FENTON, Mich. (WXYZ) — Here in the strawberry field at Spicer Orchards in Fenton, families are marking the unofficial start of summer.
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"I've been doing this since I was five," said Kara Kinser, who was picking strawberries."It's been a good day."
After about two hot hours in the orchard, Kinser had enough strawberries for her family's annual tradition.
"We'll bake strawberry pies, strawberry shortcakes, we'll do strawberry cake," said Kinser.
She's one of the many visitors already stopping by the patch for the early strawberry season.
"The strawberries are pretty good, they're very juicy," said Lucy who was picking with her mom.
"I just kinda went running around and just grabbed the bigger ones," said Mia Malover.
Spcier Orchards in Fenton is one of few in the area kicking off the U-Pick season, managing their 10 acres. The more than 300-acre family farm is known for you pick just about everything you can grow in Michigan.
"You get on the wagon, yep, you go out and pick and then, and then you'll wait for the wagon to bring you back up and then they'll weigh in when you get up here and that's when you'll pay for your berries," said third-generation farmer Ryan Spicer.
Spicer says their 10 acres of strawberries are thriving despite the colder temperatures and minimal rain.
"The average temperature has stayed pretty low so far, but not looking at this next week, we look like we're getting into our normal Michigan 80 degree, you know, summer, which we've been kind of waiting for because that's what kind of makes all these berries and stuff start moving and you need the heat to ripen them up and your average degree temperature has to be up too," said Spicer.
Spicer says they got creative, using an irrigation system that rose the temperature around the strawberries and frost fans.
"We'll be picking for probably another 3 weeks, of course, depending on the weather," said Spicer. "If it gets super hot and stays super hot, they cook a lot faster, so that could shorten the season, but if it stays colder at nights, they don't ripen as fast."
So far people are hauling in big lots. At $3.95/pound, you can get one full flat for $40-$50.
"This is our most successful year so far," said Jamie Malover who came with her family.
"It's a good feeling because then you get to make your strawberry jams and strawberry pie," said Lucy.
Spicer's tip: come early to beat the crowds and the heat.
