The Chilkat Valley Historical Society was awarded an Alaska Department of Natural Resources specialty crop grant for the second year in a row, this time with the aim to develop commercial berry growing in the Chilkat Valley.
“We’re going to conduct a field variety trial of blueberries and strawberries with two local growers,” said historical society president Sue Chasen. “These trials have never been done in Southeast Alaska. The idea is to see which varieties of different berries might be suitable for commercial production.”
Chasen is in the process of selecting various “cultivars,” varieties of berries to see which ones thrive in the various Chilkat Valley microclimates. The experiments are designed to determine fruit yield, winter resilience, taste, flower production, number of runners and plant growth and vigor in their respective zones.
“The potential for commercial, domesticated blueberries exists. Many cultivars grow well in the Coast-Range, Pacific Northwest biome, where both climate and precipitation are not dissimilar from the Chilkat Valley/Haines area and domestic blueberries thrive in commercial settings,” the historical society’s grant application says. “The observed warming trend in Southeast Alaska clearly will extend our growing season and improve our already strong conditions for berry production.”
David Schade, DNR director of the division of agriculture, said the historical society’s grant application was easy to approve.
“They know it grows, the question is how do we make it economically viable for commercial production,” Schade said. “The whole idea of specialty crops grants is to help drive an industry forward. Berries is one of the industries that we think has huge potential. We want to grow it locally, store it locally and teach people how to do that.”
Scott Hansen will be growing strawberry varieties in town adjacent to the historical society’s Charles Anway homestead site, once part of the original land farmed by Charles Anway, who was known throughout the state for his strawberries.
Erika Merklin will grow in the upper valley on her farm near 25 Mile. The grant will fund Hansen’s and Merklin’s labor. The experiment will take place over three growing seasons beginning this year.
“Many successful strawberry beds in Haines are of unknown genetics,” the historical society’s grant application states. “Some are even claimed to be original Anway strawberries, but the parentage/genetics have not been verified. For a commercial operation to be successful genetics must be clearly established.”
For Merklin, the experiment is another step in an effort to develop an agricultural industry in Haines and to have a larger discussion about local and regional food security.
“It’s going to be really great to try and expand agriculture in the upper Lynn Canal,” Merklin said. “It’s just the beginning. I really want to encourage local leaders to get involved in helping to formulate a strategy moving forward with agriculture.”
Last year, the historical society was awarded a similar grant to help fund the Chilkat Valley Orchard Project, an effort to assist residents in the cultivation of fruit trees.