NORTH ANDOVER — Mark and Susan Wilson sifted through 3 acres of strawberries at Boston Hill Farm Tuesday, quickly filling their baskets with the sweet red fruit as their 4-month-old son, John, watched from his baby seat.

"We love strawberries, and they look good," said Susan Wilson, a first-time picker. "It's nice to be outside, and it won't take long. We'll be home in time to feed the baby."

The local strawberry crop has arrived on schedule, and it's good news for lovers of the succulent berries.

Ben Farnum Jr., who operates Boston Hill Farm on Route 114, said the warm weather, mixed with just enough rain, has produced a fantastic crop of berries this year.

"They are coming in perfectly," Farnum said.

Strawberry season runs for about three weeks, ending around July 4, local farmers said.

"It's a very, very good crop," said Diane Barker Coco, who runs the family-owned Barker's Farm in North Andover. "It's a short season, so people should take advantage of the native ones while they are here."

Prices at the farms range from $1.75 to $2.50 per pound for pick-your-own. Harvested strawberries run $3 a pint and $5.25 a quart. The price is slightly higher than last year due to the economy, growers said.

"They are not that easy to grow; there's lots of labor involved," Farnum said.

Smolak Farms, also in North Andover, has opened 2 and 1/2 acres to allow visitors to pick their own berries.

"You know where your food is coming from, and the strawberries couldn't be any better," said owner Michael Smolak.

On Saturday and Sunday, Smolak Farms will host a strawberry festival from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. There will be activities for children, music and, of course, strawberry shortcake.

Rogers Spring Hill Farm in Haverhill also lets people flock to the fields to get their fill of strawberries.

"It's more now for the experience with the children," said Barbara Rogers, whose father owns the farm. "The days of picking a lot are over. But people get enough to make shortcake. They come more for the experience."

Last year, strawberries and other crops were soaked from the heavy rain in May and June, and then the hot sun caused the fruit to rot quickly.

This year, which started with a mild winter and then a warm spring, there are fresh red strawberries ready to be sold all over the Merrimack Valley.

"The wild card is the weather," Smolak said. "Now, we've had relatively ideal conditions. There's a lot of diligence and monitoring involved, and so far our crop looks great."

Growers also have high hopes for a strong crop of blueberries, cherries and blackberries, which will peak in July.

"Raspberries are our specialty," said Barker Coco, who sells the crop to Benson's Ice Cream in Boxford to make their raspberry ice cream. "The berries are sweet and delicious."

Statewide, there are 155 farms that grow strawberries. Last year, Massachusetts farmers produced more than 1.6 million pounds of strawberries for $3.3 million in sales.