Strawberry season has begun in the Thompson-Okanagan

The strawberry harvest is underway in the South Okanagan.

It’s running about a week late this year, but operations in the South Okanagan have begun picking, with those in the central and north Okanagan expecting to get the harvest underway in the next week to 10 days.

Oliver Garden & Fruit Market’s Sukhdev Bahniwal has been selling local strawberries for about a week now.

It’s been a good year for growing and the crop has “is doing well this year,” Bahniwal says.

Covert Farms Family Estate’s u-pick patch just opened.

Spokesperson Jayna Walsh says the strawberries are "looking really good this year."

The u-pick patch is open Wednesday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pickers need to call ahead to set up a picking time at 250-498-2824, in order to maintain social distancing due to COVID-19 this year.

In Lake Country, Duggan’s Farm’s Bruce Duggan says his crop is still two to three weeks away from full ripeness.

“It depends on the temperature,” he says of the potential picking date.

Duggan’s Farm has a u-pick patch. Those wishing to pick their own strawberries should call ahead at 250-766-2628 to find out when they will be ready.

Dot’s Strawberry Patch in Coldstream says they are still planning this year’s harvest under COVID-19 restrictions.

This year’s crop is late, but is “coming along nicely,” Darla Camber says.

“We could definitely use some more sun. When we open, we will have to restrict group sizes and how many are in the patch at one time to ensure safe social distancing,” she said.

Those wishing to pick at Dot’s are advised to call ahead at 778-212-4573. Camber says the farm’s Facebook page should have the most up-to-date information. She expects the strawberries to be ready in around 10 days.

In Chase, Golden Ears Farm’s Tristen Cavers says they should have strawberries available at next Saturday’s farmers’ market in Kamloops.

“It’s been a confusing spring for the plants. We’ve had blossoming for the past two or three weeks, along with green berries not yet ripe. It’s been cool at night and we’ve had fluctuating warm and cool days,” he says.

Cavers says the farm isn’t doing flat orders anymore and is selling at the market on a first come, first served basis.

Those wishing to visit the U-pick patch should call ahead, with the maximum number allowed in the patch at 25.

Cavers says the U-pick patch will be open on Sundays.

They can be reached at 250-679-8421.

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