Morrison’s Berries

The Morrison name has been synonymous with strawberries for nearly four decades. It all began shortly after Ralph and Sandra Morrison married in the spring of 1984. While Sandra was away at work one day, Ralph began planting strawberries, unbeknownst to her. From that day forward, the little patch grew until it was 24 acres at one point and became known simply as “the strawberry farm”. 

These days the farm is run by their children, Emily and her brother Michael, and they are forever grateful for the hard work and dedication that their mother put into keeping the farm going after losing their dad at an early age in an accident. 

The Morrisons are excited about the evolution of technology and what it has meant for the farm. They currently have about nine acres in strawberry fields, but thanks to the latest technology, that includes solar powered water meters, they are able to get the same yields as their father had with 24 acres.

The strawberry harvest typically begins around the second week of June and will run about eight weeks, thanks to the different varieties that they are growing. They will be experimenting with about 10 different varieties this spring, and will monitor the success of each and the popularity with customers until they ultimately decide on the five optimum varieties.

Last year, Emily said, they brought back the pick-your-own model and they sell about a quarter of their harvest that way, with the rest sold in their market store and wholesale. “For every strawberry you eat in the field, you have to tell one person about us,” says Emily of their pick-your-own policy.

The market store is open Monday to Saturday during the harvest, usually mid-June to late July and in addition to the pick-your-own and ready-picked berries, the shop offers frozen strawberries, pies and tarts. A popular addition to the store has been strawberry sauce for milkshakes, made from Emily’s own recipe.

 

37777 Amberley Road (Highway 86) between Lucknow and Wingham. www.morrisonberries.com. Updates on the berry season can also be found on the farm’s  Facebook and Instagram pages.