REGION — Two local strawberry growers say they were able to protect most of their crop when a late freeze hit May 18.

Joel and Melissa Gilbert, who own Berry Fruit Farm raise strawberries on the Crash Road in Livermore where they have a pick your own operation. They also sell them in their farmstand in Livermore Falls.

Early last week Joel said there were a few ripe berries in the field, the harvest is right around the corner. “I think it will be an average crop,” he said. “We had frost protection during the frost event, so we are looking at a full crop.”

A combination of floating row covers and overhead irrigation is used during frost times, Joel noted.

“A significant frost/freeze event is being predicted for Wednesday night-Thursday morning. This has the potential to injure and kill susceptible strawberry flowers and buds that are now present in most strawberry fields,” The University of Maine Cooperative Extension strawberry/integrated pest management newsletter for May 16 noted. “Water must be applied continuously to be effective. Under windy conditions, more water must be applied to assure adequate protection.”

According to a Cornell Cooperative Extension fact sheet, “Of all the factors that negatively affect strawberry production, frost can be the most serious. Frost can eliminate an entire crop almost instantaneously. Overhead irrigation is frequently used for frost control because flowers must be kept wet during a freeze in order to provide protection. As long as liquid water is present on the flower, the temperature of the ice will remain at 32F because the transition from liquid to ice releases heat.

“Strawberry flowers are not injured until their temperature falls below 28F. This four degree margin allows the strawberry grower to completely cover a field with ice and yet receive no injury from frost. However, if insufficient water is applied to a field during a freeze event, more injury can occur than if no water was applied.”

Several principles are responsible for the ability of ice to protect strawberry flowers from injury, the fact sheet continues. “First, although pure water freezes at 32F, the liquid in the strawberry plant is really a solution of sugar and salt,” it notes. “This depresses the freezing point to below 32F. Also, ice crystals need nucleators to allow them to form initially. Certain bacteria serve as nucleators. Sometimes, in strawberry flowers, the bacteria that allow ice to form are absent, allowing the freezing point to be lowered.

“The temperature of the applied water is usually greater than the temperature of the plants, so this serves to warm the flowers before heat is lost to the air. As long as liquid water is continually applied to the plants, the temperature under the ice will not fall below 32F.”

When asked about the recent wet weather, Joel said, “So far, so good. Pray for dry weather. It’s either never enough or way too much!”

Strawberries should now be available in the farmstand or for picking, he said. For updates, check the Facebook page,  or call 207-897-4767.

Continued rain over the weekend put off the start of berry picking, with Tuesday a goal date depending on the weather. “Continue checking daily,” someone at the farmstand said during a call Monday morning, June 19.

Last week David Pike in Farmington said he is no longer growing strawberries, there will not be any at the farmstand near Subway this year. “I have to go buy my own now,” he added.

In Wayne, Tom and Ashley Stevenson operate Stevenson Strawberry Farm. “The May 18 frost/freeze was not great,” he said last week. “We were able to run water all night. The pumps ran from 9:30 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. We were able to save most of the blossoms.

“We didn’t lose everything. Some spots were hit, it affected the early blossoms. The later ones are OK.”

His crop looks OK, but Stevenson said he knows from speaking with other growers there was serious damage throughout Maine and Massachusetts. “People in southern Maine and on the coast couldn’t water,” he noted.

Stevenson said the recent rainy spell “is a pain in the butt. Better now than when the berries are fully ripe.”

An article in the Portland Press Herald on Sunday noted the rain is having an impact on Maine growers. In the article, David Handley, small fruit specialist with University of Maine Cooperative Extension said he expected a later start to the season than usual for many Maine strawberry growers, particularly those in the central part of the state.

“But if we get good weather for picking, I think we’re looking at a really good season,” Handley said. “We just can’t seem to string more than a couple of sunny days together. We need some sunny days to ripen the fruit and get the pickers out in the fields.”

Pick your own at Stevenson’s is expected to start the end of June this year, a bit later than last year, Stevenson noted. Joel uses black plastic under his strawberries, so his harvest is a bit earlier, he added. For more information on picking, visit the Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/stevensonstrawberryfarm, or call [207] 685-3532.

“If we get four days of 80 degrees, that will jump the berries along,” Stevenson said. “Who knows?”

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