Going shopping
Answer 2) Wearing trousers that are too short, but it can also mean to find a secluded place for lovemaking.
2. What is the Symbolism of strawberries in mediaeval art?
- Virtue, righteousness
- Voluptuous, erotic
- Sinful, immoral
- Fertility, youth
Answer: 1) The strawberry was seen as a symbol for perfect righteousness and is a common feature in mediaeval paintings, particularly of the Virgin and of the Resurrection.
3. Is the artificial strawberry flavour created from the scent extracted from a Beaver’s butt?
- Yes, it is called Castoreum, derived from certain glands of the beaver
- Yes, but it is only used for perfumes, not for food
- No, it is an aromatic compound of an ester and epoxide group
Answer 3:
No, Ethyl methylphenylglycidate is an aromatic organic compound with two functional groups, an ester and an epoxide. It is also known as “strawberry aldehyde” even though it is not found in strawberries and does not contain an aldehyde group.
Castoreum is indeed extracted from a beaver’s glands. It is a flavour enhancer that is used along with other flavours, such as vanilla. It cannot replace them. It is more likely to be used in perfumes, than foods and beverages, since it is highly expensive.
4. Why would some Germans have prejudice against frozen strawberries?
- Germans don’t eat frozen fruits
- There was a big scandal involving maggots
- They were the cause of a flu epidemic
- They are not real strawberries
Answer 3) In 2012 a wave of vomiting diarrhoea swept across schools and kindergartens in Germany. The cause was found in Noroviruses in strawberries delivered from China.
5. What was the beginning of the modern strawberry fragaria ananassa?
The French…
- Crossed wild strawberries with pineapple
- Used pineapple as a fertiliser
- Cultivated different wild strawberries into one species
- Accidentally pollinated the Chilean strawberry with the Virginia strawberry
Answer 4) The garden strawberry was first bred in Brittany, France, in the 1750s via an accidental cross of Fragaria virginiana from eastern North America and Fragaria chiloensis, which was brought from Chile by Amédée-François Frézier in 1714.
6. “Ichigo” is the Japanese word for strawberry. They also have a saying “Ichi-go ichi-e” (一期一会) , the first word sounding the same, but very different in meaning. Can you guess what it means?
- Let go of your worries
- Once in a lifetime
- My home is your home
- Keep one’s promise
Answer 2) “Ichi-go ichi-e” (一期一会), literally “one time, one meeting” can be translated as “for this time only”, and “once in a lifetime”. It describes a cultural concept of treasuring the unrepeatable nature of a moment.
7. You might have heard strawberries are not real berries. So what exactly is the botanical definition?
- A nut
- An aggregate accessory fruit
- A type of rose
- A semi-sweet vegetable
Answer 2) It is an aggregate accessory fruit, meaning each yellow “seed” on the outside of the fruit is actually a nut or fruit sitting on the fleshy part. The botanical definition of berry is “a fruit produced from the ovary of a single flower in which the outer layer of the ovary wall develops into an edible fleshy portion”( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berry)
8. Can you guess the names of these animals that are known to eat strawberries?
- Forgetful tree-climber
- Masked compulsive washer
- Airborne worm-eater
- Many-legged, flying, earth populating army
- Tree-horned forest-dweller
- Long-eared bouncer
- Highland lie-abed
- Armoured phlegmatic
- Nocturnal furry bean
- Rabbit-toothed swine
Answers 1. Squirrel 2. Raccoon 3. Birds 4. Insects 5. Deer 6. Rabbit 7. Marmot 8. Tortoise 9. Hamster 10. Guinea Pig (did you know that they are neither native to Guinea nor related to pigs?) Answer 2)
9. Which place was named after the Beatles Song “Strawberry Fields Forever”?
- A section in New York’s Central Park
- A street in London
- An amusement park in Colorado
- A children’s home in Liverpool
Answer 1) Lennon viewed “Strawberry Fields Forever” as his finest work with the Beatles. After his murder, a section of New York’s Central Park was named after the song. The song itself was named after the children’s home in Liverpool. Did I trick you there?
10. Which kind of strawberry could this be?
It’s a hairbrush :))
