Donald Trump has been sentenced without penalty in the New York hush money case and wildfires continue to burn through Los Angeles. Video / NZ Herald, AFP
Hawke’s Bay strawberry growers Ian and Maree Tucker say they’re losing thousands of dollars a day because their plants are waterlogged and many of their berries rotting.
Summer had started very well for Strawberry Patch in Havelock North, with a sunny December producing a bumper Christmas crop.
But rain over Christmas and New Year has changed the outlook. They say they don’t want people to feel sorry for them — ups and downs are part and parcel of their industry — and they’re hopeful some bursts of sunshine can turn things around again.
Some strawberries remain for sale and there are “lots of flowers and lots of little green strawberries” popping up, Ian said.
Strawberry Patch business owners in Havelock North Maree Tucker (left) and Ian Tucker, pictured with their cat Silverbeet, say they don't want sympathy, just sunshine. Photo / Michaela Gower
Ian said struggles in each of the past four years have had a cumulative effect on the 2024 season, as they were only able to grow 60% of the plants they normally would, leaving them 25,000 short.
Maree said the strawberries “didn’t mind a wee bit” of rain, but torrential downpours were not good for ripening and growth.
“The strawberries just disintegrate, so you go to pick them and they are just mush.”
Hawke’s Bay fruit growers calling for sunshine after the rain
Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers Association president Brydon Nisbet said 2024 was the best growing season in the last three years.
“You couldn’t get a better spring and early growing season than what we had in 2024.”
He said this played a role in the early harvest season for stonefruit, summer fruit and kiwifruit.
Brydon Nisbet said sunshine and low rainfall helped to enable an early harvest of fruit in 2024. Photo / Warren Buckland
Nisbet said the early summer sunshine mitigated any problems caused by rain, such as pests and diseases, that could impact fruit crops.
He said the recent wet weather had not caused problems for most growers, as it had reduced the use of irrigation.
Nisbet said a lot of the region’s stonefruit was able to be harvested in December before the intense rain.
He said growers were now hoping were that the weather would heat up, and blue skies would reappear, to continue the growth of the fruit.
“If the weather cools down during the day and we get lower temperatures and if it’s cloudy it slows down the growth of the fruit and we really don’t want that.”
Hawke’s Bay Farmers saved by the rain after long dry spell
Chief executive of Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Association, Brent Limm, said things were looking “stellar” for the region’s vineyards.
Limm said there was plenty of moisture at the start of the growing season in spring, which turned to a dry period through the critical phase of growth.
This significantly reduced pressure from wet-weather fungus diseases, meaning less need for spraying.
“We had really good flowering so really good crop loads out there [currently], which is a return to normality after a very low harvest for vintage 2024,” he said.
Limm even welcomed the recent rain, saying he’d rather have it now than when vintage is on.
“We’re already hearing talk of vintage dates or harvest dates being a week to 10 days earlier than last year, which was also an early vintage.”
In terms of varieties to look forward to from the upcoming vintage, Lim believes “Mother Nature has smiled on all varieties” coming out of Hawke’s Bay.
He’s expecting great chardonnay and tasty red blends from Gimblett Gravels, after a “nice balanced crop load”.
Hawke’s Bay’s weather highs and lows in 2024
The latest annual climate summary from Niwa, released on Wednesday, confirmed annual temperatures for coastal Hawke’s Bay were above average by 0.51C to 1.20C.
Eight of New Zealand’s 10 warmest years on record have occurred since 2013 and 2024 was NZ’s 10th-warmest.
On January 15, 2024, Napier recorded its highest minimum temperature of 23.3C, the highest minimum temperature recorded in the city since records began in 1940.
On April 12, Wairoa had its highest daily minimum temperature since records began in 1972 with 20.1C.
On June 10, Hastings recorded its highest maximum winter temperature, hitting 25.7C, a New Zealand record for the month of June.
On the same day in Whakatu the temperature hit 25.3C, New Zealand’s third-highest June temperature on record.
December 2024 was officially New Zealand’s fifth-warmest December on record, with temperatures above average or well above average.
Hawke’s Bay Regional Council said in its regional outlook that the region received a significant amount of rain in December — about 180% of its usual rainfall for the month.
HBRC team leader of air and land science Dr Kathleen Kozyniak said the heavy rain helped restore soil moisture levels, which looked healthier compared to a month ago.
Jack Riddell is a multimedia journalist with Hawke’s Bay Today and spent the last 15 years working in radio and media in Auckland, London, Berlin and Napier. He reports on all stories relevant to residents of the region, along with pieces on art, music, and culture.
Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and loves sharing stories about farming and rural communities.
