Terrace- Fruit Growing

A big secret of the Terrace area is the ability to grow fruit here. Everyone thinks in BC this only happens in the Okanagan. We don't like to tell too many folks, or everyone will want to live here!

When the Railroad first went thru here, whole refrigerated car loads of strawberries, were shipped straight thru to Winnipeg, and probably on to Chicago. Some of the berries went west to Prince Rupert, and some south to Vancouver and Victoria. With hybrids now, there isn't hardly a fruit that can't be grown here, including Peaches, Raspberries, Currants, Gooseberries, Blueberries, Apples, Pears, Grapes, and Plums, to name a few. Wild Saskatoon Berries are abundant here also.

A May 17, 1921 Newspaper I found online, had an article titled, “Strawberries Grow to Giant Size in Sunny Mountain Oasis” sub heading, “Ripened in Mountain Sunshine”. Terrace was famous for it's Big, Luscious Strawberries, they called “Skeena Wonders”, only 7-9 filled a box! They ripened after other berries, and had the market to themselves. The article claimed a $500 per acre profit, and land was subdivided into 10 acre farms. A lot of money in 1921! Add the fact our frost free days are higher than just about every town or city in the North. Frost free days are the key to a great garden.Other areas have to rely on hybrids, bred to grow quick, with less flavour, or hardiness,usually the result.

Check it out yourself, there is not many places in Canada that can match the FFD here.

We are between a 4 or 5 on the Hardiness Zone. another big deal to gardeners.

With “Organic” and “Grown Locally”, the 2 big items in all grocery shopper's lists these days, I will match Terrace to most other places where both of these options can be attained easily.

But remember, Please don't tell everybody!