Strawberry farming has deep roots in Kawartha Lakes

In 1921, T.J. Perdue placed an advertisement in the Lindsay Daily Post offering for sale five acres of land about a quarter mile east of town – a sale that included, among many other things, half an acre of raspberries, 1,000 strawberry plants, and two acres of pasture.

Given the size of this crop, the Perdue property might well have numbered among the farms supplying strawberries to the perennial strawberry suppers that were – and in some places still are – such an important part of the cultural and culinary landscape here in Kawartha Lakes.

But enjoying strawberries at one of those suppers (or in the form of homemade jam) is but half the fun. For years, people of all ages have spent many happy hours harvesting the scarlet-coloured berries – whether in the wild or from farms dealing specifically with this fan favourite fruit. “Strawberry picking is the order of the day in this locality,” noted a correspondent from Salem Corners, in 1925. “Although they are not very plentiful, everybody is trying to get all they can.”

Similar scenes play out each year at Brouwer’s Strawberries & Produce, located at 859 Opmar Road, near Oakwood. Over the course of nearly 35 years, Brouwer’s has become known far and wide for the many varieties of strawberries yielded from its five acres.

“I just love strawberries,” Betty Brouwer tells Kawartha Lakes Weekly. “My Mom always had a huge patch for her large family. When we moved here, I planted 50 strawberry plants hoping it was enough to feed our family. These plants did so well I ended up putting out a sign and selling them.”

That was in 1991, and so enthusiastic was the response from customers that things kept growing – figuratively and literally. “We expanded our patch each year, and we now plant 20,000 plants each year,” Brouwer says proudly.

To harvest all of those strawberries, Brouwer invites customers to pick their own – but also hires local young people to venture into the fields, baskets in hand. “We are thankful that we have always been able to get students to work on the farm,” Brouwer comments. “It’s nice to be able to give them their first part time job.” Yet the operation still remains very much a family business, with Brouwer’s grandchildren now helping out over the course of strawberry season.

Strawberry farming is a labour-intensive process, with the berries being at the mercy of ever-changing weather patterns – and weeds. “The first year you just weed them,” Brouwer observes. “You start at one end of the patch and by the time you get to the end you have to start over. This lasts until the ground is almost frozen. When the ground is frozen you have to cover them with straw for the winter. We remove the straw at the end of April. This year we have been weeding every day.”

The Brouwers are members of Berry Growers of Ontario, a provincial organization regulated by the Farm Products Marketing Act. “They let us know if there are diseases that we need to look out for,” Brouwer explains – adding that strawberries are a very tender fruit and are vulnerable to frost, hail, scorching heat, and torrential rains.

Those with a craving for fresh strawberries are invited to drop by the Brouwer farm between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Monday-Friday, or between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays. For more information, please call 705-374-4227 or visit Brouwer’s Strawberries on Facebook.