The first asparagus is slowly making its appearance on Quebec farms. After a warm March, followed by a cold April, several producers open their stands this week, less early than expected.
“We started harvesting today, but in very small quantities. We only have enough to feed our kiosk. Deliveries have not started yet,” testified producer Cindy Maes, from Saint-Étienne-des-Grès, on May 8 , in Mauricie.
After a warmer than normal month of March, which foreshadowed a very early season, the cool weather of April and early May finally slowed down the growth of asparagus. Ultimately, many producers start harvesting at the same time as usual or a little earlier.
Here in Mauricie it is still early. We usually start around May 15th. I think it will be nice. Sometimes the beginning of the season is very hot and the asparagus comes out suddenly, which is not necessarily a good thing. Other times losses occur due to frost. But there were no major heat strokes or excessive frosts.
In Lanoraie, in Lanaudière, producer Carmen Lachance wished, on May 8, for the sun and heat to arrive so she could begin harvesting in earnest. “Yesterday we harvested a little, but today it’s on break. It’s raining cats and dogs while standing. The whole month of April was terrible, the temperature. She is going very slowly,” observes the woman who plans to open her kiosk towards the end of the week, just in time for Mother’s Day.
Same story in Saint-Aimé, in Montérégie, where Nicole Saint-Jean will open a store on Friday. “One day it’s hot; the other is cold. At least we won’t announce a freeze in the next few weeks.”
The cool weather gave the workers time to arrive
The new requirement for Mexicans to obtain a visa to enter Canada has led to red tape and delays in the arrival of workers, which caused concern among asparagus producers in April. Most of the workforce ultimately arrived safely in time for the harvest.
“At the beginning of April we were nervous because we told ourselves that the season would start early and that our workers would not be there. In the end it was nice that it was cooler afterwards. If we had started too early, we wouldn’t have been close,” notes Cindy Maes, who welcomed her employees on May 3.
Carmen Lachance, for her part, is still waiting for seven workers, but estimates that the 41 already arrived on her farm will be enough for the start of the harvest. “There is a delay, but I have a lot of it behind me. We should be right,” she anticipates.