South Jersey’s strawberry crops were hurt by the ugly turn in the weather
A reign of rain that began May 13 took a major bite out of the South Jersey's strawberry business.
Farmers aren’t prone to complaining about drought-breaking rains, but for New Jersey strawberry growers, the atmosphere could not have picked a worse time to play catch-up.
The rainy spell that began on May 13 soaked their fields and left ripening berries to marinate in their own doom. The region had eight times as much rain in May as it did in September and October combined.
All the moisture was a bonanza for fruit-attacking fungi, growers said. It promoted fungal growth, and because the rains kept away customers, some of the berries became overripe.
“We didn’t get the rain when we needed it, and now we’re getting the rain when we don’t need it,” said Gary DeFelice, with Cedar Hill Farm & Nursery in Middletown, Monmouth County.
“It’s not going to be our best year,” said Lisa Specca, owner of the popular Specca Farms in Bordentown, Burlington County.
Until this week, when it wasn’t raining, dreary, windy, and cool conditions further chilled the farms’ usually robust pick-your-own business, she said.
Stella Farms Inc. in Berlin, Camden County, announced in a Facebook post at the end of May that its strawberry season “has come to an end due to mother nature not being too kind to all of us farmers.” The Springdale Farm Market in Cherry Hill also ended its season early.
The “fabulously popular” strawberry season is an important contributor to the state’s agricultural economy and the livelihood of growers, said Peter Furey, director of the New Jersey Farm Bureau.
Growers “didn’t lose 100% of the crop,” he said. “They’re not dead in the water.”
But the May wetness and prevailing dampness that gave fresh life to the foliage throughout the region was cruel to South Jersey growers in a crucial period. “It’s a short-window season,” Furey said.
The season typically lasts about a month, from mid-May to mid-June in Jersey, and late May to late June on the other side of the Delaware River.
How did the rains affect the Pennsylvania crops?
As they have been in South Jersey, rains in Southeastern Pennsylvania the last 30 days have been far above normal, based on data assembled by the Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center.
Yet the strawberry crops appear to be fine. Stands in western Chester County and Lancaster County — where over 7 inches of rain was measured in the last month, about 180% of normal — appeared to be brimming with strawberries this week.
The good fortune was about timing. With a slightly cooler climate, the crops were not quite as far along as they were in Jersey, said Timothy Elkner, vegetable and fruit specialist at Pennsylvania State University’s Lancaster County agricultural extension.
“The ripening of a fruit is actually a breakdown process,” he said. “If you bit into a green peach, that’s really hard, the cell walls are more resistant to diseases. When they are close to ready for pickings, the cell walls get softer, and it’s easier for a fungus to get in there.”
That has been an issue in Jersey, and the problems have been exacerbated by the persistent presence of atmospheric moisture, Cedar Hill’s DeFelice said.
Strawberries are important to Jersey’s farm economy
The produce season in Jersey typically starts with asparagus, with strawberries batting second.
Strawberries are a “money” crop, Furey said, and those early-season sales can help offset losses from crops later in the season.
Among all the berries, the strawberry is king in the United States in production and market value, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
New Jersey ranks ninth in the nation, just ahead of Pennsylvania, in volume of production, according to the industry tracker EssFeed.
The estimated annual value of the crop is $25 million, compared with Pennsylvania’s $20 million.
Both states rely primarily on local sales. You’ll find California strawberries at a local Wegmans, but you’ll have a hard time finding a New Jersey strawberry in California.
And chances are excellent that a ripe local strawberry is likely to be tastier and more succulent than any strawberries from California, which “are pretty awful,” in the opinion of Specca, the Bordentown grower.
“They’re bred to be very durable, and to withstand trucking across the country.”
Durability is not a quality shared by Jersey berries.
“They’re highly perishable,” Specca said. Who wants to eat an overripe strawberry?
And the fate of the crops is inextricably tied to weather, something that Specca and DeFelice say they accept with a certain equanimity.
DeFelice said that his farm is coming off three “wonderful” seasons.
Said Specca: “It all evens out.”
Specca observed that in the end, farming is a gamble: “You don’t have to go to Atlantic City.”
The strawberry season still has some life left
The farms on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River have been less affected by the rains.
And some New Jersey farms and retail stands still have strawberries.
Here is a list of pick-your-own farms in New Jersey and Pennsylvania (and all over the country).
It’s wise to call before you head out to see what is available, and check the weather, of course. It looks like Saturday is not going to be a great pick-your-own day, with showers highly likely.
Staff writer Ellen Dunkel contributed to this article.