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A berry good crop Photo by Jim Craven Jonathan Boskow, 7, of Medford, picks strawberries at White's Produce on Jacksonville Highway Tuesday. The Rogue Valley's U-pick strawberry season got a slow start because of the cold spring, but now the season is at its peak. There's only about a week left until the crop fizzles out, though, so local pickers are taking advantage of it. Berries are ripe for picking Business blooms at U-pick fields By KELLY STEWART Strawberry lovers are being caught red-handed this week. The U-pick strawberry season is at its peak, with about one week left until the berry crop fizzles out, and local pickers are taking advantage of it. "These are just beautiful strawberries," said Linda Besko, who brought her four children to pick at White's Produce Tuesday. "I'm surprised there aren't more people out here." The strawberry season is two weeks later than usual this year because of the cold spring, but the recent warm weather has sparked the ripening process. Jim Eskew, who runs his own U-pick patch off Hanley Road, didn't think he'd have a crop this year because of the cold. But his berries plumped in May, he opened his field to pickers in early June and he's had a "steady stream" of customers so far. The hot weather ripens berries, but too much warmth causes them to overripen. Eskew gives strawberry crops five more days to survive if the weather is hot, and 10 more if temperatures cool off at night. "It's just like having them in the refrigerator," he said. "They last longer." White's Produce, on Jacksonville Highway, opened one of its U-pick strawberry fields last week and has been busy with pickers since then. If pickers clear out White's quarter-acre field, the farm will open another one-acre field. "There's quite a few berries out here yet," said manager Chris Knox. Eskew planted 15,000 strawberry plants in May in anticipation of next season. "I hope we can keep growing berries here," he said. "I think they're superior." Eskew is an exception to many Oregon farmers, who recently cut back their berry crops because of an increase in availability of less expensive California strawberries. California berries can be grown from the spring through the fall, yielding 28 tons per acre, according to George Tiger, agent with the Oregon State University Extension Service. An acre in the Northwest bears a maximum of 12 tons. But local berries are usually softer and tastier than their California counterparts. People who want to taste Oregon berries should hurry, advised Tiger, who specializes in small-scale agriculture. "If people want to get berries, they need to pick them this week," he said. Besko was worried that berries would be lacking locally, but she was pleased to see they were abundant at White's. Besko and her family pick for an hour, then go home to can the berries for jam, make strawberry waffles and gobble up the extras. "We just like strawberries," she said. "And it's a good way to teach kids how to work." Cindy Burgess brought 23 children from New Horizons Pre-School and Daycare to White's to pick strawberries. The children, armed with plastic containers, tackled the field. "We go on field trips all summer," Burgess said. "We come here first." Ten-year-old Hayley Nicholls said she enjoys picking berries, then eating them with sugar, whipped cream or ice cream. Her fellow pickers from New Horizons "eat more strawberries than they pick," she said. "This one guy has about four or five in his pocket." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA