I can't think of many nicer things to do on a sunny, Sunday afternoon than hop down to the local pick-your-own farm, so we sauntered over to Garson's this afternoon for a fruit session. We both got very, very sticky and by the end were frankly surprised they didn't weigh us as well as the fruit.
We came home with sizeable punnets of blackcurrants, raspberries, gooseberries and redcurrants (left), plus a dinner's worth of mange tout; all of them half the cost of the same produce at the supermarket, plus guaranteed fresh as a daisy, and local too.
Garsons, although not an exclusively organic farm, works on very sound farming principles and has an admirable environmental policy. I plan to wash the plastic punnets and reuse them the next time we go. There is petrol spent driving there but it's still less than refrigerated vans zooming across the country or, worse, aeroplanes coming all the way from Chile, Argentina, Zambia or Egypt. I don't require protective atmospheres to prolong my fruit's shelf life either, or non-recyclable plastic film to keep it fresh. That's a lot of positives to go with my lovely fresh berries.
I'm definitely going to make this a regular outing, as it's also really fun to do; there were a lot of families there enjoying an afternoon out together. We had fun hunting for the tastiest looking berries and chatting away in the sunshine, I'd recommend it to anyone. Next time we go, I'm taking a picnic with us.
LINKS
Garson's PYO Farm
Find a Pick Your Own Farm Near You
Independent Article: Organic vs Air Miles
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