It wouldn’t be summer without strawberries. And as I am contemplating real food and where our grocery money is allocated to, I felt like we just had to experience picking our own berries from the farm.
Where we went: Bellevue Berry Farm in Nebraska
Where you can also go: Martin’s Hillside Orchard and Fontanelle Orchards
Lessons learned ~
- Go earlier in the morning. This was a spur of the moment trip so that part couldn’t be helped but we would’ve gotten a whole lot more berries if an overheated 2 year old were not having a melt down!
- Farm strawberries are MUCH smaller then store bought. Not sure if that is because people pick them before they are mature enough or (as I suspect) we’ve got a warped perspective on the size a strawberry should be based on the ubber-giant supermarket variety. I’ve heard smaller is better when it comes to berries, especially blueberries.
- Kids will eat fruit right out of the field. I am going to have to try this theory out with vegetables. Some of my kids won’t touch a strawberry if it’s on their plate for lunch next to their PB& J sandwich. But put one on a plant and suddenly it becomes eve’s temptation…it will be picked!
- Sun-ripened is oh so much sweeter. Need I say more?
The haul ~ just over 5 pounds of strawberries
Price ~ $6.75
Bye bye Berry Bitty City!
What to do with all those itty bitty strawberries? Serve them up with a dollop of cream on some shortcakes. Mmmm mmm good!
simply necessary 
Yummy!!! My family tried growing strawberries one year when I was young, but we couldn’t make it work. I’ve never had the privilige of strawberry picking before, but we do love going peach picking!!!
Fresh produce is truly amazing and I think it is so good for our children to really see where our food comes from.
I agree! And I would love to go peach picking. I have never tried that! We are going to try raspberry and apple picking this year too.