Duda’s Farm strawberries wiped out by deer
Strawberry fields may not be forever.
The local deer population has decimated the strawberries at Duda鈥檚 Farm.
鈥淭he deer 100% wiped out our crop,鈥� said Mark Duda, co-owner of the Brownsville farm. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have any strawberries at all.鈥�
According to Duda, keeping the plants watered during the recent 21-day drought was not an issue for them, but the dry weather made the animal problem worse. Even an electric fence has not stopped the deer.
鈥淭he population of deer is out of control,鈥� Duda said.
And the deer didn鈥檛 just go for the strawberries. Duda estimated they also destroyed about 25% of the farm鈥檚 cabbage crop.
鈥淓very single head had bite marks taken out of it,鈥� he said.
Animal damage is part of the reason the farm filed for Chapter 12 bankruptcy protection earlier this year.
鈥淣ow, we鈥檙e just trying to focus on what is going to be the best for us to be successful and to get out of this,鈥� said Duda, noting they do not plan to plant more strawberries.
Elsewhere in the region, some farms have struggled with their strawberry supplies not because of animals, but recent weather patterns.
Soergel Orchards, located in Wexford cancelled its annual Strawberry Festival that had been scheduled for June 11. The event has been running for about 20 years and attracts thousands of people, according to Adam Voll, the head farmer.
Voll explained that the strawberries got off to a bad start with cold temperatures in the winter and spring. Then, a 21-day drought.
鈥淏ecause of the real dry weather, the berries didn鈥檛 pick up in size. When they鈥檙e small, it takes a lot more to fill up the baskets,鈥� Voll said.
Overall, the size of the berries was more of an issue than the amount, and Voll did not feel they were suitable for an event as large as thee Strawberry Festival.
Strawberries still grew at Soergel, however, and with multiple days of rain last week, they were able to hold a pop-up 鈥減ick your own strawberry鈥� event on June 13.
This smaller scale event helped keep the crowd size more manageable.
鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 like there were no strawberries at all. We couldn鈥檛 do a proper event. The berries still weren鈥檛 to the quality we truly want, but they weren鈥檛 bad by any stretch,鈥� Voll said.
Trax Farms in Finleyville announced via Facebook earlier this month that they would not offer pick-your-own strawberries this year due to a poor harvest. However, they will still plan to sell strawberries in the market.
In Peters Township, Simmons Farm has not experienced issues growing strawberries.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e been pretty much normal for us. We鈥檝e had a normal crop. We鈥檝e been irrigating them,鈥� said Scott Simmons, the farm鈥檚 owner.
Because of the problems at other farms in the area, Simmons said the demand for their strawberries has been strong.
So strong, in fact, that they are limiting the days they offer pick-your-own strawberries.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 have a lot, so we have had to limit,鈥� Simmons said. 鈥淧rimarily because we do not have the acreage.鈥�
Simmons Farm held a pick-your-own event on Wednesday, and will announce future dates at simmonsfarm.com.
Though rain has finally fallen, Voll said this could cause other issues with the crop.
According to Voll, when dry berries get too much moisture, they can grow faster than the skin, causing it to crack.
鈥淎 farmer is never really happy with the weather. It鈥檚 never perfect, never going to be ideal. The rain was much needed and we鈥檙e very thankful for it,鈥� Voll said.
The rain will help other crops grow as Soergel Orchards looks beyond strawberry season.
鈥淲e鈥檒l still have some berries, but the season itself is fairly short. It鈥檚 unlikely we would be doing too much more (pick-your-own events),鈥� Voll said.