GREAT VILLAGE - Strawberries are "very early" this season, with plants hanging heavy with the sweet, juicy summer fruit.
Curtis Millen, a Great Village-based strawberry grower, said his crop was ripe for the picking about two weeks earlier than normal.
"We've picked in the field since the 27th of May," said Millen. The majority of berries picked on his farm are sold commercially to one of the province's largest grocery store chains, Sobeys, as well as Masstown Market.
He has expanded the strawberry fields of his farm by about 25 per cent and now has more than 120 acres in production along with about 35 acres of nursery stock, which will be sold to producers in Florida in the fall.
"We have different production methods that's going to allow us to have berries in production until October," said the farmer.
Early berry varieties are grown in raised beds watered by an underground irrigation system.
Millen said with the expansion of the strawberry fields and addition of new raised beds, the farm should ensure berries from May to October on a regular basis.
The farm's U-pick will also soon be open.
Strawberries at RiverBreeze Farm in Onslow have also ripened early and are now being sold at roadside market stands around the area.
"It's very good," said Jim Lorraine, owner of RiverBreeze Farm. "We're going to have a very good year."
"The weather has been great."
Berries at his farm were being picked about a week ago, one week ahead of a usual harvest.
"Last year we didn't start until June 22, I think it was the 13th this year," he said.
Early season berries are selling for about $4 a quart box. Lorraine said that price drops as the season progresses.
He said U-pick prices would remain the same as last year when it opens for the season on June 23.
He expects the summer season to last about five weeks, about until the end of July. By then late strawberry varieties will be in bloom and will extend the growing season into October.
This year it has been easier to find staff to reap the harvest.
"We've got lots of locals picking," he said. He began recruiting workers early in the year and they have a waiting list of people looking for work, either in the fields or manning the stands.
"We don't really have to go looking for people any more a whole lot. They call us."
Terrence, I totally agree with you in principal. But I am so tired of hearing people lump all Nova Scotians into the lazy, beer guzzling, cigarette smoking slackaholics that the chronic welfare bums of this province have become. I work for what I have and pay my share of taxes. And it really peeves me off to see my tax dollars as a resource used to streamline entry into our area of migrant workers. It’s a sad state of affairs when local employers are too lazy to interview and hire locals that are ready for work. But expect everyone to spend their dollars on their goods. Only to see them converted to wages for migrant workers and mostly taken to other countries. I am no economic genius but does that support our local economy??? As for the welfare recipients. It starts with your local MLA. Start screaming and complaining and point out these bums. Get them out of our back pockets and make them look for work. I know a woman who lives in Middle Stewiacke who has never worked as day in her life, She has 2 people working who live in her house yet she can still collect welfare. She has on a timely basis over the years given birth to new siblings as the older ones grew and would disqualify her for Mothers Assistance. She has a vehicle, a house (CMHC nearly non existent payments) and lots of time to gossip about everyone else. I think she should be forced into a program to get her off the welfare scam she is running. Perhaps impose time limits to Mothers assistance to encourage gainful employment. The province seems able to cut everything else. Why not go after these types? Keep in mind there are a lot of fabulous hard working honest young people who are just looking for a break and are all to often lumped in with a hand full of bad apples. Employers restore our confidence in you and give us reason to want to buy your wares. Hire our local unemployed. Get off your butts and look a little harder. There are lots of locals eager to work. Don’t take the lazy way out and migrate workers. Give us reason to go to you and spend our dollars. Make us proud as workers and consumers.