There is an advantage to a cooler summer if you’re a berry grower in Victoria, and Phil Rowe of sunny Creek Organic berry farm is happily reaping the rewards. “We’ve had heavy flowering across most crops providing good crop loads, and with cool summer temperatures, berry size and quality has been excellent,” he notes. The humidity has also been elevated due to regular light rain falling on crops, but thankfully this hasn’t led to any increase in fruit rot or pressure from insects thus far, according to Mr Rowe.
The peak seasons for raspberries, currants and hybrid blackberries were just completed in mid-January, and volumes for all of them are up on 2014, Mr Rowe confirms. Main season blackberries have also taken off. “The early season was fairly compact, but the late season blackberry harvest may well extend into autumn.” The blackberries are turning out larger in size too, while raspberries have stayed small, but have still been excellent quality, according to Mr Rowe. “We only have a modest autumn raspberry capacity, tending more to the late-bearing dual-cropping cultivars,” he adds.
In terms of the market and demand for Sunny Organic berries, the business has consistent demand from customers and organic is rising in popularity. Other growers don’t seem keen to grow pesticide free, organic berries to satisfy the demand, however.
As a farm growing multiple varieties, Sunny Creek Organic is mainly a berry producer, serving the Melbourne market through a wholesale agent, but still shipping processed fruit in the form of jams made on the farm nationwide. The farm is also open to the public, where berries are sold from the shed, either pre-picked of on a ‘pick your own’ basis. Products are available online via a shared platform, www.farmhousedirect.com.au.
For more information contact
Phil Rowe – Sunny Creek Organic
Phone: +61 (03) 56 347 526
E-mail: info@sunnycreekorganic.com.au
Website: www.sunnycreekorganic.com.au