A view from the hydroponic top

About two years ago, not long after moving to Florida from the Washington, D.C., area, I was excited to see in Plant City what I thought was a pick-your-own strawberry field. Only after parking my car did I realize the people picking in the field were actually laborers and not happy-go-lucky strawberry lovers.

So I was excited to hear about hydroponic farms in Central Florida that are open to the public. The lure of hydroponic farms, aside from their unique method of growing plants in water without soil, is that plants grow vertically in special containers instead of in the ground.

Bottom line, there's little to no bending involved when you pick. This means that hydroponic farms appeal to a wide range of ages, from kids to senior citizens.

"We get people from all walks of life. We all have to eat," said Chester Bullock, manager of Myakka City-based Hydro-Taste.

Right now, Bullock's farm is growing, among other items, strawberries, kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, tomatoes, citrus and baby eggplant.

"This is fun for all ages. You can be 85 years old and do this," said Mike McCracken, who operates McCracken Farms in Avon Park.

McCracken's hydroponic farm is focused now on growing a variety of greens, including arugula, cabbage, Swiss chard and lettuce. Squash, cucumbers and tomatoes should be available in a couple of weeks.

On a recent visit to Hydro-Taste, a staff member gave me a small red basket and scissors so I could go through the rows and cut what I wanted to buy. I was told to cut the strawberries back on the stem by a couple of inches to help keep them fresher even longer at home.

Although the farm was moderately busy, my you-pick time was a sunny, quiet, almost Zen-like experience.

In addition to the outside area, the farm sells items at its retail shop, including more produce, sandwiches, drinks, and dried strawberries, blueberries and veggies. A number of recipe cards are inside the shop, and I later followed a recipe for kale chips that could rival potato chips for their taste (but carry a lot more nutritional value).

Bullock emphasizes to customers the importance of properly washing your produce (he even offers classes on the topic), and he talks of his patented Hydro-Stacker system.

O'Brien Family Farms in Bradenton also has a half-acre hydroponic section with strawberries, kale, cauliflower and leaf lettuce that it recently opened beside its wholesale operation, said co-owner Leann O'Brien.

Like Hydro-Taste, O'Brien Family Farms has a few other offerings beyond pick-your-own produce. The farm has a beehive educational area, sandwiches and smoothies, olive oil, local eggs and milk.

During the farm's busy season right now, O'Brien said they see as many as 70 to 75 visitors daily on field trips alone — that's apart from the regular foot traffic. Ninety-nine percent of the items they sell come from local sources, O'Brien said.

Hydroponic farm owners said there's a growing interest in their products because people want fresh, local food at a reasonable price with fewer pesticide sprays used.

"People want healthy, clean food," said McCracken.