Farmers in Pitt County are seeing an early harvest of strawberries this year and are saying it is the earliest season they have seen in 17 years.
“We had a warm February and that really sped things up for us,” said Mike Skinner of Strawberries on 903. “There were a few cold nights in the past couple of weeks that had us concerned, but the berries fared well and everything is looking really good!”
Strawberry season usually runs from mid-April through the month of May in eastern North Carolina. The season also averages about five to seven weeks.
“If we can continue with these cool nights and moderate daytime temperatures for a few weeks, we should have a good season,” said Steve McLawhorn of Stawberries on 903. “Strawberries don’t deal well with hot weather, so once we get into strings of 90 degree plus days, the plants will begin to shut down and stop producing blooms.”
source: wncn.com