Berry Basket & Greenhouse, LLC

4026 N. Henke Road, Milton, WI  53563  608-868-2290

ORGANIC?

Q.  Is Berry Basket and Greenhouse organic?

A.  Short answer. No

      Long answer.  While we follow many organic practices, we are not organic.  In 2007 I went to a seminar on Organic Berry Production put on by the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Services and was surprised to learn that many or our practices are considered organic.  We just thought they were good stewardship of the land.  One thing we are proud of is that we have never used an insecticide (or fungicide) at Berry Basket and Greenhouse.  We know that insecticides (even organic) are not selective and that if you use an insecticide it will kill all the bugs, not just the bad ones.  So we're content to let the bugs battle it out and hope the good ones win.  It one of the things we mean by "In Harmony with Nature".  Some years this will have a negative effect on the quality and quantity of our berries, but it's a chance we're willing to take.  Weeds however, are another story.  There are no "good" weeds.  I only know of two ways to control weeds, chemical and mechanical.  And believe me, we are very familiar with a hoe.  We never apply herbicides when  berries are present.  We do apply herbicides after the season in an attempt to reduce weeds the following year.  On occasion we may spot spray before the season, if we have a serious problem.  Spot spraying involves identifying and spraying individual weeds.  Some years I have had a horrible infestation of Canada Thistle and nobody likes to pick berries in thistles.  We feel our berries are safe to eat right from the field.  Our children have eaten them all their lives.  We follow all rules and regulations required by state and federal agencies regarding the use of herbicides. 

So the bottom line is while we are not organic today, we are constantly educating ourselves about organic growing and may transition to organic in the future.  We are looking at planting a organic test plot.  This involves growing berries on plastic.  There are also environmental concerns about using and disposing of plastic. 

In the end, it will be our customers who determine if we are to become organic growers.  Organic strawberries are more labor intensive.  We think our cost to produce berries organically will be higher.  We have concerns that this area may not be willing to pay higher costs for organic strawberries.  And that's really the bottom line for us.  We want to be here growing things for years to come.  If we cannot make a profit and provide for our family, we will not last long.