COLUMBUS, Ohio — Imagine harvesting strawberries as early as May and as late as October. Add to that the possibility of having larger fruit size, higher sugar content and better disease resistance.

Thanks to a new production method called plasticulture, Ohio producers can provide locally grown strawberries the first of May as well as in the late fall. The method includes using row covers during the winter to protect the plants, which aren’t as winter-hardy, from frost and freeze.

Spearheading this effort is Ohio State University extension horticulture specialist Brad Bergefurd. The method involves planting strawberries in early fall on a raised bed of soil covered with black plastic. The end result is getting berries to market at least a month earlier than the traditional matted row production.

“The increased cash flow and the market is there, it is feasible,” Bergefurd said. “Remember, people eat in the winter months as well. There’s the year-round demand from grocery stores, too, so this is highly feasible.

“But doing this plasticulture, people must realize that it’s labor-intensive with this extended season. There’s a lot of management time needed to do this. A lot of growers start in this, then realize that it’s not for them.”

In this trial, the strawberries were planted in September and grown over the winter, allowing the plastic to keep the soil warm and suppress weed growth. In addition, Bergefurd added, the berries are larger and sweeter. This method allows berries to be harvested and sold over a period of 4-5 months, compared to the traditional 4-5 weeks harvest period for Ohio strawberries.

“Farmers from Lake Erie to the banks of the Ohio River are harvesting strawberries now,” he said. “We made it through the frost and freezes last month and the fruit quality is fantastic.”

The OSU plasticulture trial includes a half-acre of strawberry plants at the OSU South Centers and about 100 acres on at least 25 farms statewide this season. The trial includes evaluating new strawberry varieties, with breeding coming from Florida, California, North Carolina and South Carolina. The method includes using row covers during the winter to protect the plants from frost and freeze.

The trial is in its 11th season and harvesting began in late April. The trial has produced higher quality, more commercially appealing berries, Bergefurd said. For the first time the trial is producing summer-bearing fruit to allow the strawberry harvesting season to extend through October.

“This is the first year that we are looking at these new summer-bearing varieties,” Bergefurd said. “We looked at them six years ago and they didn’t have the commercial quality attributes and were smaller in size. But this year, with these new summer-bearing varieties, we’re hoping for strawberries with better commercial attributes, larger fruit size, high sugar content and better disease resistance.”

Drawbacks? There are a few, Bergefurd warns. While it cuts down on the amount of water, fertilizer and pesticides needed, the initial input costs for farmers using this method are significantly increased, requiring an investment of at least $10,000-$15,000 per acre, with some of that cost associated with irrigation and more management needed to grow the fields.

This compares to traditional matted row production, which averages roughly $4,000 per acre in production costs and harvests in June, he said.

“But plasticulture strawberries have the potential to yield 20,000 to 25,000 pounds of strawberries per acre, compared to 10,000 to 15,000 pounds of strawberries per acre using the matted row method,” Bergefurd said. “And when you consider that retail strawberries fetch $2.50 to $3.50 per pound, the profit potential is pretty good.

“There’s a market just waiting to purchase the product. Most (Ohioans) aren’t used to local strawberries until June, but there are plenty of customers that want to eat locally grown strawberries beginning in May and throughout the summer.”

Strawberries available in stores now are shipped in from Florida and California. “But when you compare an Ohio strawberry to those, there is no comparison because Ohio growers can leave the berries ripening on the plant longer because the berries are sold locally,” Bergefurd said.

“Just about every Ohio farmer that grows them for retail always sells out, so there is a strong market for the locally grown fruit. With the research results we’ve published, we’ve proven plasticulture has got potential and should be looked at by Ohio growers.”

For more information on the plasticulture strawberry growing method or to view past years’ field research results, visit http://southcenters.osu.edu/horticulture