Lack of rain, smaller strawberries in Wisconsin

COLGATE, Wis. - Usually, a rainy summer day isn't ideal in Wisconsin, but it is good for some things. Recent rain has meant strawberries popping up almost out of nowhere at Basse's Taste of Country in Colgate.

"Finding the best, most red ones are always the best part," said Kenlyn Zellmer.

"Berries are a little bit smaller but I think they’re always sweet at the end and stuff," said Roger Basse.

The field at Basse's Taste of Country was full of berry pickers Wednesday, June 23 as the strawberry season comes to an end.

"With the cooler weather and now with the rains that we’ve had in the last couple days, the berry plants are just like, 'Wow,'" said Basse. "You know, they’re coming back to life, and they’re putting out more berries and stuff like that."

These berries weren't always the cream of the crop. A heatwave early in the season followed by a drought put a lot of stress on the plants. If it weren't for the rain, the farm would have closed early.

"Even that we're irrigating and the soil was moist underneath the plants, with the rain and everything, you could just see the next day, they just came alive," said Basse. "The leaves were out. They were happy."

The weather conditions have made the berry sweeter, and while it might take longer to fill up a basket due to smaller berries, fruit lovers are having a berry good time.

"They’re super sweet. They taste super fresh," said Zellmer.

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If you missed the strawberry season, there are crops to look forward to in the fall. Basse's next in-season crops will be sunflowers and apples in September.