Heatwave could shorten New Jersey strawberry season
Strawberries got a slow start after an unusually cold Spring, however, this does not mean that the season will last longer. Currently the weather is very hot, which is likely to push most crops on, but it is likely to bring an early end to the season for strawberries.
Eric Buzby, of AT Buzby Farm in Mannington Township, said he has been picking strawberries for the past two weeks, and could be done picking the last of his two-acre crop by this weekend.
“You usually expect the heat, but what’s disappointing is that we got started so late,” Buzby said. “We could be done now after a three week season.”
While some farms, like Buzby’s, could be done with strawberries within the week, others hope to ride out the heat wave and continue picking for at least a couple more weeks.
Butch Sparacio, of Sparacio Farm in Deerfield Township, said that while the heat certainly seems to be speeding up the ripening process, he hopes his berries will be able to hang on until the weather breaks this weekend.
“I think we may be able to withstand it this week and then go on for a couple more weeks,” Sparacio said. “If this heat were going on for more than three days, it would probably put an end to the crop.”
“But you never know. It all depends on the weather,” Sparacio said. “It’s a crop that really needs near-perfect weather to be successful.”
According to New Jersey Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Al Murray, though many farms in the southern portion of the state are starting to see their strawberries winding down, other areas — especially more north — are still hitting the peak of the picking season.
Overall, Murray said the strawberry season in New Jersey has been very successful this year. Though they’re a delicate crop, he said Jersey strawberries are unlike any others in the country — they’re only picked once they are red all the way through, they have a lot of juice, and they have great taste.
“Strawberries are a very unique product in New Jersey,” Murray said. “They don’t have a long shelf-life compared to the ones picked still green out of California... New Jersey strawberries are grown to be eaten right out of the field.”
Source: nj.com
