At Van Overbeke, the new strawberry season will really kick off next week. "The first picking is scheduled for next week, but people are already in happy anticipation, and so are we. In any case, it looks promising. The strawberries are thickening well, so we expect to get nice sizes," says Philip Van Overbeke of the Waregem-based company.
The start of the season is similar to last year. "I've heard from many fellow growers that they're starting a bit later than usual because the weather has been gloomy for a long time. However, I think we're even slightly earlier this year, so we're nicely on schedule." While Philip used to work exclusively with Elsanta in his year-round cultivation, he switched to Sonsation three years ago. "Everything under plastic or glass is now Sonsation because we've had good results with it," he says.
"They are beautiful strawberries with strong production, too," he continues. "There are few misshapen or undersized strawberries among them. This year, we've noticed that the first cluster is much lower on the plant. Last year they were quite high, so the first strawberries were a bit smaller, but now the first flower appeared deeper in the plant, so I expect we'll get nice sizes. That's always a good start going into next week, and I estimate that about 10 days later, we'll be harvesting larger volumes. With Elsanta, that peak comes a bit sooner, but Sonsation takes a bit longer to get going."
The grower also sees good market potential for the strawberries. "At auction today, prices are around €5 per box, which is definitely not bad. At the end of the day, we're looking forward to another great summer. We're already seeing people stop by and check the vending machine to see if there are strawberries in it, so when the sun really comes out and spring begins, the time for strawberries will have arrived again."
For more information:
Philip Van Overbeke
Aardbeien Van Overbeke 
Bessemstraat 65
8790 Waregem (Belgium)
Tel: +32 (0) 56 61 43 88
info@aardbeienvanoverbeke.be
www.aardbeienvanoverbeke.be