It's time to head to a U-pick farm
 
Sherry Boas
Sentinel Correspondent

May 28, 2001

Does the thought of homemade peach pie and blueberry pancakes make your mouth water?

Maybe it's time to head out to the nearest U-pick farm to gather a batch of fresh fruit before the season is over.

April through June is blueberry, peach, plum and nectarine season in Central Florida.

Fire ants and mosquitoes are the only irritants for the do-it-yourselfers.

But armed with proper footwear, long pants and an available spray bottle of vinegar to take the sting away from any bites, the experience can be extremely enjoyable for young and old alike.

Children are welcome at most farms. They are often excellent pickers, capturing the fruit from low branches that adults would need to squat or kneel down to reach.

Since most people can pick all that they want in less than an hour, there is little time for toddlers and young children to get bored.

Going fruit picking is a family outing that can be fun and fulfilling. Most farms provide bags and buckets.

The serious picker might want to bring a rope to tie onto the bucket, which can then hang freely from the neck, freeing both hands for simultaneous picking.

Tim Layne, a teenage resident of Clermont who has been picking blueberries every year since he was a young child said, "I like to attach the bucket handle to a belt with a clip or hook so I have both hands free to pick."

Julian and Carol Harper operate a small U-pick farm at their homestead on East Dewey Robbins Road in Howey-in-the-Hills.

Like many u-picks they are a small farm with a limited supply.

"We have peaches, nectarines and plums this year, but we only put our sign out when there are enough to sell," Carol Harper said.

Fred and Joanne Saunders run a blueberry farm in Clermont.

Early in the season they are closed to the public while they pick commercially. Later they open the field up the public as a U-pick farm.

Joanne Saunders said she has been swapped with customers the past several weeks and is at the end of her season.

"We had a bountiful crop this year but we won't have many berries left after this weekend," she said.

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