Fifty-five years after Alvin Cahoon planted "8 rods to the berries" at his cranberry yards in Pleasant Lake in Harwich, cranberry cultivation had become a booming industry in Massachusetts.  By 1900, the Commonwealth led the world in cranberry production, producing 200,000 barrels of cranberries from 11,300 acres under cultivation, a harvest worth $1.3 million. (Eck 1990, USDA 1998).    For most of the 20th century, Massachusetts was the leading cranberry producer among the 5 cranberry-growing states (New Jersey, Wisconsin, Oregon and Washington are the others).   In 1995, Wisconsin edged out the Bay State as the nation's top cranberry producer (McGurn 1997).  Nevertheless,  the Massachusetts harvest for 1995 consisted of 1.59 million barrels of cranberries worth $86.4 million; the 1996 harvest of 1.72 million barrels brought in $122 million.   Cranberries remain the number one agricultural food crop in Massachusetts today.   Click here for the 1999 harvest update.
 

Year	cultivated acres	barrels produced	barrels/acre	$ value of harvest
1900	11,300	200,000	17.7	1.3 million
1920	14,000	309,000	22.1	3.2 million
1940	13,900	322,000	23.2	4.1 million
1960	12,700	805,000	63.4	7.0 million
1980	11,200	1,185,000	105.8	39.7 million
1986	12,100	1,813,000	149.8	81.2 million
1990	12,400	1,318,000	106.3	62.7 million
1996	14,400	1,722,000	121.3	122.1 million
1997	14,600	2,100,000	143.8	N.A.

Table 1: Cranberry acreage, production, productivity and harvest for Massachusetts 1900-1997 (USDA 1998).

    The standard measure of the industry, a barrel, equals 100 pounds (or 100 quarts) of berries.  In 1997, Massachusetts harvested a record 2.1 million barrels of berries from 14,6000 acres under cultivation -- compared to 200,000 barrels from 11,3000 acres in 1900.   Put in perspective, the Massachusetts' crop has skyrocketed from 1 ton of cranberries in 1900 to  a whopping 7,150 tons of berries 97 years later!
       The skyrocketing productivity in cranberry cultivation since the end of World War II is due to research, mangement and harvesting practices, and new technology.   However, conditions for growing cranberries require the same combination of  peat-based sandy soil, sufficient water supply, and favorable climate as a century ago.  Bog preparation is basically unchanged since the days of early cranberry cultivation, as is the development cycle of the American cranberry (Fawsett 1990, CCCGA).

Building a cranberry bog

"Renovating an Old Bog"   Photo: courtesy Cape Cod Cranberrry Growers' Association, copyright 1997

Before wetlands protection measures were enacted, natural wetlands were turned into cranberry bogs because they met the environmental conditions needed for cranberry cultivation: peat soil with acidity between pH 4-5; a suitable supply sand to alternate with the organic layers; a large water supply for irrigation, frost protection, and harvesting; appropriate water holding capacity and good drainage (Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association, Eck 1990).  It was also inexpensive and fairly easy work from a production standpoint.  Today, existing cranberry bogs are exempt from the Wetlands Protection Act, but new bog construction is prohibited on most natural bogs and swamps.  Passed in 1997, the Massachusetts Rivers Bill allows for the reclamation of some abandoned cranberry bogs, but guidelines --which differ from federal regulations -- are unclear.   Cranberry bogs can be constructed in upland environments that meet the characteristics of traditional bogs, but it is an expensive option not favored by growers.  To construct a bog: 1) remove all living vegetation, including the roots, from the area; 2) shape and grade it for a level and even peat base; 3) build drainage ditches and water control devices as necessary; 4) add the upper sand layer, 5) plant vegetatitive cuttings to propagate the cranberry vines (Eck 1990, Thomas 1990).  The new bog will produce its first commercial crop in 4-5 years (Thomas 1990).

 

Growing and harvesting cranberries

The American cranberry,Vaccinium macrocarpon,is a native wetland plant, but cranberries do not grow under water.  They do require well-drained soils during the growing season.  Cranberry cultivation is a water intensive operation.  Bogs are flooded from late December through mid-March -- when the cranberry vines are dormant --  to protect the plants from dessication and winter injury; water under the protective ice layer drained in order to give the plants sufficient oxygen (Eck 1990, Sandler 1997), Bogs may be reflooded later in the spring for weed and pest control (Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association).

"Winter Flood"  Photo: courtesy Cape Cod Cranberrry Growers' Association, copyright 1997

"Sprinklers at work"  Photo: courtesy Cape Cod Cranberrry Growers' Association, copyright 1997

Spring signals the start of the new growing season, but frost protection is necessary well into April and May for the buds and in early fall for the berries.  Growers apply water through their sprinkler irrigation systems anytime the danger of frost occurs.  The sprinker system also allows growers to meet the cranberries' needs for water during a dry summer. (Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association).

Insect pollination is necessary for fruit set; therefore, growers use honeybees to increase the commercial yield of the cranberry crop.  When 20-25% of the flowers have blossomed -- between early June and mid-July -- hives are distributed in small groups in and around the growing areas, usually at a ratio of 1-2 hives per acre (Sandler 1990, Eck 1990).  Irrigation, weeding and pest control are essential summer activities to ensure a successful harvest (CCCGA).  Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an ecological approach to insect, disease, and weed control.  IPM is not a chemical-free approach to farming; pesticides and herbicides are part of an overall IPM program. Cranberry IPM in Massachusetts also uses biological control agents, such as B.t.-based products containing the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensisand nematodes to control  cranberry pests.  Cultural control practices are a third component of IPM.  These include flooding practices, maintenance of sprinklers, proper pruning and removal of leaf litter from the bog (Sandler 1997).

"IPM Scout"  Photo: courtesy Cape Cod Cranberrry Growers' Association, copyright 1997

Wet Harvesting  Photo: courtesy Spinner Publications; copyright 1990

Cranberry harvesting occurs between September and November depending on: maturity of the berries and the weather during the harvest season (Eck 1990).  Two methods are employed:  Dry Harvesting -- Cranberries harvested by the dry method are  sold as fresh fruit because they keep better than wet harvested berries (Sandler 1997).   Dry-harvest machines look like lawn- mowers with rows of rotating teeth.   Operators walk across the bog behind the motorized machines which rake the berries off of the vines into bags or boxes.  The berries are then transferred to bulk containers and are airlifted by helicopter from the bog (Thomas 1990).   Wet Harvesting -- In Massachusetts, more that 85% of the cranberry crop is wet harvested; these berries are processed into sauces, juices, and other cranberry products    Wet harvesting involves flooding the bog with a up to a foot of water and driving motorized water reels -- which look like giant egg beaters -- into the bog to loosen the berries from the vines.  The berries float and are corralled towards shore by booms, then are moved by pump or conveyor belt out of the bog into waiting trucks.  (Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association, Eck 1990).

Harvesting Methods

Handpicking/scooping
 Despite the industry's rapid growth, cranberries continued to be harvested by hand for almost a century, until the end of World War I (Eck 1990).  Handpicking was slow and labor-intensive, but it was also part of the social fabric of the community.  Entire families of local and immigrant workers were needed to pick the crop; school closed during the cranberry harvest so children could help.  The invention of several types of mechanical harvesting scoops was a labor- and cost-saving boon for the cranberry industry at the turn of the century.   [Photo: courtesy Spinner Publications; copyright 1990]   Filling 6-quart containers, workers could hand pick between 2 and 10 bushels [0.64 to 3.2 barrels] per day (Eck 1990). With a wooden hand scoop, an efficient picker could scoop a bushel in 5 minutes (Brigham 1920) or average 15 barrels per day (Fawsett 1990).   The first scoops were small, between 9-12" wide, with wooden teeth.  The Makepeace scoop had metal teeth and was also known as the "snap scoop" because it had a hinge that could be snapped open and shut with one's thumb (Fritzie 1966).  By the 1920's, the small scoop had been replaced by larger scoops between 24-30" wide.  Workers  could harvest ten times more berries scooping than handpicking -- with more pay for them as well as at less cost for the grower (Eck 1990).

 Dry Harvesting
[Photo: courtesy Spinner Publications; copyright 1990]  After World War II, harvesting efficiency burgeoned with the development of mechanical pickers.  A dry harvester machine could pick 75 barrels of berries per day.
 
 Wet Harvesting
 [Photo: courtesy Spinner Publications; copyright 1990]  Water reels were developed in the 1960's and  the wet-method has revolutionized cranberry harvesting.  By reconfiguring bog size and shape for optimal water reel harvesting, today's growers are able with "a five-person crew to harvest, gather, clean, and dry the fruit from such a [4-5 acre] bog in a single day" (Eck 1990). The biggest drawback to water-harvesting is perishability and lower fruit quality; berries destined for the fresh fruit market still must be dry harvested.  Most of the industry's crop, however, goes into processed cranberry products.
 

Research
 
 The Massachusetts Cranberry Experiment Station was established in 1909 in East Wareham due to the lobbying of the Cape Cod Cranberry Grower's Association.    According to Eck (1990): "during the next 75 years, many of the preeminent cranberry researchers of the country worked at one time or another at the Masssachusetts Cranberry Experiment Station."  Today the station, which includes the state bog, is part of the University of Massachusetts Extension.

        In a lecture called "Cranberrying on Cape Cod,"Chester Cross (1973), director of the Station from 1952 to 1981,  bluntly explained increased production:
         "It's done rather simplyas a matter of fact.  You cut losses.  You prevent things from happening that hurt the crop.  We found out any number or things that hurt cranberries.  We found some ways of preventing [damage]." 
 
        Research at the State Bog in Wareham at the Massachusetts Cranberry Experiment Station and its counterparts in New Jersey, Wisconsin, and Washington State has allowed growers to incorporate into daily operations methods for insect and disease control that significantly curtail crop losses (Eck 1990). The Cranberry Station's research includes:
 - cranberry hybridization and new cultivar programs for disease resistance and improvement of fruit
 - minimizing frost and heat damage
 - identification and control of weeds, insects and disease, including IPM (Integrated Pest Management)
 - improved bog management techniques: ie. sanding, flooding, pruning

Modern technology

 Changes in harvesting methods and the installation of solid-set sprinkler systems for water mangement brought the greatest increase in yield per acre to the cranberry industry (Burrows 1976, Cross 1973.)  Other technological advances included: improved weather forecasting and frost-warning services, laser equipment for grading, using bees for pollination, and more sophisticated fertilization techniques (Eck 1990, Thomas 1990).  

Laser grading
Cranberry bogs must be graded for a level peat base.  The smoother and more level the bog, the less water is needed for even flooding.  Laser grading equipment, introduced in 1982, creates straight bogs and level surfaces to within 1/4" over a distance of 1000 feet (Thomas 1990).
 
Sprinkler Systems
Cranberry cultivation is water intensive.  Not only is water necessary for growth of the crop, but winter and spring flooding prevent frost damage in vines, flowers, and newly-set berries.  [Photo: courtesy Cape Cod Cranberrry Growers' Association, copyright 1997]  In the 1960's, rotating sprinkler systems were installed on bogs for fast, efficient frost protection.   Other advantages of sprinkler systems have included:
 - water conservation: sprinklers use less water than flooding a bog for frost protection
 - irrigation during summer months
 - effective distrbution of pesticides (at night after bees have returned to hives and birds have gone to roost) (Cross 1973).

Through research and modern harvesting and management techniques, cranberry cultivation has been transformed from the seafarer-turned-gentleman-farmer's cash crop to the major agricultural industry in Massachusetts.