Raspberries in central western Maine are big and juicy this season.

“Of the raspberries I have seen, we have had a sufficient amount of rain that they’re full of moisture, very big and ripening nicely because of the heat,” said Kathy Hopkins, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension education aide in the Somerset County district.

The crop looks good, she said, though there was some significant winter kill.

The berries are “big, soft and juicy,” she said, which means a short shelf life for the older varieties.

“They seem to have a good flavor this year, I think,” Hopkins said.

Newer varieties, such as the K81-6 that Joel Gilbert is growing in Livermore, are firmer and are have a longer shelf life, Gilbert said.

The latest statistics Hopkins could find for raspberries in Maine were for the 2002 season from a New England Agriculture Web site.

During that year, there were 21 Maine farms reporting raspberry production, with an average yield of 2,000 pounds per acre, she said.

The average price two years ago was $2.85 per pound, she said.