| Cranberry Harvest |
During a dry harvest, such as what we do at Bog Hollow Farm, the bogs are not flooded with water.
Instead, the dry harvesting method utilizes small, motorized walk-behind picking machines to 'comb'
the berries from the dry vines. These machines have a set of teeth which are propelled through the
cranberry vines, stripping the berries off. Once the teeth have separated the berries from the vines, an
on-board conveyor belt moves the berries away from the teeth and into a burlap bag for handling. Each
full bag hold around 40 pounds of cranberries and is placed on the bog for retrieval later. A new empty
bag is placed on the machine and the process continues. The picking machine operators follow one
another, usually in a clockwise rotation, starting from the outside of the bog section and working their
way to the middle. At the end of the day, all of the full bags of cranberries are taken off of the bog and
are dumped into shipping crates for delivery to a receiving station. Dry harvested berries are sold as
fresh fruit in the produce section of grocery stores.
Ninety percent of all cranberry growers wet harvest their bogs, while only ten percent dry harvest.
There are however many bogs in the Kingston area which continue to dry harvest to fill the need for
fresh cranberries.
Instead, the dry harvesting method utilizes small, motorized walk-behind picking machines to 'comb'
the berries from the dry vines. These machines have a set of teeth which are propelled through the
cranberry vines, stripping the berries off. Once the teeth have separated the berries from the vines, an
on-board conveyor belt moves the berries away from the teeth and into a burlap bag for handling. Each
full bag hold around 40 pounds of cranberries and is placed on the bog for retrieval later. A new empty
bag is placed on the machine and the process continues. The picking machine operators follow one
another, usually in a clockwise rotation, starting from the outside of the bog section and working their
way to the middle. At the end of the day, all of the full bags of cranberries are taken off of the bog and
are dumped into shipping crates for delivery to a receiving station. Dry harvested berries are sold as
fresh fruit in the produce section of grocery stores.
Ninety percent of all cranberry growers wet harvest their bogs, while only ten percent dry harvest.
There are however many bogs in the Kingston area which continue to dry harvest to fill the need for
fresh cranberries.
Cranberries grow and develop one crop each year. The vines produce flowering buds in the spring which
will develop into a berry over the summer. The annual cranberry harvest occurs each fall after the
berries have turned dark red. Harvest season lasts from September to early November and is
accomplished by using one of two harvesting methods - wet or dry picking. Bog Hollow Farm is one of
the few bogs which still harvests cranberries using the traditional dry picking method.
will develop into a berry over the summer. The annual cranberry harvest occurs each fall after the
berries have turned dark red. Harvest season lasts from September to early November and is
accomplished by using one of two harvesting methods - wet or dry picking. Bog Hollow Farm is one of
the few bogs which still harvests cranberries using the traditional dry picking method.
In the early 1900's when commercial cranberry farming was in its infancy, all cranberry bogs were dry
harvested. Back then, this was accomplished by workers hand-picking each individual berry off the
vine. As this method was very labor-intensive and slow, hand picking gave way to the use of wooden
scoops in the 1920's. The scoops were equipped with a set of long, narrow maple teeth that would
efficiently comb the berries from the vines.
harvested. Back then, this was accomplished by workers hand-picking each individual berry off the
vine. As this method was very labor-intensive and slow, hand picking gave way to the use of wooden
scoops in the 1920's. The scoops were equipped with a set of long, narrow maple teeth that would
efficiently comb the berries from the vines.
Motorized dry harvesting machines began to
replace the wooden scoops in the 1950's. By
the 1960's, growers were experimenting with
flooding their bogs in the fall and harvesting
'wet'. This method sped up the harvest
considerably as picking was no longer
dependent on good weather and a large labor
force as dry picking was. Because of the
ability to pick many acres quickly and cost
effectively, most growers today choose to wet
harvest.
replace the wooden scoops in the 1950's. By
the 1960's, growers were experimenting with
flooding their bogs in the fall and harvesting
'wet'. This method sped up the harvest
considerably as picking was no longer
dependent on good weather and a large labor
force as dry picking was. Because of the
ability to pick many acres quickly and cost
effectively, most growers today choose to wet
harvest.
| Workers dry harvest the cranberry bogs using wooden hand scoops. |
| A worker uses a dry harvest picking machine. |
Wet harvesting requires that the bogs be flooded with water to a depth of about 1 foot over the vines.
Small colored flags are used to mark underwater obstructions and serve to help guide the machine
operators during harvest. A machine with a rotating reel is used to agitate the water which causes the
berries to snap off the vines. These freed berries float to the surface of the water and are then corralled
together with floating booms. The berries are removed from the bog by either a conveyor belt or a
pump which deposits them into a machine known as a detrasher. The detrasher removes any leaves or
twigs that may be mixed in with the berries. The cleaned berries are then loaded into a waiting truck
for delivery to a receiving station for further processing. Wet harvested berries are used to make juices
and cranberry sauce.
Small colored flags are used to mark underwater obstructions and serve to help guide the machine
operators during harvest. A machine with a rotating reel is used to agitate the water which causes the
berries to snap off the vines. These freed berries float to the surface of the water and are then corralled
together with floating booms. The berries are removed from the bog by either a conveyor belt or a
pump which deposits them into a machine known as a detrasher. The detrasher removes any leaves or
twigs that may be mixed in with the berries. The cleaned berries are then loaded into a waiting truck
for delivery to a receiving station for further processing. Wet harvested berries are used to make juices
and cranberry sauce.
| Farmers coral wet harvested berries. (left) A detrasher is used to load the berries into a truck for delivery to Ocean Spray. (right) |
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