17th Crop of Strawberries!!

For the last seventeen years, we have had an annual tradition; you could almost call it a ritual. And that is the “sticking” of the strawberries. We purchase unrooted strawberry runners from Prince Edward Island (Canada - where the cold winters keep pests and diseases at bay) and then have to stick them (sorry I can’t demonstrate the technique) into plug trays and run a timed mist on them until they root in the trays.

Today (August 31) was the day.  We “stuck” 15,000! There is something very comforting and comfortable about this yearly ritual. The memories come flooding back and make you feel as rooted as the strawberries will be. It’s family bonding time. One thing I love about farming is that every year is so different - yet so much the same. There are always new challenges, but the tasks develop a predictable, comfortable rhythm.

Today we welcomed our new “class” of strawberries which will be “performing” next spring.

Farmer John