THE poor spring weather has meant the traditional strawberries and cream will have to be put on hold.

The strawberry crop at Lotmead Farm, near Wanborough, has been delayed by several weeks and will not be ready for an Open Farm Day on June 9.

In a normal year, a strawberry crop would be ready by early June but the continued cold weather has meant they are not ready.

The Met Office yesterday announced this spring was set to be the coldest on record, with the mean UK temperature just 6C.

“The fact is strawberries do not like the cold weather,” said Norman Parry, the manager of Lotmead.

“We’ve had so much that it has had a knock-on effect.

“As a farmer you just learn to deal with it but it’s the public I feel most sorry for. I think many people see a couple of sunny days and think the strawberries are ready for picking but that is unfortunately not the case.”

Although nothing is definite with the unpredictable weather, Norman is hoping the strawberries will be ready for picking by the end of the month, if not sooner.

He said: “It’s hard to say whether it will be a bumper year this time around but I think the season could go on until September.”

Despite the traditional summer fruit being late, there is still plenty on offer at the farm. Although delayed, asparagus and rhubarb have now come into season and are on sale at the farm.

The late crop has meant that the Open Farm Day will be the first day Lotmead is fully open this year, although no decision has been made on whether it will stay open after that, or wait until the strawberries are ready.

Open Farm Day is an event being run around the country to allow people see the behind-the-scenes workings. As well as fruit-picking, Lotmead is a dairy farm.

“People will get the chance to see calf feeding and how that side of the farm operates. I will also be standing in a field explaining the strawberry growing process,” said Norman.

“The farm shop will be open and there will be freshly cooked food on offer. We are not sure what yet, as that will depend on the weather.

“I do have to stress, though, that there will unfortunately be no strawberries available for picking on the day.”

Despite the cold spring weather, the town is set to warm up next week with temperatures possibly exceeding 20C.