Strawberry season in full swing in Norfolk

It's go time for local strawberries.

That's the message from strawberry farmers in Norfolk County, where early summer heat has fields bursting with sweet fruit ripe for the picking.

The berries are coming on fast and furious. They're ripening day and night," said Sharon Judd from Meadow Lynn Farms, a pick-your-own operation in Simcoe.

We need people to come on out to the farm and get the berries, because if this heat keeps up, it actually will shorten the season," Judd said.

Not only are early-season berries blossoming in abundance, but the recent intense heat has later varieties like Jewel and Valley Sunset ripening weeks ahead of schedule.

The crop looks fantastic. Our first varieties, we're getting two picks in one (day). The size is great," Judd said.

It's a similar scene at Wholesome Pickins in Delhi, where farmer Jenn VanDeVelde is looking at a berry bonanza.

We're in a mad picking rush. They're everywhere," she said with a laugh.

VanDeVelde's everbearing strawberries - which bear fruit from June to September - are typically two weeks ahead of the June-bearing plants, whose blossoms ripen en masse once the days lengthen.

But with the really weird weather mixture we had of some heavy frost and also some intense heat, all of them have come at the same time," she said, encouraging anyone seeking strawberries in southwestern Ontario to get into the fields without delay.

Our industry is in the peak right now, and people should be visiting any farm that they can and picking or buying pre-picked strawberries."

Logistically, both farms learned from last year's COVID-inspired adaptations and tweaked their pick-your-own systems this year.

Customers at Meadow Lynn's seven-acre strawberry patch now prepay for what they want to pick. After scouring their designated rows for the juicy fruit, they can head to their cars without again needing to wash their hands, line up and interact with farm employees.

We doubled our staff last year and we put 1,000 stakes out in the field so we could physically distance everybody," Judd said. People are really happy to just be able to pick the berries and go home."

Some of the berries at Wholesome Pickins end up in pies, muffins and other treats found at the on-site farm market and bakery, where visitors can also pick up a wide variety of local produce, including the last of this season's asparagus and the first new crop potatoes.

It really does feel like the kick of summer," VanDeVelde said.

She expects a solid month" of pick-your-own at Wholesome Pickins, which grows eight varieties of strawberries on five acres, plus 12 acres of everbearing Albion strawberries.

Cooler days ahead may be a boon for strawberry plants and pickers alike.

A little bit cooler weather is nicer to pick in," VanDeVelde said. It's not as hot, and you're more comfortable bringing your kids out for a couple hours."

Judd hopes to avoid a repeat of last year, when blistering heat zapped the plants and put an abrupt halt to the season.

As long as we can cool off a bit, we should have berries for the next four weeks," she said.

But it all depends on what the weather does."

J.P. Antonacci's reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. The funding allows him to report on stories about the regions of Haldimand and Norfolk.