The strawberry season generally does not start until the beginning of May, but this can vary depending on the weather. This year in Wépion, the strawberries arrived early.
“We had 3 weeks of nice weather, which accelerated the growth. Then, it was colder again so the crops were back to normal for the season. In the end, we will be one week early,” explains Pierre-Alexandre Canivez, a farmer of Wépion.
There was a lot of sun over the past few days, so the first strawberries are already very sweet. “Generally, the first strawberries of the season are ripe and they have a good size, but it is usually not until mid-May that they really are sweet. This year, they already are.”
This farmer sells his strawberries directly from his field to preserve the taste as much as possible. “I sell all my production alone, except for a small quantity destined for the bakers for their pastries. I do not sell strawberries anywhere else, even when the production is low. People just know that my strawberries come straight from the fields.”
“The strawberry season is in May and June. I do not try to extend the season using fridges. It makes the strawberries smaller, less tasty and requires more phytosanitary products. Generally speaking, I do not use any treatment so the customer does not need to wash the strawberries.”
Source: dhnet.be
