Silkey Gardens' Future is as Uncertain as Minnesota Weather

Freeze. Rain. Hail. Heat.

Those are just a handful of challenges that Silkey Gardens in Dundas has faced this year.

“Nothing this year makes sense,” said owner Paul Silkey.

This year the strawberries came early and are already finished for the season. The apples froze out. And the cherries struggled to produce enough fruit for Paul’s mother, Grace Silkey, 85, to make a pie with, let alone sell to customers.

The raspberries that are usually ready in August are more or less ripe for picking. And the blueberries spent the latter half of June in water-saturated ground following and . That isn’t to mention the battle over weeds, insects and competitors.

Silkey Gardens, located on 115th Street East in Dundas, has been in the fruit business for eight years and is largely a pick-your-own operation. They specialize in strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, apples, cherries and blueberries. Despite their wide variety of fruit, this season, to say the least, has been a difficult one.

“Nobody’s seen it where things are growing in March like they were this year,” said Silkey. “This is tropical weather; this isn’t Minnesota weather. I’m trying to figure out if we are in Kansas or Brazil.”

Silkey’s declaration may not be that far off.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s website: “Heavy downpours now occur twice as frequently as they did a century ago. These trends are likely to continue under future climate change: average summer temperatures are projected to increase by 3°F over the next few decades and could increase by over 10°F by the end of this century.

“Precipitation in the Midwest is likely to fall more frequently in heavy downpours … The last three decades have been the wettest in a century for the Midwest.”

The tough year brings up questions about the farm's future.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the long term," Silkey said. "We will struggle along and see if we can piece together another year.”

Silkey Gardens sells fruit to The Wedge, Linden Hills Co-op and at . They also participate in farmers markets in Dennison, Dundas and Faribault.

Visit Silkey Gardens' website for updates on the farm and pick-your-own information.