WEXFORD, Pa. — A popular North Hills orchard won’t be hosting its annual strawberry festival this year.
Soergel Orchards announced on social media that an early spring freeze significantly damaged its strawberry crops, so it’s “impossible” for the business to hold its Strawberry Festival. The event is usually held in early June.
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“Looking at the crop as a whole with the numbers game,” Adam Voll, a sixth-generation farmer, told Channel 11. “There is just not as many in there as we’d like to see for a real, full-blown festival.”
Early freezes devastated crops across Pennsylvania, which Gov. Josh Shapiro may cause an estimated $150 million to $200 million in economic losses for the state’s specialty crop industry.
Soergels isn’t the only local grower damaged by the freeze. Lauren Talotta spoke with Simmons Farm earlier this month. The farm had its peach harvest entirely wiped out.
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Soergels hopes to offer some type of pick-your-own strawberry experience later in the spring if conditions allow.
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