While many people are trying to find ways of staying cool thanks to intense heat this week, at the Ruby Berry Farm in Chelmsford, they are celebrating a milestone.

Owners Nancy and Robin Charbonneau say sweet, juicy strawberries are all ready for picking, more than a week ahead of schedule, thanks to the unseasonably warm spring weather, recent rains and this week's muggy heat.

“Typically in northern Ontario, the berries are ready the last few days of June,” Nancy Charbonneau told NorthernLife.ca. “This year, they're out even before the first day of summer.”

Whether the early start will mean an early finish also depends on the weather, Charbonneau said. Right now, the early-season fields are ready for picking, while the mid- and late-season fields are either green or blossoming.

“If we get steady heat, the season will be long. If it's intense (heat), it will be fast and furious,” she said, adding intense heat would make the berries a little smaller as well as the temperature will make them ripen faster.

But what about the taste? Charbonneau said the weather will not affect the taste too much — the local berries will be sweeter and juicier than the bred-to-travel variety shoppers would find in a grocery store.

Ruby Berry Farm is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. Got a question? Phone the berry hotline at 705-855-9901.

Posted by Arron Pickard