By Clint Thompson
Cooler fall temperatures in South Carolina have delayed the development of some of the state’s strawberry crop. It is evident in most of the crop, says Bruce McLean, Clemson Extension Area Commercial Horticulture Agent in the Pee Dee Region.
“The strawberry crop, for the most part, is looking behind from where it should be. There’s a lot of things that are contributing factors to it. A lot of our growers where they planted around the second or third week in October, we hit a cool spell right at the end of October and first of November. The plants just really did not grow,” McLean said. “I wouldn’t say they shut down, but they just sat there.
“Some of the growers that were able to get plants set out the first of October, their plants are looking really good right now. It’s crazy to think how much difference can be in just one week of heat. But it’s really showing on our strawberry crop.”
He said a producer’s fall season of strawberries is reserved mainly for the vegetative season of the crop. Growers hope to get some really good growth off of it, including some crown development. That fall growth is helps creates the yield in the spring and early summer.
“It’s that number of crowns that you can really set in the fall is where your yield gets,” McLean said.
“When we look at them right now, they’re sitting there with three or four crowns, pretty consistent across the field. That really is an indication that this is going to be a good crop come springtime. Some of the ones that are still sitting out there with one to two crowns, yield is definitely going to be affected.”
