The first week of picking strawberries at Bell’s Farm already indicates availability of a bumper crop of juicy fruit to harvest.

It only takes four or five of the mammoth Puget Reliance strawberries to fill Trevor Mueller’s hands as he works along a row at the farm northwest of Coupeville.

When called on, 18-year-old Mueller is a fast picker. He and his sister Paige, 15, have picked berries on their uncle’s farm since they were 10 years old.

But these days they are more likely to guide as many as 50 youngsters, ages 12 to 16, through the rows. The pickers are the children of friends and neighbors who learn the finer points of berry harvesting from the veterans. Kids earn 16 cents per pound of picked berries, which given the size of the fruit doesn’t take long to put jingle in their pockets.

When the fruit is ripening, it’s all hands to the fields.

Heather Fakkema, Trevor’s girlfriend, even helps with the crop. Sure, it’s nice to spend time with Trevor but the fast pace of the harvest also is alluring.

“It’s a lot of fun,” she said.

Sixty years ago Jerry Bell started the farm with his brother Frank Bell. Four years later, they harvested their first crop of strawberries from a one-acre patch.

Even though Jerry Bell has been on the job a long time, he said he still enjoys farming.

“If I retired, what would I do?” he ponders aloud.

He doesn’t work as hard as in the early years, as his nephew Frank Mueller and family help with daily operations on the 65-acre farm.

These days, Bell is growing 10-acres of strawberries as part of a crop rotation that includes cabbage and barley.

Producing premium strawberries for the fresh market requires paying attention to the plants needs. For instance, the berries are watered at least twice during the harvest period to ensure juicy fruit.

“Strawberries are like watermelons. They have a lot of water in them,” Bell said.

Bell is lucky to have several natural ponds that he can draw from to irrigate the rolling fields of fruit.

The cool breezes that blow in off the water on even the hottest day also benefit the berries, he said. The wind lowers the temperature at night, which slows the ripening process and extends the season.

This year, the berries are ripening on time, which is typically around Father’s Day.

Bell said some folks think the berries are late because last year’s crop was exceptionally early due to a heat wave in May.

The ground is still warming, but within weeks as temperatures rise there will be lots of ripe berries. And they must be picked promptly to maintain quality.

When there are more ripe berries than will immediately sell to the fresh market, the fruit is picked and shipped to Sakuma Brothers in Burlington. The Sakuma family operates a flash-freeze plant on their berry farm, where they process their own fruit and the crops of local farmers. The Sakumas opened the berry processing plant following closure of the last fruit and vegetable cannery in Skagit County.

Strawberries from Bell’s Farm are sold fresh at the farm and at various outlets on the island. This year the price is $16.50 per flat, a 50-cent increase over last year caused by current gas prices and hikes in the cost of paper goods, Bell said.

U-pick will begin today at the farm. Members of the public will be able to pick their own berries at a cost of $1 per pound, he said.

Bell’s Farm can be found at 892 West Beach Road, Coupeville. For more information, call 678-4808.