Hey everyone,
I thought today I would share with you something I got up to in August which I kept meaning to post on my blog. I had a really lovely day out with two friends at the fruit picking farm. We drove for ages to get to it but it was so worth it and was a lovely day out.
We weren't quite sure what to expect from the farm and called ahead to check it was going to be open to be greeted by possibly the best answer phone recording I have ever heard! The man who owns the farm each day records what produce there is, what fruits are particularly delicious and ready for picking and even the weather...we called twice just so we could hear it again!
On arrival we realised that it was not only a fruit picking farm but also had it's own farm shop with fresh produce not only from the farm but also from other local sellers so had local honey, vegetables and fruit, eggs and even plants. How fantastic if you had this on your doorstep.
The farm is positioned quite near the main road and near a big Asda supermarket so I just hope that lots of the locals come here to support the local businesses and to get their fresh fruit and veg and local produce as well. It certainly seemed quite busy there.
As well as the farm shop the farm also has it's own tearooms and I was really glad to see that they also support local makers there and had a selection of craft products for sale. Hooray for amazing local businesses supporting other local makers, growers and crafters!
Of course it would have been rude to have gone to the tearooms to have a look around without stopping for a cup of tea and after the long drive we all thought we deserved one! The tea room was clearly popular with the locals and was a good start to the day. We were feeling really excited to start fruit picking and nearly finished our teas when it started raining a lot so unfortunately (!!) we also had to stay and have some cake while we waiting for the rain to stop! Oh what a shame...!
We tried to decide what to pick before we entered the fields but they all sounded amazing so in the end we just wandered around looking at the different fruit before deciding what looked yummiest!
The farm was actually much bigger than we thought and you can even get a tractor ride around the farm which was perfect for visitors who had children. It stops at different points around the farm next to the different fruit so you can just jump off at whichever fruit you would like to pick.
The farm also had signs letting you know which fruit were ready to pick and which weren't.
We picked lots of plums as they looked particularly delicious!
Even though the farm was by the main road, you did feel like you were right in the countryside and it was really relaxing walking around. The rain managed to stay off after we left the tea rooms (although big grey colours stayed overhead!)
I really liked the signs at the farm so spent more time photographing those than the actual fruit (sorry guys!). Aren't they lovely though?!
As well as plums we also picked raspberries and then when we got home made a raspberry and plum pie (it was super delicious!). We held a 'perfect raspberry' competition between us to find the most delicious, juicy and biggest raspberry. This caused much debate but I am pretty sure I won!!
Was lovely to have such fresh fruit. You can't get fresher than this and it was nice to be able to pick all the best of the fruit rather than when you buy at the supermarket and some are always too ripe or not ripe enough or a bit squishy!
It was a really lovely day out and I hope to go back again soon.
Hope you have enjoyed reading this
The Dorothy Days X
