Organic Strawberries Production Flowchart
We begin preparing the land two years in advance by enriching our soil with various forms of marine, animal and/or plant derived sources of nutrients. Having a rich source of nutrients in the initial stage of plant establishment produces stronger, more productive plants
Our strawberry plants are sourced from a nursery in Nova Scotia
Strawberry plants can be planted in early spring or late fall. They are covered in straw for the winter.
In the spring the straw is raked off the strawberries and put in rows between plants, becoming an effective weed suppressor. Removing the straw evenly encourages the strawberry plants to blossom evenly in the spring
Strawberry plants bear fruit in their second year after planting. First year blossoms are picked off the plants to encourage the plants to send out more runners
We harvest our strawberries in the second July after planting. All of our berries are hand picked to ensure that they are handled with the utmost care
Our strawberries are sent to an Island-based processing plant where they are cleaned, packaged and frozen. Every farm has its own identification number that is clearly printed on the packaging so that the strawberries can be easily traced back to the farm on which they were grown
The strawberries that are to be made into jam are transported to the Preserve Company where they are used to make delicious strawberry and Grand Marnier and strawberry rhubarb jams. The jam is made in small batches and is made of Island grown organic strawberries and organic sugar. Each jar is carefully bottled, sealed and labelled individually by hand by the dedicated staff at the Preserve Company.
Pallets of jam are loaded onto containers, transported to Halifax, and shipped by sea to our partners in Japan
