Strawberry growers are hoping the run of fine weather continues until the end of the season after some lost most of their crop during a peak period in August.

Plants were carrying plenty of fruit but rain on August 22 and 23, and the following weekend, caused many to become waterlogged and split.

Strawberries Australia president Luigi Coco said the rain caused more damage than anyone ­remembered.

“We threw away tonnes and tonnes of fruit,” Mr Coco said. “I know farms that lost 90 per cent, I know farms that picked everything and threw it away. Over two weeks you have people that lost anywhere from 60 to 90 to 100 per cent.”

Wamuran grower Bill Sharpe said the season had been perfect until the rain.

“We got 3.5 inches the first weekend, we looked at the fruit and went ‘nah, this is not good enough to send’, so we threw the whole lot away,” Mr Sharpe said. “That was very expensive ... we got four inches the second weekend, and we looked at the fruit and there was a little bit we were able to save.”

He said the difference may have been the winds on the second weekend drying out the fruit.

Mr Sharpe said plants had produced good fruit since.

“Long term it did us good,” he said. “We did need the rain, but beside that point, the market was getting totally glutted and prices were rock bottom.”

The local season ends about mid-October.

Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/