My goodness gracious, is hulling strawberries a Southern term, or just old-fashioned?

Branny, yes, you dig a hole, sort of: you postion the leaves so that they're all pointing up (so you don't cut through any of them, hopefully), then put the point of a sharp knife at the edge of the base of these leaves, press in a little bit, then move the point around the circle; usually but not always, a little soft core of soft flavorlessness will come with the leaves when you flip them out. Then you can cut them up if they're large, and mash 'em up real good with a spoonful of sugar, and leave 'em to macerate a bit; then...YUM! As a matter of fact, I just finished a bowl of strawberry shortcake. Best dessert in the world, bar none!