The strawberries have been our big success story this summer. Surprising, really, as they have been a dead loss in years gone by.

Right now, though, they’re cropping so heavily that we can’t pick and eat them quickly enough, and even a pessimistic estimate would put the value of what we’ve had so far at about £20. You’d never buy that many in the shops, and if you did they wouldn’t taste nearly so good.

These strawberries are the most intense, fruitful berries you can imagine, and it would be very difficult going back to shop-bought ones if the crop failed next year.

But we’ve not just been lucky with the size of the crop: we’ve also been fortunate with its condition. Very few of the berries show any sign of having been nibbled by any kind of infestation, and we haven’t even needed to use straw to keep them from touching the ground.

All in all, as close to a perfect crop as you could hope, and one high point in an otherwise slightly disappointing plot.

Related posts:

1. They may still be green, but they’re strawberries
2. 2008's first strawberries
3. Pest control