Local farmers working to protect their crops from tonight’s freezing weather

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Spring began nearly two weeks ago, but winter-like conditions are in store for tonight.

With the threat for freezing temperatures, the Lewis Strawberry Nursery & Farm in Wilmington is doing their part to keep their crop warm.

“We have multiple options for how to protect them,” farm manager Walt Webb said. “The way we have gone recently is we will pull row covers over all our fields of strawberries that we have row covers for.”

Webb says the row covers are a simple step in ensuring survival of the fruit.

“Underneath this, I can typically keep them 3 to 4 degrees warmer,” Webb added. “When you’re battling a freeze, 1 to 2 degrees makes a huge difference.”

The farm is looking to keep the strawberries alive until they can be enjoyed later this month.

“In about 10 days, 10 to 12 days, this field will be absolutely loaded with ripe, red, delicious strawberries,” Webb continued. “The row covers, a lot of them are to protect potential fruit that is in the bloom stage right now.”

Despite the threat the fruit is facing tonight, Webb is optimistic he won’t have to worry about the berries much longer.

“The forecast looks like we’re gonna have beautiful weather next week,” Webb said. “Typical Wilmington 70 degree days. Everybody will be able to be out here, and once we open up u-pick next week, we’ll have everybody out here. I’m hoping this is the last cold temperatures that we have to deal with.”

In addition to whole strawberries, the farm also has strawberry ice cream for sale, which they say is always a crowd favorite.