Summer bounty just ripe for the picking

TASMANIA’S berry growers have been surprised by an early start to the season brought on by the recent warm weather and rain.

The deluge didn’t suit everyone, but for Richard Clark, who runs the family-owned Westerway Raspberry Farm in the upper Derwent Valley, it was a case of singing and dancing in the rain.

“Two or three days of rain with some breeze is perfect for the farm and the fruit. Just at the moment it’s perfect because it really makes the fruit juicy,” Mr Clark said.

“I certainly didn’t expect to have red fruit available on the first of December.”

The Clarks operate one of the state’s biggest berry farms, growing more than 200 tonnes of fruit a year — about 120 tonnes of raspberries, 70 tonnes of blackcurrants and 30 tonnes of various berries. About 150 people are employed at the peak of the harvest.

“We had a slow start to the season with September and October being quite cold and it looked like the season could be a bit late,” Mr Clark said.

“Last year it was super late. So this season is coming on a bit earlier than expected.”

An innovation at the farm this season is growing strawberries on “tables”.

The strawberries are planted directly into slashes made in a premium bag of potting medium and hydroponically grown. The plants are up high, away from slugs and snails that love to eat them.

“Other benefits include significant reduction in picking costs because the picker is standing up and there is less wastage because fruit is not lost on the ground,” Mr Clark said.

“Quality of fruit is better because we can put nutrients into the plants that need it rather than waste excess nutrients.”

The grower also has control over disease threats.

Helping manage the strawberry tables is University of Tasmania agricultural science student Oliver Gales.

“I have just finished my second year of studies and this gives me good summer experience and to learn about the berry industry,” Mr Gales said.

A former social worker from the Czech Republic, Miluse Walsh, not only found a passion for berry farming at Westerway but also met her husband John when she came to work on the farm two years ago.

The couple now lives nearby on a 8ha property at Ellendale.

“Coming here was like a mental restart for me. I love it here and better working on the farm every day is different,” Mrs Walsh said.

The farm supplies blackcurrants to Juicy Isle and is in its 20th year supplying blackcurrants for the Cascade brand juices.

To meet growing demand, Westerway Raspberry Farm produces about 50,000 packs of quick-frozen raspberries.

“Frozen berries are going wonderfully well because consumers are wary of imported berries after the health scare with Chinese imports,” Mr Clark said.

The farm also supplies other seasonal fruits to the juice, cordial, ice-cream and jam markets.

Westerway Raspberry Farm has taken on Country Larder’s stall at Salamanca and will be offering its range of fruit there, and Sunday’s Hobart Farmgate Market.