Self-picking strawberry farms are a fun family outing during peak season, but customers should wash fruit and wear protective clothing. Some farms offer pre-ordering and sell other produce.
A strawberry farm where people can pick their own strawberries can be a fun outing for the whole family. These farms may be established local or community farms that operate every year, or they may arise as the strawberry season peaks, usually between June and early August in Europe and the United States. With the self-pick style, customers can certainly pick the ripest and juiciest looking strawberries, and when they’re done picking they pay for their fruit at a counter that rates the price by weight or container.
Many people argue that the best part about a self-picking strawberry farm is that people get to eat the strawberries as they go along. As enticing as the strawberry smells of these delicious fruits are, if a person plans to eat some, he should bring along some basic supplies. Most food safety organizations continue to ask people to wash fruit, whether it’s organically grown or grown with the use of pesticides.
For this reason, people can take paper towels and a bottle of water, dip each strawberry they intend to eat in a little water, and then pat it dry with a paper towel. This will help remove pesticides or can wash away fertilizers such as manure that are commonly used in organically grown strawberries. However, many people ignore these washing instructions. They have to do this with the risk that they may get further pesticide exposure or pick up bad bacteria in the soil.
There are many people who visit a strawberry farm with self-harvest options and wonder which strawberries are the best to pick. Avoid green and soft strawberries. Look for red, firm berries. Most strawberries don’t ripen once they’re picked, so they should be fully ripe without being overripe. On the other hand, some soft berries don’t count if the strawberries are to be cooked into things like pies or preserves. Strawberries from a strawberry farm are usually best eaten or cooked within a day or two of being picked.
Standing in the scorching sun picking berries on a strawberry farm may have its charms, but many people quickly tire of the process. Make sure you wear sunscreen and protective clothing to avoid burns, and if you get tired of picking, many strawberry farms have strawberries for sale at their stalls. If the strawberry farm only offers self-harvest options, customers may be able to call ahead and order a certain amount of strawberries ahead of time. This can incur an additional cost because the farm has to hire someone to do the harvesting.
These farms can offer much more than strawberries. Many also sell lots of summer vegetables and some have fruit trees that they pick for more variety. It really depends on each place. Well-established farms may have a greater variety of produce than farms that are set up simply for a few months of the year.
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