It’s the time of year when strawberry growers throughout the valley start preparing their fields for next year’s strawberry crop and we are no exception. Conventional growers start to plant in early October—those who grow organically usually keep their plants in the cooler to give them more vigor and therefore don’t normally start planting until the later part of November. That may seem like a long way off, but a lot goes into getting the field ready.
For ease of picking and for better drainage, strawberries are planted on beds that are extra tall (up to 15” high), and that requires deep and thorough tillage. Because strawberries are a crop that is in the ground for nearly a full calendar year, we pay extra attention to the soil amendments we add to insure the plants’ nutrient needs are met. Gypsum supplies both calcium and sulfur and can help to loosen our heavy clay soils. Compost adds a dose of beneficial microbes and organic matter which also helps to improve soil structure. We incorporate these amendments near the end of the tillage cycle and then set out the irrigation pipe. Strawberry beds hold their shape better when they are listed up in moist soil, so we pre-irrigate a week to 10 days prior to listing.
Listing itself is the on
e farm task that we contract with another company for. With their larger tractors and GPS guidance they can make taller, straighter beds than we can. (The tall beds make it easier for our crew to pick the berries as they don’t have to bend down as far.) After the beds are in place we go about installing the irrigation system. We use a tractor implement that buries two lines of drip tape 1-2” deep on each bed top. These drip lines are connected to a long 3” flexible line that we shallowly bury along the front edge of the field.
After the irrigation is
set up we go about putting the plastic mulch in place. This also is done with a specialized tractor implement that stretches the mulch tightly over the bed while burying the edges in the furrow bottoms. The last step is to mark holes in the mulch for the crew to plant into when the time comes. A dibble, an implement with large steel wheels that have spikes mounted at 12-inch intervals, is used for this. The mulch keeps the berries off the bare dirt– the fruit is very susceptible to fungal diseases and mold if it’s in contact with the moist soil. The mulch also reduces reduces evaporation from the soil and therefore increases water efficiency. Strawberries are a thirsty crop, so the water savings are substantial.
The exciting news this season is that we will once again be using all organically grown planting stock. James Rickert, who used to grow the organic plants that we so loved with Prather Ranch, has formed a new company—Innovative Organic Nursery—and has launched back into growing organic plants. We are one of the farms who committed to buying these plants up front and have been making payments since the spring to ensure that he has the market for the organic starts.
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