Valley Bounty: Rain or shine, strawberries are here: Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm welcomes another pick-your-own season

The Smiarowski family name has been a fixture in Valley farming since around 1923 when Alexander Smiarowski came from Poland, and purchased farmland in Montague for a dairy, along with cucumbers, asparagus and corn.

The family grew, and their children continued the work and lifestyle of farming. Today, the larger Smiarowski family runs farming operations in Montague, Sunderland, Whately and Hatfield.

Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm has been growing strong since 1950, when Teddy and Eleanor Smiarowski settled on 50 acres in Hatfield. The couple had seven children, and Bernie, Ron, John, and Jim Smiarowski continue their parents’ work on the Teddy C. Smiarowski farm today. Teddy Senior died in 1989, and Eleanor celebrated each spring by selling asparagus and strawberries at their family’s farm stand until she died in 2023.

Over the years, they added more land, including a strawberry patch on Routes 5 & 10 in Whately. Ice cream lovers in the area may know the family through Simmers Creamy, on River Road in Whately.

Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm has evolved over the years, growing potatoes, cucumbers, strawberries and tobacco. At one point, the farm grew over 400 acres of cucumbers and 50 acres of peppers and other vegetables for pickles for Cain’s Pickle Factory in South Deerfield. Residents may recall trucks slowly going down Sugarloaf Street, occasionally hitting a bump and dropping cukes off the back.

In 2002, the brothers joined with other partners to buy the pickle factory and form Oxford Foods in South Deerfield. Using fresh, Valley-grown produce in their recipes, Oxford Foods won competitions for their products. The cohort sold Oxford Foods in 2005, and it closed soon thereafter.

The brothers adjusted their crop plans, and today they grow 700 acres of potatoes in the fields that once grew cucumbers. Teddy C. Smiarowski farm grows russets, red, yellow, and white potatoes, and they sell them at their Hatfield farm stand.

While potatoes are a favorite staple in many households, ripe, local strawberries truly excite the general public. The Teddy C. Smiarowski strawberry fields are full and ready for the short berry season, lasting perhaps two or three weeks.

Historical records report that Indigenous people were growing and cooking with strawberries dating back to 1622, and there are reports of commercially grown strawberries in Boston around 1812.

Despite being native to North America, “strawberries are not easy to grow: they are finicky,” says Bernie Smiarowski. “They need a sound nutrient management plan and the right soil types. The soils here are great for them.”

Bernie Smiarowski explains, “We have a microclimate here along the Connecticut River. We get heavy fog and dew in the mornings, and the river is a blessing for irrigation. The downside is the moisture increases disease pressure from fungi and molds that thrive in this climate. … Some diseases travel through tiny spores in the air, while others spread through water.”

Both strawberries and potatoes face these pressures. The same fungus that caused the Irish Potato Blight in the 1840s still spreads by water and wind, infecting potato crops today. “We have ways of dealing with this now that didn’t exist then,” says Bernie Smiarowski.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is the path Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm chooses to manage their crops. The principle of IPM is to use the most beneficial, least harmful product to address a given problem.

The brothers have worked with a certified IPM expert for many years, mainly to protect their strawberry crops. Bernie Smiarowski notes, “IPM allows us to address a situation before it becomes a problem.”

Temperatures and humidity or rain impact the presence of molds and fungi. New England weather has always been changeable, but in more recent years, farmers have managed extremely wet years and flooding in 2021 and 2023, with 2022 being one of the driest years on record. “We’ve gone from one extreme to another,” Bernie Smiarowski says. “We like to put our crops on lighter soil, where you can irrigate. You can put water on, but you can’t take it off.” The river has served the farm well.

Rain or shine, strawberries are here. Sweet memories of previous seasons fill Bernie Smiarowski with joy, “Strawberries were my late mother’s absolute favorite time of year. People would come from all over to see her at the stand and buy strawberries. We have even had people drive from the Cape.” He concludes, “We love strawberries because they taste great. It’s sad that it’s such a short season because it’s a lot of work leading up, and then it’s gone.”

Pick-your-own strawberries are open for the season at Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., seven days a week. The stand accepts cash only and is located on Routes 5 &10 in Whately, ½ mile north of LaSalle Florist — watch for signs. For more information on berries, watch the Simmer’s Creamy Facebook page. The Teddy C. Smiarowski Farm stand is located at 487 Main St., Hatfield. They are open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.

Lisa Goodrich is a communications coordinator for Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA). To find pick-your-own strawberry fields near you, see CISA’s online guide at tinyurl.com/LHStrawberries.