Fresh News 2022/23/24
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Friday November 1 --- It might be a little late but we will sure take this Fallish weather! The Farm is going strong with all activities up and running well. The weekend forecast for the Farm is mostly cloudy with a high of 82 tomorrow and 85 Sunday ----- just right! We do have a 30% chance of rain. The Farm is very dry so a little moisture would be a God send. I am not a weather man but I feel like if it does rain it will be spotty short showers. From here through November, the Farm is open on Friday, Saturday and Sundays. these weekends are moderately slow and perfect for those folks wishing to avoid crowds.
Hope to see you soon! Sunday evening 10/27 ---- Another fantastic weekend with the best customers in the world.. Afternoons continue to be warm/hot but our customers have taken it in stride. As mentioned before, in this hot dry weather we normally get a few cranky customers (just like me) but not this year! We are very happy to share the farm with all those that have made it out. And we are not over yet! This week will be the last full week to be open and then we go to Friday through Sunday for the remainder of November. November weekends feature a greatly reduced crowd. With all the activities running and fewer people, folks will get a sense of having the Farm to their selves here on out. The other big thing we do here is Pick Your Own Strawberries. The 138,000 newly planted plants are beginning to take hold and put on new growth. We even see some blooms. If it does not just turn to winter, we will try to save some of these blooms from freezes and might be picking a few berries in early December! Eventually it will get cold and we will let the plants rest a bit. We hope to be picking the main crop March through April next year. A few rain chances in the coming week with a small cooldown have us super excited. It is still a great time to come out to the Farm - we hope to see you soon. Sunday evening 10/20 ---- Another great weekend with the best customers in the world!! Thank You to all you folks that have shared a good ole Farm experience with us. We seem to be missing a few people - it is you? If so, come on out, we are waiting for you. The busiest weeks are behind us now as we march through October. Mornings continue to be the most pleasant but the afternoons are not near as bad as they were the last few weeks. The Farm will be open normal hours (Every day except Wednesday) through November 2nd. After the 2nd we will drop back to being open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday through much of November. The weather dictates how late we go in November/December so it is too early to nail down those dates. The new mechanical Goat rides have been a lot of fun. The Barrel Train continues to be super boring but mesmerizing for small children. The Barnyard Maze is only a third the size of Texas but for some reason it is almost as hard. The object is to find the 4 lost Farm animals and that Pig is giving people fits again this year. The Texas Maze has gotten a little easier over the weeks as folks have made new paths. New paths are really a product of difficulty because sometimes when you can't find a town and you hear someone shout they found it, its a mad dash through the grass to get there before they stop shouting. We are very happy with the way the flower fields are holding up. Lots of beautiful bouquets of flowers came out today. We have no admission or parking fee, folks just pay for the activities they wish to participate in. My suggestion is to come out to the farm, walk around and get the lay of the land before buying tickets. There are lots of cashiers all around the farm. The Strawberry plants are beginning to adjust to their new home. We are excited to be seeing new growth. The last few years we have been able to harvest some berries at the end of November and first of December. Normally I am worried about t a freeze putting them to sleep but this year I am worried about the heat - Strawberry plants do not like it hot. I have seen a few blooms on the earliest planted plants which equates to berries in a month. We will just see how things play out over the next few weeks. Regardless of what happens this Fall, the main crop should be ready to pick next march. Hope to see you soon! Wednesday evening 10/16 --- To say we are loving these cooler temperatures would be an understatement. It sure was nice to do some work today without sweating. It looks like the temperatures will continue to be nice all the way through the upcoming weekend. Other than being dry, the Farm is looking and doing great. Everything seems to be functioning as planned and folks seem to be having a good time. Friday afternoon 10/11 --- What a great day! and we are looking forward to a great weekend. Mornings continue to be best, afternoons get a little toasty although this afternoon was not too bad with a little breeze. Tomorrows forecast has a 5 to 10 mph wind in it which will be nice. Sunday afternoon is supposed to be the hottest, hopefully the predicted 10 to 15 mph wind will cut the heat a bit. My suggestion is to pack the family up early, hit the farm fun for a couple of morning hours and skiddaddle back to your house by early afternoon. We finished planting the 138,000 Strawberry plants today. If we can get them to survive this heat and future freezes (did I really say that in the same sentence) we will potentially have a few Pick Your Own berries in December but probably it will be March of next year before they start producing those beautiful red luscious berries for everyone to pick. Hope to see you soon! Tuesday evening 10/8 --- Are you sure it is October? And the Hot/Dry spell continues. LOTS of folks have been taking advantage of the cooler morning temperatures. Today we had a little wind in the afternoon that made it a little more pleasant. Until the anticipated cooler temperatures next week, I would try to plan a morning trip out to the farm. I am not the only one guilty of becoming moody in the heat as in the past we tend to get a few hot cranky customers. Not this year though! Our customers have been the best, happiest most pleasant people to deal with. Thank You! Everything seems to be going pretty good for us. The activities seem to be going good and we have tons and tons of pumpkins to choose from. The Chicken and Pig seem to be giving folks the most trouble in the Barnyard Maze while 'the last one' is the hardest to find in the Texas Maze. .We love the "Harvest of Fall Fun" time of the year because the farm is more festive. We are awaiting the delivery of our last 25,000 Strawberry plants. 113,000 are in the ground already and beginning to get acclimated. The plants we get come from Canada. Can you imagine being a Strawberry plant who one day is scooped up, put in a box, placed in a refrigerated truck then placed out in the Texas sun and planted all in the matter of a week or two? Thursday evening 10/3 --- Going good! Things are going really well for us here on the farm, all we need is YOU. We are in a bit of a dry spell but that just means no rain outs. I would say the Farm looks great considering the lack of rainfall. The mornings have been very pleasant, afternoons can get a bit toasty. We see some cloud cover in the forecast for Saturday which should be fantastic. Hope to see you soon!!! Tuesday evening 10/1 ---- Please remember: the Farm is closed to the public on Wednesdays. That is our day to clean up, mow, weedeat, and all the things we don't want to do around customers. We will get the ball rolling again Thursday morning with all activities running except Pony Rides - which run Friday through Sunday. We planted another 10,000 or so plants today. We will keep chipping away until we get all 147,000 give or take, planted. You never know with Texas weather but we could have a few berries for harvest in late November but the main season we hope begins March 2025. Hope to see you soon! Sunday evening 9/29 -- Wow! What a great weekend full of wonderful people. Our customers (you) are the best! So many smiling faces even in the hot afternoon sun. Mornings have been wonderful and the afternoons are not that bad if you can get some breeze and find the occasional shade. Everything seems to be going good here on the farm. If you haven't made it out yet - come on, we are waiting for ya. Even on a busy weekend we were able to get another 30,000 Strawberry plants in the ground. Little by little we will get that job done and start pushing the plants to grow. The last two years we were able to harvest some berries in late November. Maybe this will be another one of those years. I don't want to complain but ............ it sure is dry. It has been over a month since we saw any rainfall and with above normal temperatures the ground has dried up. We try to irrigate everything we grow but the system was pulled out of the Mazes before the farm opened. It is disappointing to see the once lush green stalks turning brown. It's only by Gods grace that it is still standing considering how dry it is. I have to remind myself that it could be much worse and we will deal with whatever the weather brings us. God is good, We do have irrigation on the Strawberry fields and much of the grass greenbelts so that is a blessing. Hope to see you soon! Thursday evening 9/26 ---- Mornings have been great, afternoons a little toasty. We have had a great start to this years' "Harvest of Fall Fun" and we look forward to things getting even better. We try to irrigate as many things as possible and you sure can tell which areas get water and those that don't. The Mazes are still standing and looking good but they could use a drink - unfortunately, we pulled all the sprinklers out of them before the season started. We have a new mechanical goat ride that has been a big hit. Be sure to check it out when you arrive. We do not have an entrance or parking fee. Instead, customers purchase tickets to each event. My recommendation is to arrive at the farm, walk around and get a ticket when you find something you would like to do. There are several places scattered around the farm to get tickets. 113 Thousand Strawberry plants arrived yesterday. Between unloading 60 bins of pumpkins and a truck of water we were able to get the first 13 thousand in the ground. Little by little we will get them planted. Depending on the weather, we could have some berries this Fall but most likely next March. Hope to see you soon! Sunday evening 9/22/24 ---- The first weekend of the Harvest of Fall Fun is in the books. It was good, lots of folks braved the heat and came on out to share it with us. We are hoping to get a small reduction in temperatures this week which should make the outing a little more enjoyable. The new goat ride game was a big hit, we look forward to showcasing it in a video soon. Hope to see you soon! 9/19/24 --- The 'Harvest of Fall Fun" begins Saturday! Fall? The calendar says the first day of Fall is the 22nd ............. says ............. the mornings have been very nice with a freshness to the air but by noon on a cloudless day the sun is beating down a different tune. If you are not used to the heat, don't come in the afternoons this weekend unless you bring an umbrella to keep the sun off of you. All the Farmhands have been busy little beavers getting everything ready and we are almost there. The Farm really looks good despite the hot dry spell we are in. We have a new activity this season - goat rides! No, not real goats. Do you remember the little horse in front of the grocery store a child could "ride" for a quarter? Imagine something like that in goat form on a track. Propel the goat down the track but push pulling a lever, get to the end and then race back to the front. It is a lot of fun and we look forward to the excitement it will bring. It is no secret that we buy pumpkins, have them trucked in and resell them here on the farm. I am a terrible pumpkin grower so we let the professionals assume that risk. We have just about finished unloading the first two semis. In order to obtain what we hope is the best quality pumpkins, we use several different suppliers. 9/18/24 ---Opening Saturday!! Yay, we are ready. It's getting hot in the afternoons so it is super important to come in the mornings and maybe even bring an umbrella to block the Sun. Open through October. Hope to see you soon!!! After we hedge the Mazes we mow the pathways to clean them up. This is one of my favorite jobs because it is a lot of fun zig zagging down the pathways on our Bad Boy Zero turn mower. Saturday evening 9/14/24 ----- Hedging the Mazes is a big job but it sure does look pretty when we are finished.
Thursday evening 9/12/24 ---- Opening in just 9 days! We can't wait. The Farm looks great and we are ready to share it with everyone. One of the beauties of Annual Crops is we can move them around. The Barnyard Maze has been moved back and replaced with Zinnias. The Zinnias on the Farm side of the road switched places with the Strawberries that were in the field to the left side of the parking lot. This will put them in a more picturesque location while giving us more Strawberry field. A lot of changes have been made for this years Harvest of Fall Fun and so far they are for the better. We finished building Strawberry beds yesterday, all 12+ miles worth. We expect plants in two weeks and will start planting as soon as we get them off the truck. It is always exciting and a little nerve wrecking when we put in a new crop. A lot of money and effort goes into them in hopes that we will make berries over the next few months. Speaking of the Barnyard Maze. It is planted solid in a rectangle field. When the grass is about a foot tall we cut pathways through the field at random. As the grass grows up we maintain the pathways. Just before we open we like to manicure the Maze by hedging the sides of the pathways to give a more 'wall' effect. I call that job my weight loss job because it is hard, strenuous and impossible to do without sweating like crazy. Much of that Maze is over 8 feet tall and really is impressive after hedging. All the Mazes look great the first couple of weekends before the start getting worn down by customers. The Mazes sure could use a little drink, we have a small chance of rain next Monday. Let's hope we get a few drops. It is going to be a wonderful Fall season, especially if you can make it out. Hope to see you soon. Tuesday 9/10/24 ---We are almost ready for the start (September 21st) of the "Harvest of Fall Fun". All three Mazes look outstanding. They are thick, tall and should be a good challenge. The goal of the Barnyard Maze is to find our lost farm animals. A pig, cow, chicken and sheep are hiding in there waiting for folks to find them. Whereas the object of the Candy Corn Maze is to find the Candy Corn, ring the bell and find your way back out. The Candy Corn and Barnyard Mazes are smaller and easier than the Texas Maze. While working on the Hayride route I see that Scarecrow Village now has a talent show started with dancers, bands, magicians and more. Needless to say, the Hayride should have a different look to it this year. Granny started the Hayride show and it continues to be an old fashioned enjoyable ride that we don't think you will find anywhere else in the country. And somehow we found time to build 3.5 miles of Strawberry beds this morning. Just 2 miles to go tomorrow and that job should be done - whew! It is going to be great Fall season, especially if you can join us. Hope to see you soon. Monday 9/9/24 -- We are two weeks away from kicking off this years' "Harvest of Fall Fun", starting September 21st. These wonderful cool temperatures have everyone super excited around here. Let's hope they stick around all season. I'm not sure if it is a proper indication of how hard it will be, but it took me almost 3 hours to put the city signs in Texas! Our 'Texas' shaped labyrinth is 4 acres of 6 to 10 feet tall Haygrazer and has pathways cut to and fro throughout the field. The object of the game is to find towns in our field that correspond to their location in the real State of Texas. This years theme is 'Farming across Texas". Pedestrians will be looking for the real Texas towns of Alpine, Garden City, Cactus, Earth, Red Springs, Farmersville, Blossom, Grapeland, Orange Grove, Cedar Creek, Moss Hill, and Gardendale. So far this is one of the best Mazes we have grown. Lets hope extreme weather stays away so everyone can enjoy. Two more fields of Strawberry beds to make and we will have that job done. Hopefully we will knock one out tomorrow and finish Wednesday. It is going to be a great year, we hope you can make it. Thursday 9/5/24 -- I hope these great temperatures hang around until we open up for the Harvest of Fall Fun starting September 21. As mentioned before, the Scarecrows on the Scarecrow Island Hayride route have been busy making changes since last year. I guess the bigger church choir has had an affect because there is no jail in town anymore. A Cafe, Spa and Pet Rock Store has come to town and even a tire shop outside of town. The Gnome patch has a few friends that look kinda like Bluey. There is a new running club for the Scarecrows to stay in shape - well some of them, I don't think the ones in the Redneck Yacht club are very fit. The Hayride should have a fresh look to it this year with all these additions. The Farm is looking great and we hope to see you in a little over two weeks. It is going to be a wonderful year, get ready for Pumpkin time! Wednesday 9/4/24 --- Here comes Fall! The Harvest of Fall Fun starts September 21 at Sweet Berry Farm and we are excited! I went out to Scarecrow Village (where the Hayride travels past scenes of Scarecrows) and things have changed. The Pirates must have sailed off but Crowlligans island got beached. The Boys and Girls club grew up and now they are having a Tye Dye party. The Native Americans must have decided to go elsewhere because now there is a Cowboy Trailride going on. Whew, those Scarecrows have been busy over the summer. I saw a lot more new things that I'll tell you about later. 1.8 inches of rain here yesterday. What did you get? It sure was nice and the Farm in general loved it The Mazes are dark green and in great shape as well as the rest of the Farm. My daughters have dedicated this year to increasing picture taking opportunities so get ready for a dressed up Farm. It is going to be a fantastic Fall season and we hope you can join us September 21 through November. Tuesday August 27, 2024 - What a difference a week makes! Last week was brutally hot and dry and this week has been milder temps and a chance of rain. I see rain on the radar but unfortunately we haven't been under one of those clouds. I'm sure we will get some moisture at just the right time. The Strawberry fields are ready for bed making. We have been busy ripping, tilling, cultivating those fields and now with just a little moisture we will start making the ten miles of raised plastic covered beds in anticipation of Strawberry plants coming in about a month. It is a fun job that I look forward to but at the same time I am super happy when it is done and over. Lots of work has been taking place around here getting ready for Fall season ........ which is only a month away!!! Thursday August 8, 2024 --- How's your summer been? Ours has been going pretty good. It has been pretty hot lately but nothing like the past two summers. We had a couple of inches of rain in July that was fantastic. The ground is now starting to dry out and plants starting to wilt. A shower should would be nice but other than a small chance tomorrow, we look to be dry for a week or two. The Mazes are looking fantastic! So far the best in several years. We are super happy with the way they are growing and the health of the grass, currently it averages about 5 feet tall.. Since it has been only 40 days since planting, I would not be surprised to see another 4 feet of growth by the time the Fall season starts. The Texas Maze is planted in the shape of Texas and is more for 10 years old and up as it can be hard when we first open. Pathways are cut through the field to create a labyrinth of sorts. All the pathways are connected so it is not a true "maze' in the sense of one way in and one way out. The object is to find the signs that represent real towns in Texas, punch your gamecard at each one and then head back out. Complete your gamecard and get a free bottle of water. The theme this year is "Gardening across Texas". So pedestrians will be looking for Alpine, Garden City, Cactus, Earth, Red Springs, Farmersville, Blossom, Grapeland, Orange Grove, Cedar Creek, Moss Hill, Gardendale and Pear Valley. The city signs in our state are in the approximate location of the actual towns. So get your map out and go looking if you don't know where some of these are. The Candy Corn Maze and Barnyard Maze are smaller Mazes designed for younger children. The object of the Candy Corn is to find and ring the bell in the giant Candy Corn and come on out. The Barnyard Maze has cutouts of our 'lost' farm animals. Go in and check on them for us and then come on out. Can you believe we are transplanting Zinnia plants in this heat? Well we are because we like to do things as hard as possible. Roughly 16,000 have been planted and only 16,000 more to go. I hear the girls are starting to get the kitchen cranked up. It is about time because there are no Ice Creams or Popsicles in the parlor for me to steal! We are super jazzed about the upcoming Fall season. The Farm is looking great and we are looking forward to seeing you again! Thursday 6/13/24 -- Yep, I knew there was something I was forgetting. I couldn't sleep or put my finger on what I was forgetting.... until today. When I logged on and realized that I haven't posted in a week! How could I forget THIS?! Anyway, peak bloom is now over, but we still have a significant number of blooms in the field! The flowers look great too, finally we're seeing some different varieties emerge with a wide range in color. We will be open regular hours till Sunday! Hurry out to get the freshest flowers of the season! Friday 6/7/24 - The sunflowers are still putting on quite the show! Full bloom is holding up well... we expect to see some droops in the Sunflowers around Sunday with full bloom fading quickly after that. We will still have other varieties in bloom after the 9th, however, you won't get that full field shot you're lookin' for. Hurry out now for the best flowers! We are going to shut the gates to the farm for the summer after 8pm on the 16th. June 17th thru September 20th the farm will be closed for summer, maintenance, and preparation for our 'Harvest of Fall Fun'. We will re-open again September 21st for mazes, pumpkins, hayrides and more! A big thank you for all of your support this spring season! Monday 6/3 -- The fields have mostly dried out now, and strawberries have just about played out. It is now too late to pick strawberries. The sunflower patch is in peak bloom so that tells us we have about a 1 week time with super awesome pictures and only about 2 weeks left of sunflower season in general. So if you have been waiting at all to get some flowers, now is the time to do it! We will probably end sunflower season on June 17th, but I've been wrong before, just follow along for the best updates!
Saturday Morning 6/1 - I'M FINALLY ABLE TO UPDATE AGAIN! Sorry for the time lapse here... we've been having trouble getting to the editing portion of our website. Here's the scoop:
Sunflowers are in peak bloom! Over the last 2 days we've gotten about 3 inches of rain. The sunflowers are putting on quite a show, but you will have to trek through a bit of mud to get to them. Mud is inevitable at this time, so please wear rain boots out to the farm today. We do not have anywhere to wash off feet/body parts from the mud. Strawberries are still hanging on! They won't stick around much longer after all of this rain and going into some heat. If you have been waiting to get berries you need to do it NOW. After Sunday they will be extremely hard to find. We hope to have you out soon! Tuesday Morning 5/28 -- It never fails... we'll always get rain at some point during Memorial Day weekend. We got just about a quarter inch last night and no damage! We will be a little wet today but we should dry out relatively quickly when the sun comes up. We have loads of berries in the field and sunflowers are close to full bloom but probably need another couple of days for a good showing. They are at the perfect stage for a long lasting bouquet! We're forecasted for more rain tonight, so I recommend coming TODAY to get the best berries of the week - maybe even the final round for the season. Can't wait to see everyone's rain boot styles! Friday Morning 5/24/24 -- These strawberry plants didn't want to work earlier in the year, so we turned them off and turned them back on and.... what do you know? It worked! Strawberry picking still looks great for today, and tomorrow MORNING. If you're planning a visit for tomorrow, a couple of things: 1st- the farm will have 'officially' transitioned into sunflower season meaning there will be a $5 entry fee per person (plus tax.. grrr government) for ages 2 and up regardless of the activity that you would like to participate in. 2nd - My berry prediction is that we will have decent strawberry picking in the morning with supply starting to dwindle about mid-day. 3rd- Sunflowers are looking great with very pretty blooms and with so many more on the way! Thursday Morning 5/23 -- No rain yesterday, this morning we are in a pitter patter situation that should go away within the next hour or so. I was just out in the fields and they are mostly dry with a few just plain stubborn mud spots that refuse to go away. Berry picking will be great for the last 2 free days to enter the farm. Sunflowers are coming right along, and I'll get a picture for y'all as soon as these clouds go away. See ya soon! Monday Morning 5/20/24 -- After a beautiful weekend we still have fruit and flowers, or berries and blooms if you will. We have a really good amount of berries in the field and sunflowers are popping out faster than I can get pictures of them. We will have a really great showing by Thursday! Starting May 25th we will officially kick off sunflower season and with sunflower season comes a $5 entry fee per person, regardless of the activities that you wish to do on the farm. Come out today thru Friday to enjoy great berries and flowers! Remember: Closed on Wednesday! Saturday Afternoon 5/18/24 -- The script has been flipped! We will have more berries than sunflowers tomorrow. Strawberry picking was good today as we saw a lot of really nice berries leave the farm today with more in the field for tomorrow. Sunflower season has been super popular! We have much much more coming in a couple of days with a small supply decent blooms in the field now. If coming for sunflowers tomorrow be prepared to get into the wet areas of the farm. Designer (we like Tractor Supply) Boots will be a great footwear option! Continue to check back here for the latest strawberry and sunflower updates! See you soon!
Friday 5/17/24 - Did y’all get rain? Yesterday we got just about 1.5”. Undoubtably, the grounds are going to be sloppy until we get the sun to come out. Luckily, we have that in the forecast for the next 3 days! But a little mud isn’t going to stop you guys! Just bring those old shoes you don’t mind getting dirty! Berry picking will be best today-and depending on the crowd - we should have a good amount for Saturday morning! Sunflowers didn’t get any damage and are standing straight as an arrow. The goats have shelter, but they need you guys to talk nicely to them and tell them “You sure do look beautiful today goaties. Did you have a nice bath?” As always we’ll post again to keep y’all updated. See you on the farm real soon!
Thursday Morning 5/16/24 -- The strawberries are on the comeback! We will have decent picking today, tomorrow for sure and we will update again on availability later on Friday for the weekend forecast. While smaller at this time of year, they are still just as tasty! The farm will be open rain or shine. Sunflowers are coming on FAST! And they sure are beautiful! We will have free admission into the sunflower field until May 24th! Sunflowers are on a sliding scale price wise with stems starting at $2 each for 1-11 stems, when you pick 12-23 stems they are $1.50 each, and if you come out for lots of sunflowers anything over 24 stems will cost ya $1 each! A great and affordable way to spend some time outside. See you soon! 
Thursday afternoon 5/9/24 --- This is a picture of the 'grassy' field of Strawberry plants taken today. You will notice there is no red color in this field. The last three days have been hot and crazy humid. They really have made me feel my age. A cool down tomorrow will be much appreciated. The Farm will be open rain or shine with activities, hungry goats, some sunflowers and Ice Cream. Folks can walk through the Strawberry fields but don't expect to find many berries.
It looks like it will be two weeks before we can tell if all these blooms on the Strawberry plants are going to make. Therefore, we do not expect to have Strawberries for picking anytime next week. Any trip to the farm is enjoyable, come on out and enjoy it with us - picking Strawberries is better but not necessary to let the kids have fun. Tuesday evening 5/7 ---- Don't forget - the Farm is closed on Wednesdays. No one will be here tomorrow except the clean up crew. Well, I don't think there are going to be Strawberries for this weekend like I thought there might. My last post was too overly optimistic. We might have a few here and there but I don't see much until the 23rd of the Month. Come out to the Farm to enjoy the outdoors, let the kids run and do activities but not to pick Strawberries. The Sunflowers sure liked the sunshine today. The girls expect them around the 25th so maybe we will have Strawberries and Sunflowers toward the end of the month. Once the fruit load came off, the Strawberry plants started growing and blooming. The plants are healthy and vigorous now but they are starting to put out a few runners here and there. When the days get longer and the temperatures heat up the plants will shift into vegetative reproduction mode Ie: runners (little plantlets). Very seldom do we pick berries into June, lets hope this is a year we do. Have you ever had a 'why didn't I do this sooner?" moment? I just did. So if you have read any of the previous posts you have heard of our grass saga. We have never grown grass between the rows of Strawberries and always dealt with mud and muddy feet and all the complications associated with said mud. So, last year I had the brilliant idea to plant rye grass between the rows in 5 of the 8 acres of Strawberries we grow. Before we go any further I will say we did not have a single mud issue in those fields. But ......... the grass got out of control and quickly grew taller than the Strawberry plants. Nothing I tried worked and I could hear it laughing at me as it became a jungle. Not only did it make the picking a little more difficult, instead of a mud pit the water just stood in amidst the grass in the wet spots so my boots were soaked, but not muddy, when I came out of the field. When the Strawberry plants quit producing I just turned a blind eye to the grass. Last weekend when indicating to Raelynn and Lacy that we might have some Strawberries to pick later in the month, they quickly said I better get that grass under control or no one will be able to find the berries or their children out in the field. "Yeah, Yeah. I will get right on that" I said. Not really expecting to do much, Jorge and I started pulling the grass away from the plants toward the center of the aisle, Then, because I really like to drive tractors, we got Bigger Boy (the biggest Kubota we have) and drove up and down the row to pack the grass into the aisles. What do ya know, it actually worked pretty good. So stomp, stomp, drive, drive two days later we have cleaned up about 3 acres. Another day or two and we should have the fields back in pristine shape - now that the season is almost over! I have no idea why we didn't think about it sooner. I doubt they will read this so don't you dare tell my daughters they had any sway over cleaning up the fields - I don't want them to get big heads or anything. Sunday evening 5/5 ---- We had 1.4 inches of rain this morning. How much did you get? The grounds are holding up pretty good considering. We will continue to be open normal hours with smiling faces operating rides and eating Ice Cream. A visit to the Farm is always enjoyable even if you don't get many berries. Things are looking up in the Strawberry fields. We don't have any berries for the next few days but it does look like we might for Mothers Day weekend. Strawberries do not like to be hot or wet. We are going to have a sizable second crop IF we can dry them out a bit and keep the temperatures under 90. Our ten day forecast looks great temperature wise, now lets hope we can keep the berries from rotting. By looking at the plants and IF everything goes as planned (does is ever though) -- this week will be almost nothing to pick, some berries for Mothers Day weekend, better picking by the 16th and a decent supply of berries to pick by Memorial Day when Sunflowers should be blooming. Sunflowers should continue through June. Friday evening 5/3/24 ---- Pretty much ditto the last post. It is thundering and lightening outside now so maybe even the rain amount will be the same but by looking at the radar I don't think we will get much rain. Tomorrow our forecast has a 30% chance of rain after 4pm with Mostly Cloudy skies. Ripe Strawberry availability is very low. There are very few berries in the fields to pick right now. I don't see much change in production for at least two more weeks. There is a chance we will have a small second crop of berries in about 2 to 3 weeks. IF it doesn't rain tonight, we might be able to offer some Sunflowers to pick tomorrow. The activities will be running tomorrow and we will be here rain or shine. Even without Strawberries a trip out to the Farm is enjoyable. Thursday morning 5/2/24 ---- .7 inches of rain at the Farm last night. The grass between the Strawberry rows has prevented muddy shoes but it holds the moisture on wet mornings so instead of my boots being covered in mud, they are soaking wet after walking through the field. I saw very few Strawberries to pick. Today is a fun day on the Farm without Strawberries. As mentioned before, we might have a little boost in production around the 20th of this month. Wednesday evening 5/1/24 ----- I know tomorrow is Thursday and usually that is the best day to pick but I see very very few Strawberries to pick. I guarantee someone will pick a full box tomorrow just to show me up but it is going to be a chore finding them. A 70% chance of rain tonight. I'll try to make an update first thing in the morning. Please don't come out to the Farm to get Strawberries. The plants are blooming and there is a small chance we might have another batch of berries to pick toward the later part of this month when Sunflowers are ready. The Farm will be open should anyone desire to come this way. Sunday evening 4/28/24 ----- The Farm will be open Monday and Tuesday with activities like the Barrel Train, Sandart, Paint a pot, Berry Bounce jumping pillows, hungry goats, Ice Cream, Popsicles and very few Strawberries to pick. Thursday morning will be the best time of this week to pick Strawberries. Weather permitting, I am guessing we well have a small second crop of Strawberries in about 3 weeks when the Sunflowers begin to bloom. Until then, the picking is going to be slow. Come out to the farm to enjoy a wonderful outing without the intention of picking a lot of berries to take home. Saturday evening 4/27/24 ----- More berries came out of the fields today than I estimated but I can guarantee most of the picking took some time. At least it was a cool day to make the picking more pleasant. We have an 80% chance of rain tonight and before 10am tomorrow. That coupled with a lack of berries to pick will make tomorrow a day just to get out of the house and enjoy the outdoors while eating Ice Cream. We will be here rain or shine and we would love to have you out but don't expect to get Strawberries tomorrow. The plants have quite a few blooms on them which means ripe berries in three weeks IF it doesn't turn off too hot. If you have a choice, I recommend trying to come out to the Farm in late May when the Sunflowers will be ready and maybe a small second crop of Strawberries. Friday evening 4/26 --- Here is the scoop concerning tomorrow - no rain here so the fields are mostly dry with some stubborn wet spots. The majority of the Farm grounds are in great shape (very beautiful if I do say so). Tomorrows weather forecast is 20% chance of showers after 1pm, high near 83. Strawberry supply ----- folks picked 454 pounds yesterday, only 250 pounds today but not many people came out. I think there is another 500 pounds in the fields for tomorrow BUT scattered over the 6 acres. Those willing to work a bit will find berries, casual picking won't yield very much. The earlier you can get here the better. My feeling is that tomorrow will not be very well attended and most people will find berries - but it is only a feeling. The Activities will be running, the goats will be hungry, lots of room for kids to run, cold Ice Cream and Popsicles to eat and smiling faces should make a great outing even if you are not able to load up on Berries. Sunday - we have a much larger chance of rain. The Farm will be open rain or shine but judging by the weather and berry forecast - Saturday would be the better of the two days. We will update here tomorrow night to give folks a better idea of Sundays conditions. Monday evening 4/22/24 --- Did you see the front page? We don't want to mislead anyone - the Berries are slim slim pickings. I am sure we will pick 100 or 200 pounds a day but that is scattered over 6 acres. The plants were loaded so heavy with fruit in March that they just quit blooming, now that fruit is off and the plants are growing/blooming again. It is pretty late in the year so I am not sure those blooms will make it to fruit. If they do we will certainly pick them. The Farm will be open normal hours and folks will be allowed to look for berries. The Activities will be running, the goats will be hungry, lots of room for kids to run, cold Ice Cream and Popsicles to eat and smiling faces. Without hardly any berries to pick it might just be a cheap fun date. Closed Wednesday so Thursday morning will be the best chance to find some berries this week. Sunflowers are coming!!! in late May. Hope to see you soon! Sunday evening 4/21/24 ---- A picture perfect weather day! It was fun just to be on the farm. The Strawberry fields need some time to recover. This coming Thursday morning will be the next best time to pick Strawberries. We will be open Monday and Tuesday for Farm Fun but picking Strawberries should be low on the list. We are seeing some blooms popping out, I am not sure they will set but Lord willing we might have a little boost of berries toward the end of May when Sunflowers are blooming too. Sunday morning 12pm ---It is a beautiful day! The Sun is shining, the air smells fresh and there is a cool breeze. It is not near as cold as I thought it might be. The Farm did get .75 inches last night so between the rows is a bit wet but the main grounds are just fine. It should be a good day, hope to see you soon! Saturday evening ---- 4/20/24 ---- Another good day! Folks seemed extra pleasant today, could it be the cooler temperatures? Maybe but I am inclined to think it is just because we have the best customers ever. The rain held off until about 4ish and a good amount of berries were picked. While the picking took some time, I did not hear anyone say they did not find enough. It is raining as I write this. Our forecast shows rain until midnight tonight and then cool cloudy weather moves in. Can you believe our forecast high for tomorrow is 64 with a north wind of 10 to 15mph!? Wow! We are loving it but you better bundle up if heading out to the farm. The Strawberry picking will be decent at the 1pm Sunday opening time. I have a feeling there will be berries most of the afternoon but earlier is always better. Folks take a big gamble coming after 3pm on Sundays. We have grass between the rows in 4 of the 6 acres available for picking tomorrow. The grass is a bit of a nuisance when it is dry but definitely cuts down on mud when it is wet. Old shoes would probably be preferable tomorrow. Next week should be a lot like this last week with Thursday being the best weekday to pick on. Hope to see you soon! Friday late afternoon 4/19/24 ---- It was a good day! Not too many pickers and a little cooler than yesterday. I expect the picking tomorrow to be as good or better than yesterday (see the post). We have a 70% chance of rain mainly after 1pm. The Farm is open rain or shine. The activities will be going and Raelynn says she will be making Farm Fresh Donuts along with sandwiches and Strawberry Lemonade. Considering the time of the year and the threat of rain, I would think the picking pressure tomorrow will be moderate so Sunday's picking might be ok. 3 of the 4 fields have grass between the rows so mud should not be an issue if it does rain. Always check here the day before coming for updates.. Hope to see you soon! 
Thursday afternoon 4/18/24 --- Seasoned pickers know that Thursday is the best day to come out because we are closed on Wednesday. You can see by the dates on the boxes that this person has been a loyal repeat picker. Make sure you bring back your old boxes to save that $1 box fee and do your part to recycle.
These, and another 120+ boxes just like it were picked today. The picking was a bit tough but those willing to work at it seemed to get plenty. Fridays forecast is partly sunny with a high of 77. I would expect the picking to be similar tomorrow. But as always this time of the year, the early bird gets the best picking. At this moment, there is a 80% chance of rain after 1pm on Saturday.. The Farm will be open all day rain or shine. We should start the day with berries, afternoon availability will be determined by picking pressure. Hope to see you soon! Wednesday 4/17/24 --- The forecast for the Farm says cloudy in the morning, clearing in the afternoon with a 30% chance of rain after 4.pm. I'm guessing we have about 500# of berries to pick tomorrow BUT they are scattered over 6 acres and hiding under the leaves. In other words, take your time, move the leaves around and you will find the berries. The early bird gets the best berries. I don't see production getting any better the rest of the season. It looks like we will just have a few berries every morning to pick. Folks gotta get down in amongst the plants to find the berries. You can't just walk along and look at the plants from a distance. We have a grand experiment this year of growing grass between the rows in three of our four fields. Boy have I learned a lot and oh how I will grow it differently next year! It is a bit of a nuisance to pick in those fields but guess what ......... that seems to be where the berries are. Why, I do not know. Maybe one of you can educate me. Today was "clean up the Farm day" and the grounds look pretty good if I do say so. We (actually George, Edder and Tony as I have been conveniently finding something else to do:)) have almost pulled up all the Ranunculus corms. The next job will be to wash the corms, dry them and put them away for next years planting. Then the bed covering comes up with the drip tape, irrigation pipes come out and the field will get cultivated and prepped for Candy Corn Maze planting in a few months. All activities will be running (pony rides only Sat and Sun), the Ice Cream will be cold and the Farm Hands will have smiles on their faces. Hope to see you soon! Monday evening 4/15/24 --- Our customers are the best! The ripe berries are hard to find now, it takes a good bit of hunting. Some of today's customers left with full boxes of red ripe berries whereas others couldn't find many at all. It takes diligence and perseverance. Gone are the days of raking them into your box, now the berries are hidden in the leaves. Don't just walk down the row without stooping over or you will never see them. We would love to have you out at the farm but don't come out expecting to find many berries. Our season is winding down early and I don't see a lot of green berries on their way. Thursday morning will be the best picking of this week. It won't be until we see what kind of picking pressure we have Thursday to determine Friday and the weekends supply. Regardless of berry availability the farm will be open with children's activities and cold Ice Cream.. Just think of it this way, it could be the most budget friendly family outing you have had in quite a while. Sunday afternoon 4/14/24 ---- Sure enough, folks scratched and worked the fields and ended up getting 650 pounds of mostly ripe berries. I can tell you that they didn't come easy though. The Farm will be open tomorrow and Tuesday with some berries (closed Wednesday) but Thursday will be the next best day to pick berries. But look at it this way, if you don't get to load up on berries you have a lot more money for Ice Cream and can still have a great fun outing. I don't expect the fields to return to their formal glory. I do expect we will continue to scratch for berries until Sunflower season starts at the end of May.. Saturday evening 4/13/24 --- The Picking is tough but our customers are tougher! It started good but by the end of the day folks were struggling to find a box full of berries. Tomorrow (open 1 to 5 on Sundays) will be a good day to come out for Farm fun Activities NOT for Strawberries. I'm sure that we will pick several hundred pounds by the end of the day but it will be pretty hard picking. We will be here with smiling faces and plenty of cold ice cream, popsicles, fun activities, and hungry goats. Come on out and enjoy the day with us, just don't expect many Strawberries to pick. Other than a few glimpses of goodness, this has been a poor producing season. The plants have not been behaving properly and I am not sure exactly why. Sometimes after 35 years of growing Strawberries I feel like I am getting worse as a grower instead of better Raelynn says that the Ranunculus field is finished. Tomorrow we will glean the last few flowers before we start the task of pulling up the plants and plastic. When the field has been cleaned we will spend some quality tractor time cultivating it to get ready for planting Candy Corn Maze seed in July. Saturday morning - 4/13/24 --- There are Strawberries to pick but folks are going to need to look for them. Expect about 30 minutes to pick a box of berries. The three fields with grass between the rows are wet until the dew burns off but that is where the best berries are. Wednesday Morning 4/10 -- Whew, what a storm! Luckily we have escaped mostly unscathed! Thank the Lord! Berry supply will be good for the next few days. Expect some mud in the field for Thursday and Friday picking. Remember, closed all Wednesdays. As always, we can't wait for you to visit the farm! Sunday evening 4/7/24 --- The folks that come out here are some of the best people around! Picking was pretty tough today but pickers took it in stride as they hunted and searched and, for the most part, found the berries ---- with a smile. Thanks. Tomorrow is Eclipse day, in case you haven't heard lol, and our forecast says mostly cloudy with a 50% chance of rain after 1pm. Hmmm, I wonder if it will be one of those days where we see a good bit of Sun unless you get under a pop up afternoon shower. You know one of those, "this isn't too bad" and then you look up and see a giant cloud forming. I guess we will see. Regardless, the Farm will be open and we will be here with smiling faces rain or shine operating just like we do every other day. We don't have any special events scheduled and parking will be free. There will be Strawberries to pick in the morning, morning, morning. It all depends of picking pressure as how long the supply of ripe berries will last. The events will be running for the kids, the goats will be hungry and the Ice Cream will be delicious. It looks like we have a better chance of rain Tuesday, closed Wednesday so it looks like Thursday will be the best day of the week to pick berries. We hope to see you soon! Saturday evening 4/6/24 --- The weather forecast for tomorrow is looking up. It should be a nice sunny day with a high of 82 and light winds. The Farm is open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays The Good Lord is putting those berries on the plants because I didn't see 2700 pounds worth out there this morning.. Even the last customers of the day had full boxes of Strawberries. I will say the berries didn't just jump in the boxes though, it took a little work to get them. There will be Strawberries to pick tomorrow as well, just move those leaves around and find the berries hidden down inside the plant. Raelynn says folks are still finding flowers to cut but their season is winding down quickly. We will pick every last one but don't expect them to last much longer. Maybeeeeeee another week worth, we'll just have to wait and see. A few folks have asked about Eclipse weekend and traffic. Today was a light Saturday for us and I did not see any traffic in town. If phone calls are any indication, we don't expect a larger than normal Sunday attendance. The Farm grounds are looking pretty good and we only have a few stubborn wet spots out in the Strawberry fields. There is some rain in the forecast for Monday and Tuesday which will be welcome to keep the place hydrated. We have just about met our goal of picking, cutting and processing 3000 pounds of berries to be used in the kitchen. Lacy does a spectacular job making the jam, ice cream, lemonade and popsicles. She only uses our fruit in the Strawberry items she makes. Friday evening April 5 ---- Whew, it has been a little warm the past two days. Thankfully the temperature is forecast to drop into the mid 70S tomorrow for a high with some clouds. It should be a pleasant day to pick but maybe a little windy. The Farm has quickly gone form wet to a little dry at the moment. There are a lot of berries in the field to be picked but it going to take a little effort to find them. I figure about 30 minutes to fill up a 5 pound box. My dad always said "get down there like you are praying and move those leaves around to find the berries". I believe his words still ring true. The Ranunculus field is looking a little light on flowers. We think they are headed toward the end of their season so now would be a good time to get them for this year. Raelynn will be making Farm Fresh Donuts again tomorrow along with Lacys Fresh Strawberry Lemonade. The Activities will be going strong, the Farm looks great, the Goats are hungry and we will be waiting for you with smiling faces. Hope to see you soon! 
Tuesday afternoon 4/2 --- This picture was taken about 30 minutes ago. The Farm is closed on Wednesday so Thursday, Friday and probably all of Saturday will be great Strawberry picking. We still have a few wet spots but 99% of the Farm is nice and dry This will be a great weekend to visit the farm. I expect Sunday and Monday to be good picking as well but it is a little early to be certain. Hope to see you soon!
Monday 4/1 ---- No Foolin, the Strawberry fields have some berries in them. Tomorrow's picking will be decent, not incredible but not too bad either. I would expect to fill a 5# box in about 30 minutes or less. We still have flowers to pick as well and the Farm grounds are looking pretty good if I do say so. There is a chance of rain tonight before 12 but clear skies tomorrow with a high of 72. I don't expect a little rain tonight to put much of a damper on tomorrow as the fields with grass between the rows are producing the best. I would expect Berry availability to get a little better each day as we approach Saturday. We should start Saturday with a good supply of berries to pick. Hope to see you soon. Sunday 3/31 --- Another beautiful weekend filled with wonderful customers A bit cloudy today but if I take the time to look around I can see that every day is amazing in its own way. This coming week should be a good one on the Farm. There will be Strawberries and Ranunculus to pick. The Berries are trending a bit smaller but still just as tasty. Raelynn says we have only a week or two left in flower season - yikes! Here we are leading up to the big Eclipse a week from tomorrow. The Farm will be open just like normal. No special events are planned. There will be no charge for admission or parking, feel free to come hang out with us. Seems like a lot of people think we are going to have this massive amount of people in the area that is going to gridlock all the streets. I am sure I am wrong but I just don't see that happening.. I guess we will find out soon enough.. What do you think? Saturday evening 3/30 ---- Happy Easter everyone. Tomorrow we will be going to church in the morning and rushing out to open the Farm 1pm to 5pm. All of our activities will be running (but not the concession grille) and the goats will be hungry. Strawberries: almost everyone approaches the Farm from the South - we have a small field of Strawberries on the LEFT side of the road that is normally reserved for School Field Trips. We are going to let some folks go into that field for picking tomorrow. Just turn left at the Field Trip sign just before and across from the main entrance. There is probably no more than 300# of berries in that field to pick but what is there will be super nice. The main part of the farm, which is on the right side of the road, will have a few hundred pounds as well but scattered across 6 acres of fields. As soon as the school group field picks out we will divert everyone to the main fields. My suggestion if coming tomorrow, try to arrive close to 1pm - pick your berries in the school group field (we have boxes and a cashier there), then drive over tp the main part of the Farm for your Ice Cream, activities and flowers. Many families with small children find it easier to just head to Farm central to avoid loading/unloading/ loading - it is your choice. Hope to see you soon! Friday evening 3/29 ---- Yep, it was a big day. I wasn't expecting it so windy though. Tomorrow should be a bit warmer but 20mph gusts instead of the 30mph gusts today. The Strawberry fields were worked on pretty good today. The good Lord must have put the berries on the plants because we were seeing nice berries coming out of the field all the way up to about 2pm. There will be a couple hundred pounds ripen overnight. I think that the majority of the pickers tomorrow morning (before 10am) will find Berries with a decent amount of patience. As the day progresses it will be increasingly difficult to find a box but still fun. trying. I think we will limit families to one box to begin with (unless sharing will be too difficult), fill that box and come back for another. After walking the fields, I did not see any good pockets of berries. Be prepared to do a little looking. The Ranunculus field still looks good with lots of flowers for the picking. I sure did see some beautiful bouquets go out today. Raelynn will be making Farm Fresh Donuts again tomorrow along with Lacys Fresh Strawberry Lemonade. The Activities will be going strong, the Farm looks great, the Goats are hungry and we will be waiting for you with smiling faces. Hope to see you soon! Thursday evening 3/28 ---- The weather forecast for tomorrow through Monday looks fantastic. Overall the Farm is in great shape and looks beautiful. The Strawberry fields have mostly dried out with the exception of some of the wet spots where water is still standing. Wear those designer rubber boots of yours and get into those wet spots for some really good picking. We will have a good supply of ripe berries to start the day tomorrow. Everyone today, with a little effort, found full boxes of berries to pick. Three of the four fields have grass between the rows. A lot of that grass has grown up the sides of the plastic, pull that grass back and you will find lots of berries everyone else missed. We are still dealing with decayed Strawberries from the recent rain which requires a little more diligence in picking. If you pick a berry you don't like, just discard it on the ground and go in for another. The Ranunculus field looks pretty good. I have seen some beautiful flowers come out of there. Like Strawberries, the day will start off with lots of blooms to cut. Saturday should be another good day but we better get through tomorrow before making any predictions on availability. I suspect there will be some berries to start the day but it will take a little more effort to get them. Now is a good time to have a couple of eager kids full of energy to help. Just tell them it is like a Easter egg hunt Raelynn is going to open up the concession stand tomorrow. She will have her signature Farm Fresh Donuts along with Lacys amazing freshly made Strawberry lemonade and pulled pork sandwiches. All the activities will be going, the Farm Hands will be smiling and the goats are sure to be hungry. It is going to be a great day, we hope you can make it out.. Wednesday evening 3/27 --- The Farm had a little over an tenth of an inch of rain today, The field without grass between the rows will be a little muddy tomorrow, the other 3 fields won't be muddy but might be wet. There are a few spots where we have some standing water between the rows (mainly down on the far end of the row). Wear those designer rubber boots of yours and you will get into the spots that haven't been picked. If coming for berries tomorrow (Thursday) - come after 1pm, you'll be happy. you did. The ripe berry supply on Good Friday will start out moderate and degrade throughout the day. Most customers get here about 10am or later - try to come a little earlier than that to make sure you have plenty of berries to pick. There are lots of good and bad berries in the field. Strawberries do not like to be wet, which they have been quite a bit lately. This has led to a good bit of decay in the field. If you happen to pick a berry you don't like - just throw it on the ground and go in for another. . . The Farm grounds look great and all of the activities will be going. It is going to be a very good day if you can make it out. Hope to see you soon! Tuesday afternoon 3/26 ---- It might be a little cool but today has turned out to be a beautiful one. Remember we are closed on Wednesday. Trust me.... Thursday afternoon will be the next "best" picking, Thursday after 1pm. You will be glad you listened to me. Thursday morning will be marginal picking, as well as Friday morning too. Not too sure about Saturday yet, watch here for updates. As always, the events will be open, the goats will be hungry, the Ice Cream will be flowing and there will be lots of Farm fun to be had.. Hope to see you soon! Monday evening 3/25 ----- We had a wet start to the day with .56 inches of rain early in the morning. The sun came out and helped dry things up a bit but there is still some water between the rows of Strawberries. Three of the Four Strawberry fields have grass growing between the rows. While those fields are not muddy, they still have some standing water in places. Come tomorrow if that's the day you need to get out but Thursday will be better picking and should be a bit dryer (closed Wednesdays). This weekend: Good Friday has historically been a big day. Lets say there is 3000 pounds to pick this weekend. If we do most of that Friday then it doesn't leave much for Saturday and if the fields get cleaned Saturday, then Sundays picking is pretty low. There is almost always some berries in the field to pick, it just depends on how hard and long folks want to search for them. As always, the events will be open, the goats will be hungry, the Ice Cream will be flowing and there will be lots of Farm fun to be had.. Hope to see you soon! Sunday 3/24 ---- another big day, "Thank You" to all of our wonderful customers! The Berries were a bit harder to pick today and required a bit more looking and careful picking, folks seemed to take it in stride. Thank You. We have a good chance of rain tonight as I see a line of storms developing out to the West. Our forecast calls for those showers to move through in the middle of the night and clear out by tomorrow morn. A late morning arrival should be just fine if you are coming out tomorrow. The fields with grass between the rows will be the place to go if we do indeed get some rain tonight. I id not expect to lose this many berries to Gray Mold so I am downgrading our picking forecast. Tomorrow and Tuesday will be tough picking, closed Wednesday so Thursday will be the next best picking day. The Farm is open Good Friday and we will be here with smiling faces. Historically it is a big day so the earlier the better if your are coming Friday. The ranunculus field is in a similar shape, as the Strawberries. Thursday will be the next best day for flower picking. As always, the events will be open, the goats will be hungry and the Ice Cream will be flowing. Hope to see you soon! Saturday evening 3/23 --- Another wonderful day! Boy o Boy did we pick a lot of Strawberries today. Tomorrow's forecast is mostly cloudy with a high of 72 and decent Strawberry picking. We have a lot of Strawberries in the field to pick but there is also a lot of damaged ones that folks will need to sort through. The recent rains and cloudy weather have created a perfect environment for fungus growth. Strawberries are a delicate fruit and do not like to be wet. That is one of the reasons we grow the plants on raised plastic covered beds. If you happen to pull a berry you don't like, just throw it on the ground and go for another berry. We have more rain in the forecast tomorrow night - oh well, we will see how it goes. The Ranunculus field looks pretty good, those are a beautiful flower. the we just love. We are hoping to have Ranunculus blooms through mid April. We'll see. Raelynn has the Grille/Concession stand open. on weekends now. Believe it or not she has been making Farm Fresh Donuts. Yep, Donuts. They sure are good, you might want to try one. I am a little concerned about Berry supply for Easter weekend I will definitely be updating here as we get closer to next weekend. Remember: Open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays. We hope to see you soon! 
Friday evening 3/22 --- It was a glooooorius day! Wow, and tomorrow might be just as good! The sunshine and wind today went a long way in drying out the grounds. The main areas of the farm are nice and dry but there are still spots out in the Strawberry fields to watch for. Your shoes might get wet in the grassy fields while they might get a little muddy in the field with no grass between the rows. Either way, just bring some old shoes and you have nothing to worry about.
The Ranunculus field looks very nice! Those flowers are beautiful and only 75 cents per bloom. The Strawberry fields are loaded. A word of caution though, we have some berries that have succumbed to all the rain we have had lately. They look good on the top but are soft on the bottom. Just toss that berry on the ground (not back under the plant) if you get one that you don't like. There are plenty of good ones left to choose from. Every person that picked today had all the berries they wanted, that should continue through tomorrow as well. Its going to be a great day if you can make it out, we hope to see you soon!. 
Thursday evening 3/21 --- It was dry all day until 30 minutes ago when we received .27 inches pretty fast. A hard rain washes the berries off better so they should be nice and clean tomorrow. The skies had already cleared by the time I came in the office and the radar shows the line of storms heading East. With a forecast of sunny and 75 tomorrow it will be a great day and weekend with lots of berries to pick and fun to be had.! 3 of the 4 fields have grass between the rows. The grass is sure to be wet but folks should be able to avoid mud this weekend. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening 3/20 --- Happy first day of Spring. It's cooler now than it was two weeks ago., go figure. The Fields have more Strawberries in them than you can shake a stick at. - wow! The only problem folks will have picking now is ..... stopping I will give you 4 or 5 boxes but just remember, each box holds about $26 worth, $29 heaping up.. Now is the time to pick for jam because you can pick so many so fast. You would be surprised at how much good will you can get out of a gift of a few Strawberries or Homemade Strawberry jam. Not only are the Strawberry fields full but the Ranunculus field is blooming well too. We had some root rot issues and lost a portion of the Ranunculus field. The remaining plants are trying to make up the difference! They are a beautiful flower and ready to be picked. They are 75 cents per bloom. We have rain in the forecast sometime tomorrow., I think later in the day Be sure to check the radar before coming out.. The Farm is open rain or shine so we will be here. As you can say in the picture we have three fields with grass between the rows. In the event of rain those fields are not muddy but your shoes will probably still get. Hope to see you soon! Tuesday morning 3/19 ---- I tell you the fields are just about to turn red with ripe Strawberries. We have eight more miles of row that look just like this. This picture was taken an hour ago, not doctored, not enhanced - exactly what you will find when you come out to the farm. The Farm is closed all Wednesdays so the picking should be spectacular Thursday through Saturday for sure. My inclination is to say Sunday will be just as good but we better wait until Saturday night to make that determination. Hope to see you soon! Sunday evening ---Of course it would rain when the chances went down. 3 tenths for us today. Shouldn't affect the Farm too much tomorrow, only make the grass wet to walk on. Berry production is picking up, picking pressure is going down so ...... tomorrow should be pretty good picking but later the coming week will be amazing picking. Either way, we will be here with smiles on are faces and happy that you made it out to the farm. Hope to see you soon! Sunday morning 3/17 ---- only a little shower of rain last night, just enough to settle any remaining dust. Our forecast is "Mostly cloudy with a high near 67. Chance of precipitation is 40%.". The Farm opens up at one on Sundays and it looks like there are going to be ripe berries to pick today. Come see us. Saturday evening 3/16 --- So far we have fallen in the 20% chance of staying dry today. We had some heavy drizzle this morning and by mid afternoon the weather was improving. We still have a strong chance of rain tonight and 50% tomorrow. If it does rain, we will pick in the fields with grassy walkways so your shoes will get wet but not muddy. The Farm will be open rain or shine. The threat of rain kept quite a few folks away today so tomorrow will be pretty good picking, Monday better picking, Tuesday very good and Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning of next week will be phenomenal. Barring any disasters, I can't see us picked out again until maybe late Easter weekend. Open 1 to 5 on Sundays. Hope to see you soon! Friday evening 3/15 ---- 70% chance of rain also means there is a 30% it won't. We fell into the 30% category today. So far, no rain here. Our forecast has changed to 80% after 1pm tomorrow. Regardless, check the radar before you head our way. The Farm is open rain or shine so we will be here with smiling faces. Today was busier than I expected, so tomorrows picking will only be decent not good. There is always some berries in the field, the question is how long and hard do you want to look for them. In great picking, it takes ten minutes to fill a 5# box, tomorrow at 8:30am - 20 minutes, at 10:30am - 45 minutes, by noon - one hour and you have to move the leaves. We have over 11 miles of Strawberry beds, the Berries are out there, finding them is the hard part. This has been a much busier than normal week because of Spring Break. With production picking up and picking pressure going down, I would expect starting Thursday of next week there will be an abundance of ripe Strawberries in the field at all times. Hope to see you soon! Thursday evening 3/14 --- What a great day full of smiling faces! You guys are the best! Tomorrow - NOAA says we have an 80% chance of rain. We will be here in full force with happy smiling faces. I don't expect it to rain continuously all day so maybe we can get some berries picked between showers. The fields with grass between the rows will definitely be preferred if it rains. Berry supply tomorrow will be on the low side but if the threat of rain keeps folks away it will improve drastically as the day goes by. If you have a choice, I might choose Saturday morning over Friday.. Rain chances go down a bit on Sunday. Sundays picking has the potential to be fantastic if rain chances deter pickers Friday and Saturday. Production will be picking up so I expect to be loaded with berries next week. We will be here tomorrow rain or shine but make sure you take a look at the radar before heading this way. Wednesday evening 3/13 ---- An 82 degree day of rest is exactly what the Strawberry fields needed. Tomorrow will by far be the best picking of the week. My mother likes the berries super ripe while I like them just turning ripe - tomorrow will be my kind of day. Our current forecast is a slight chance of showers in the morning and then a 30% chance after 1pm and an 80% chance sometime on Friday. 3 of the 4 fields have grass between the rows which, the last time it rained, kept pickers feet mostly mud free. It looks like we might test that again this weekend. I'm sure the threat of rain will keep some people away so I am expecting decent picking progressing to great picking progressing to jam picking by next Tuesday, Thursday for sure. Get your supplies ready Jam makers, late next week should be phenomenal. I had an elderly lady tell me once that if it starts to hail and you can hit a hail stone in the air with a cast iron skillet that it would stop. Well! We have a very small chance of the H word this weekend so ......... everyone get their cast iron skillet out. All the activities will be going strong tomorrow minus Farm Fresh Donuts. Hope to see you soon! Monday evening 3/11 ---- The days and customers continue to be amazing! Can it get better than this? Well, Yes. We need the green berries out in the fields to ripen! Tomorrow will be a tad better picking than today, which wasn't very good). Thursday and Friday are the days you need to plan for as I expect the picking to be much better. Folks will have fun tomorrow enjoying a beautiful day but don't come to pick a lot of berries. . We will be here with smiles, freshly made Ice Cream, pony rides, sand art, paint a pot, a barrel train, berry bounce, hungry goats and some Strawberries.. Hope to see you soon. Sunday evening 3/10 ---- Another marvelous day with the best customers ever! When you have lost faith in humanity, just come out to the farm. Thank You folks, you lift our spirits. The Strawberry fields need a day or two to recover from the weekend. The next best picking will be Thursday and beyond of the coming week.. Don't come tomorrow to load up on berries. Of the coming week, tomorrow will be the worst picking, Tuesday a tad better, Thursday and Friday pretty good picking. It is a little early to tell but I feel like next Saturday will be great picking, check back here just to make sure before coming. I feel like we are within a week or two of the point where we are swimming in berries, jam makers get ready. We will be here with smiles, freshly made Ice Cream, pony rides, sand art, paint a pot, a barrel train, berry bounce, hungry goats, some Strawberries and even freshly made donuts tomorrow. Hope to see you soon. Saturday evening 3/9 --- The day started cold and windy but the sun came out late afternoon and made for a beautiful ending of the day. Tomorrow could be another cool day with a high of 64. Up until about noon everyone was coming out of the fields with overflowing boxes of big red beautiful berries. As the day went on the boxes became less full and a little less ripe. Normally several hundred pounds would ripen overnight but with this cold spell (do you think it will freeze tonight? I think it will be close and I didn't put out any covers on the plants - yikes!) I just can't see that many turning. We will have some berries to pick tomorrow but I suggest giving them a day or two to ripen. so they are nice and thick when you get here. 3/8 Friday evening --- How much rain did you get? We had 7 tenths in a very short period of time early this morning. Just perfect! The clouds cleared by mid morning and it turned out to be a gorgeous day. Tomorrows forecast call for Sunny skies, high 61 with breezy winds. So better wear a jacket. We have Strawberries for picking tomorrow! I think plenty for all day but the earlier you come out the better, Production is picking up quickly so I expect to have berries Sunday but check here tomorrow night just to be sure. Three of the fields have grassy middles. so they are not muddy but you might still encounter some standing water in places. The bare field is drying out quickly with this wind. There will be some mud in that field. Either way, throw on a pair of old shoes and away you go! The remainder of the farm is in great shape and just waiting for you. Tulips are finished, Ranunculus are almost ready - just Strawberries, Activities and hungry goats for now. Lacy is making fresh Strawberry Lemonade tomorrow and Raelynn has the Grille open. so it should be a great weekend. Hope to see you soon!. 
3/7/24 Thursday evening ---- Strawberries! We have Strawberries to pick! This picture was taken 2 hours ago.. You can see Berries in all stages, flowers a month away to berries ready to pick now. I don't have a problem saying we should have plenty of berries through Saturday. Check the Fresh News before coming Sunday. The fields are big enough and the weather warm enough that when production gets to this stage hundreds of pounds will ripen almost daily. hopefully all the way through April. We have some rain in the forecast for tonight. If it does rain we are going to test our grass experiment. The field in the picture does not have grass growing between rows and will become muddy after a rain. Three of the fields have thick grass growing in the pathways, hopefully eliminating the mud issue. I hope we are about to find out. The Tulip season is over. It was short and fun. As always we learned a lot and hopefully next year will be even better. Thank You! to you wonderful folks that came our way for Tulips. Tuesday March 5th -- Tulips are just about over, but don't give up on them yet! We have 2 rows that should be pretty by Thursday and in full bloom by Friday. Not much for pictures, but a beautiful pale pink bouquet. Since the field is on its way out, we will be offering no entry fee to the tulip field. Tulips will still be $2 each. Strawberries: They are coming soon! We have a few berries few and far between, but we don't recommend making the drive for them just yet as picking will be very difficult. We will have paint-a-pot, barrel train, berry bounce, sand art, and goats to feed and pet. I just found out that the girls plan to have the world's best strawberry lemonade on Saturday!!! It's a very special treat and I get the very first glass of the day, every day we have it. It's a little thing I like to call 'quality control'.
March 3rd Sunday Evening -- Good Evening! We will be open Monday and Tuesday, but we really don't have anything to pick. All of the colorful tulips were picked this afternoon. Fear not, Tulip season isn't over just yet, because we have one more variety that we predict will be blooming Thursday! One thing is for sure, we will have smiles and homemade ice cream, pony rides, sand art, paint a pot, a barrel train, berry bounce, and hungry goats on the farm. Stay tuned on strawberries they are coming, but they aren't here just yet. March 2nd Saturday evening --- Another glorious day! Wow! A lot of folks came out for Tulips and farm fun today and we enjoyed every one of you. So many that I would say tomorrow will be about Farm fun with only a few Tulips to pick. We strongly feel that if someone is going to take the time to visit us, we want them to be satisfied when they leave. Therefore, even though we have some Tulips in the field I don't recommend coming just for them. You never know when the person that came just before you cleaned out the field. We will be here with smiles and freshly made Ice Cream, pony rides, sand art, paint a pot, a barrel train, berry bounce, hungry goats and a very few Tulips ................... and maybe even another sweet surprise while they last :).
3/1/24 Friday evening ---- Here is the scoop concerning tomorrow - there will be nice Tulip picking in the morning, morning, morning. It is very hard to gauge customer flow, so all I can say is there will be nice Tulips in the morning for picking. Tulip pictures, lets be honest - with only about 8000 blooms in the field right now, it is hard to get a really good full Tulip picture. Close ups are not too hard but anything panning out is tough. The remainder of the farm , with the exception of Strawberries, is open and Pony rides will be available. Saturday and Sunday. It looks like it will be a fantastic day to be at the farm, bring a picnic lunch and a ball for the kids to kick. Just come enjoy the day with us, The Strawberries are getting closer! Production will start slow and quickly ramp up. We are super conscious about making sure there are berries available for pickers so we try not to over advertise We will announce any picking here on the Fresh News first then as we need more customers we will put it on the front page, then on and on. I expect to announce something here ......... very soon: ). 2/29 - Thursday evening --- a cloudy cool day is exactly what the Tulips wanted. Not a whole lot of customers today so there are a good supply of Tulips for cutting tomorrow. I didn't want to take any chances so we covered up most of the Strawberries today. If the current cloud cover breaks then the temperature is going to drop like a rock. I don't think it will freeze but like I said - lets don't take the chance. 2/28/24 Wednesday evening --- It is a weather roller coaster! Sweating yesterday, cold today. The brisk North wind today made for a chilly day. The Tulips LOVE it! The Tulip field has made a recovery from the weekend and new blooms are up and ready to be picked. Tomorrow will have a lot of blooms available. Since customer flow is hard to predict we will just have to update daily concerning the next days availability. Tulip flowers like it cold so these cloudy cool days are great to make for tight beautiful blooms. When temperatures heat up the petals begin to flare out and are not as pretty in my opinion. Everyone, including me, are anxiously awaiting Strawberries. Soon! I expect to be harvesting berries by the end of next week. In the meantime lets analyze the picture below that was taken yesterday. starting at the top and working down. First - grass. This year we planted grass between the rows in 4 of the 6 fields. Some of the Pros and Cons: Pro: It should provide a much less muddy field during rain events, it should help prevent additional weeds from germinating, provide some organic matter to the soil and help with erosion. Cons: it is a bit unsightly, most customers are afraid of a single weed, I'm not sure how they will react to a path of tallish grass. Until it gets trampled, it requires a bit more effort walking. And lastly it does harbor insects. We will have clean and grassy fields for pickers to choose from. At the base of the grass you there is a small Strawberry plant that originated from a 'runner' off the larger plants. There is also one of these runner plantlets left/bottom/center of the picture. You can see these runners toward the left side, middle of the picture crossing the plastic just under some fruiting structures. (tube like strings reddish in color). They need to be removed because they detract from the mother plant, don't have a use in our production system and create more foliage decreasing air flow around the mother plant. We are working to remove these runners as we speak. As we travel down the picture you will notice some leaves with red margins This can be caused by many factors but in our case I believe there are two reasons: First, the older leaves will naturally reallocate nutrients to young leaves as they die. Second, I believe we are a little short on Potassium. We fertilize our plants weekly by injecting nutrients into the irrigation water. The good thing is you don't see this problem on the new leaves in the middle of the plant. Now lets come to the beautiful white blooms. They seem to be on strong stems pushing them out of the leaf canopy. The larger and stronger the stem equates to a larger berry. The Petals are a vibrant white and are mostly overlapping. A Boron deficient plant would have petals spaced apart (there is one bloom on the right bottom of the center plant that looks like this). As you know, the center of the bloom is the developing berry. On Strawberries, it is approximately 30 days from blooming to harvestable fruit so these new blooms represent the end of March berries. Perfect for Easter. You don't see a bee in this picture, Strawberry blooms are mostly self fertile with just a little wind movement and do not require bees. There are some studies which suggest Bee pollination produces a larger berry so Bees are good but not critical. The fields are white with blooms, perhaps more that I have seen in a long while so we will be going wide open for Easter and the first part of April. Our task at hand is to make sure these blooms do not freeze. To the left and below the white blooms are developing berries of various stages. I think most of those on the left side of the open bloom are 3 weeks out whereas the one on the bottom center of the plant is a little over two weeks away from ripe. The Calyx, or green leaf structures immediately surrounding the berry appear to be healthy and disease free This is a good sign. The two major nemesis's of Strawberries are Gray Mold and Anthracnose. Often you will see the Calyx attacked first and dead brown sepals (the structures that make up the conglomerate Calyx) in times of infections. The goal is bright green healthy calyx's. Overall I am happy with this picture. The leaves are a little on the small side and we have more than desired dead leaf matter on the bottom of the plants from vigorous growth last Fall. We want nice clean plants open and available for air movement in order to prevent diseases. One reason for the black plastic is to aid in the prevention of berry diseases by keeping the berry off the dirt. 
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2/25/24 Sunday evening --- What a great ...... summer? day. it was 90 degrees at the farm today! And tomorrows forecast is even warmer! Well, I guess this is better than being record lows.
It was a great and beautiful weekend. Lots of folks came out for Tulip picking. Normally Monday and Tuesdays are pretty slow which will be good because the field needs a little time to generate some more blooms. We would love to have you out the next few days but I would recommend waiting to at least Thursday.
A few folks were disappointed we didn't have Strawberries to pick yet, ......... don't be discouraged, they are coming fast! I believe it won't be long until we start picking slowly and then production will quickly ramp up. It is a guess at this moment --- Spring Break week starts March 9 and we should have some berries to pick but I think later that week and beyond will be even better picking. Judging by the blooms on the plants now, the fields should be bursting with berries by the end of March just in time for Easter.
It was a great and beautiful weekend. Lots of folks came out for Tulip picking. Normally Monday and Tuesdays are pretty slow which will be good because the field needs a little time to generate some more blooms. We would love to have you out the next few days but I would recommend waiting to at least Thursday.
A few folks were disappointed we didn't have Strawberries to pick yet, ......... don't be discouraged, they are coming fast! I believe it won't be long until we start picking slowly and then production will quickly ramp up. It is a guess at this moment --- Spring Break week starts March 9 and we should have some berries to pick but I think later that week and beyond will be even better picking. Judging by the blooms on the plants now, the fields should be bursting with berries by the end of March just in time for Easter.
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Sunday Morning February 25 - What a nice day it is today and a great day yesterday! There are tulips out in the field today, but the majority of the tulips will be buds. Today is going to be a great day for picking tulips with the best vase life, but not the best day to get a photo amongst thousands of tulips. How to pick a tulip that will have the longest vase life? Pick a bud with COLOR at the tip. Don't pick it if the tulip bud is GREEN. Farming is the world's best lesson on patience. Give the tulips a couple of days to bloom out and the field will be ready for pictures again soon! Today we will also have the PONY RIDES! Woo-hoo! We're excited to have them back on the farm. Per usual, we have the barrel train, berry bounce, goats to feed and pet, sand art, and paint-a-pot going on today. Don't forget to try the our famous popsicles! Made from our strawberries, they are sooo delicious!
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Friday February 23 -- We've got reds, we've got yellows, we've got pinks, we've got oranges! You know what else we got? Lots of farm friendly fun! We have the barrel train, berry bounce, goats to feed and pet, sand art, and paint-a-pot going on at this time of year too.
The tulips are really blooming now! This heat has really turned them on. The faster you get here the better! Come back here for updates concerning next weekend! Hope to have you out on the farm soon! |
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Thursday February 22 - IT'S TULIP TIME!
Fasten your seatbelts and hold on tight this heat is really making these tulips bloom fast! Remember how I said Tuesday it wasn't peak season? Well peak season will be here Friday or Saturday with these temps. The time is now if you'd like to come and pick tulips!!! I can't stress that enough! What to expect: $5 entry fee per person (ages 2 and under free) $2 per tulip. There is no pressure to actually pick any tulips, we just ask that you pay for any tulips picked. All photos posted here and on Facebook are current conditions at the farm. So if you are wondering what the field looks like, this is it. Other Activities at the Farm: Barrel Train, Berry Bounce, Paint-a-Pot, Goat Feeding, and Sand Art! Don't forget to grab a homemade ice cream or popsicle to enjoy with your hard work picking! Strawberries are around the corner but not ready yet! This year doesn't look like strawberries and tulips will overlap. See you soon! |
Tuesday February 20 - Thursday marks the beginning of Tulip season! That being said, it is not peak bloom. We have pale pink flowers and pale orange flowers available for picking as of now with lots more blooms popping up every day! Tulip season is notorious for being here one day and gone the next, so be sure to check here often! Even with only 2 varieties blooming at the moment, you are sure to get great photos and great flowers to take home! Just a reminder that we do not have strawberries for picking at this time, just tulips for now! We will have the berry bounce, sand art, paint a pot, goat feeding, and barrel train open Thursday too! See y'all on the farm soon!
Monday February 19 --- Now it is time to roll up the covers we put down last Friday. It sure enough did freeze yesterday, 28.2 degrees, so we are happy they were deployed. It looks like the remainder of this week will be absent of freezing weather so the covers will be rolled up and put in the barn for later. This is a picture of Granny rolling up the covers in the past. If only we had an army of Grannies ...... who knows what we could accomplish!
The high temperatures in the forecast for this week will certainly push the Tulips and Strawberry plants.
The Farm will open up Thursday for Tulip picking. It is very hard to gauge customer flow so look for updates here often as we open up and get started.
The high temperatures in the forecast for this week will certainly push the Tulips and Strawberry plants.
The Farm will open up Thursday for Tulip picking. It is very hard to gauge customer flow so look for updates here often as we open up and get started.
Thursday February 15 --- It's cover time. The Farm is located in a low spot compared to surrounding terrain. Since cold air sinks, we have to be careful with temperature forecasts. Temperatures might be 8 degrees or more colder than the forecast, especially on clear nights where there are no clouds to act like a blanket. Normally I watch the forecast for Llano, Mason and Fredericksburg - pick the coldest and shave off a couple of degrees depending on cloud cover and dew point when making a decision on whether or not to put out covers. Rain and weekends complicate the decision and sometimes we get caught. A few days ago was a prime example. Last Thursday a freeze was predicted for this past Monday night so we were planning on putting out covers this past Monday. Almost an inch of rain last Saturday put the fields in a very wet condition so when the forecast raised to 35 for Monday night I decided not to put out covers. Sure enough the low Tuesday morning was 29.3. Luckily not for very long and the damage was minimal. We will not take the chance for this Saturday night. It takes 1.5 days to cover the 8 acres of Strawberries so today is the day to get a jump on them. The blankets will provide 5 to 10 degrees of protection depending on weather conditions. Light intensity is greatly reduced under the covers and they can really heat up in the sun so it is best not to leave the covers on for a extended period. We should start pulling them back off on Monday.
Tulips are pretty close!!! We are pretty sure there will be a good supply of blooms to harvest next Thursday so that is when we plan to open the Farm up for the 2024 season!!!!
Monday February 12 ---- Getting closer! The Tulips are going to be first up this Spring. It is as frustrating to us as it is to you that we don't know exactly when we will be able to open up. The weather plays such an important role in the growth of the plants that it is impossible to predict when they are going to bloom. We can say that we see flower buds forming in the base of the plant which would leave us to believe we are within two weeks of harvesting Tulips. A cold spell will delay that estimate as much as a warm spell will hasten it. Tulips like cold weather so it would have to stay in the 20's or 30's to slow them down. They do not like warm weather, so 70s and above will cause them to bolt. As mentioned before, we believe the Tulip season is going to be short so be ready to jump when they start blooming. We believe that planning a trip toward the latter part of this month would be pretty reliable.
The Strawberry harvest is a bit easier to predict because it is about 30 days from a bloom to the ripe fruit. I doubt it would be warm enough to shorten that time but a cold spell of 40/50s for highs would add a couple of days. We saw some viable blooms begin to emerge at the beginning of this month and a pretty good supply of them currently. We predict opening for Strawberry harvest around March 10 or a few days before. We are super conscious of making sure we have ample supply for everyone to harvest so even though we might be picking a few berries, we won't throw the gates open until we have a lot. In some years we will only advertise on the Fresh News that we are open to allow the faithful followers the first chance. As supply increases we will be more public in the announcement.
Thursday February 8, 2024 ---- I just wrote a long explanation of happenings on the farm and lost it all when I went to publish! LOL Since it takes me so long to write anything I will just give you the abbreviated version for now.
Tulips are coming fast! We hope to be picking flowers later this month. Raelynn thinks the season is going to be short and concentrated. Tulip lovers should be ready to jump when we put the word out but we think the last week of February and first week of March.
The Strawberry plants look very good and are starting to put out some blooms. We should be harvesting fruit by the tenth of March.
Ranunculus flowers will be close behind the Tulips and Strawberries. Their season is a little longer so plan on picking them mid March through April.
Lacy has been busy making Ice Cream/Popsicles and Jam. She says a fresh supply will be ready when we open up for these tasty treats.
Friday January 26, 2024 ---It sure has been a wet start to 2024. Somehow we were able to get the Tulips in the ground, the Ranuculus growing and the Strawberry plants looking pretty good. Two weeks ago the temperatures got into the mid teens and below freezing for several days. We had all the frost covers we had deployed in hopes they would mitigate the temperatures. We think they did and on the whole the farm looks unscathed, with just some minor damage.
Tulip bulbs were a little harder to come by for us this year so we only ended up planting 30,000. With the smaller number of bulbs we took a little more time to individually plant each one in hopes for a stronger stand. Our cost per flower dramatically increases if only 1 out of 3 end up with a viable flower and then if we have any damage by customers the cost increases even more. Couple this with one flower per bulb *one and done* and you end up with an expensive flower. But ................ if you love Tulips, it is worth it - it is hard to put a price on something that makes you happy. We hope to be harvesting Tulips in the first part of March.
The Strawberry plants are in very good shape for this time of year. We hope the plants will start becoming a little active and if we can protect the blooms ----- maybe we will have fruit to pick by Mid March.
Wednesday December 13 -- there will not be any picking for the rest of the winter. The good news is that it did not get cold enough to dole out any damage to the strawberry plants! So we will be looking forward to Strawberries in the Spring! We will keep you updated here and there throughout the winter, but we are wishing everyone a very happy, jolly, merry holiday season! Enjoy and see y'all at the farm real soon!
Monday December 11 --- Woo hoo hoo! It got a lot colder last night than was forecast! A bit of a strawberry lesson for y'all..... During this time it is important to distinguish PLANTS from BLOOMS from FRUIT. Strawberry PLANTS can withstand temperatures in the teens. Strawberry BLOOMS cannot survive below 32 degrees. Strawberry FRUIT can survive down to about 26 degrees. Now lets apply what we just learned... The temperature last night got down to 26 degrees.
Friday December 8 — A big thank you to all our pickers yesterday and today! Y’all were able to pretty much clean the field out! We are so thankful for y’all! We will be CLOSED tomorrow (Saturday) thru Wednesday and will pop open again next Thursday and Friday (12/14 & 12/15) for picking regardless of weather! Stay tuned! We’ll be throwing out weather and berry updates early next week! See you out on the farm real soon!
Thursday December 7 --- Man alive! We had some amazing strawberries leave the farm today! Lots of folks with full baskets and full hearts! I picked a berry this afternoon that was so big I had to eat it in 3 bites!! There are still plenty in the field for tomorrow. I anticipate that the morning pickers will go away with the most berries and the afternoon pickers will have to walk to the far end of the rows to fill their basket.
We are waiting to see what tomorrow's crowd brings along with the weather forecast to determine if we will be able to have another pop-up event soon. Check back tomorrow evening if you are wanting some more info on another pop-up event. We are so excited to have some fruit for y'all and can't wait to see you tomorrow!
Wednesday November 29 ---- We hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving as we now turn our attention to Christmas Wouldn't some fresh Christmas Strawberries be great? Well, the lack of freezing weather has let the Strawberry plants put on some fruit. While we did pick some berries last weekend, we won't have another batch to pick until next Thursday and Friday because the berries ripen very slowly in the cooler weather. Currently the Farm is closed but we will be have a special opening for Strawberry picking December 7 and 8. It is hard to tell for sure but I think the picking will be pretty good, especially on Thursday. The berries I have ate sure were tasty! and big too! Next week we will take a look at the weather and determine what the following week will bring.
Ranunculus ---- we have been hard at work on the Ranunculus flower patch. We mowed down the 7 foot tall Candy Corn Maze, tilled all the stubble into the ground, plowed the field over and over, built beds, laid irrigation and are now planting the corms. So far we have about 22,000 planted with just another 5000 to go. Things like this make farming fun. Farming annual crops is fun because we can make changes every year and always have the ability to improve. We did a little better job building the beds this year and a few changes to the layout will be nice. The beginning stages are great because the field looks like a cute little puppy that has not had time to grow up and get all weedy. When planting the corms, I personally have visions of a beautiful solid field of flowers ----- sometimes it works that way but often there is always one or two spots that doesn't grow well or has issues of some kind. I am sure this is the year 100% of the plants will come up and all will be a robust plant full of blooms.
I suppose the next project will be taking down and storing all the Fall items including the over 300 Scarecrows out on the Hayride. I guarantee we will be moving at a slower pace getting it done.
Hope to see you nest week!
Tuesday November 21 ----- Happy Holidays!!!! Can you believe those Flowers are still producing beautiful blooms! Well, they are! Maybe it was the sunlight but today they seemed extra vibrant. Only once this Fall have the temperatures been close to freezing so here we are in the end of November with beautiful blooming Zinnias ....... and a few almost ripe Strawberries!
CLOSED Thursday for Thanksgiving, open Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoon for flower picking, the Mazes, Hayrides, Sandart, Pumpkin Painting the Berry Bounce and lots of Fall fun.
Friday November 17 — Still going! The Farm is open on weekends now to enjoy this great Fallish weather. The Flower field continues to impress, the Texas and Barnyard Mazes are still standing, the Hayride and Barrel train are running and the Bounces are bouncing. Open tomorrow and Sunday this week, Friday through Sunday next week (closed Thanksgiving). There are no crowds, now is the time to enjoy a relaxing outing to the farm. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 11/5 ---- Another gorgeous day filled with wonderful people! I don't know if it can get any better. Now we switch gears just a bit. The remainder of November the Farm will be closed Monday through Wednesday - Open Thursday through Sunday.. We still have flowers to pick, Mazes to walk, Pumpkins to Paint, Necklaces to fill with colored sand, pillows to jump on, hayride trailers to ride, a barrel train and hungry goats to feed Thursday through Sunday.. These November weekends can be pretty nice, normally the temperatures are a little more Fall like and the crowds are greatly diminished. If you like to enjoy the farm in a slow leisurely way, November is the time to come.
And ........ if the weather cooperates there is a chance that we will have Strawberries to pick later in the month. Last week the temperatures went down to 31 for an hour or so. We had a lot of things covered but luckily everything is ok, even the uncovered stuff. The plants we planted in the first of October have taken off and are producing blooms now. If we can keep them from freezing, we will have berries late this month and early December.. We have some plants about to bear fruit and 30,000 still to plant! Hopefully we will get the remaining plants in the ground this week - later that desired but better than never.
It is a great time to come to the farm, hope to see you Thursday!
Friday 11/3 -- This is going to be a great weekend! Great weather, small crowds, and big smiles! All activities will be open this weekend including pony rides and flower picking. Our pumpkin supply is limited, so grab them while you can. We will be open our regular hours for the weekend, and will go to reduced hours next week. Meaning closed Monday-Wednesday and Open Thrus - Sun. We only had a slight freeze and not for long so flowers and strawberries came out mostly unscathed and are looking good! Can't wait to see you soon!
Tuesday morning 10/31 ---- The sun is out and it looks like it is going to be a fantastic day and rest of the week.. The recent rainfall has been wonderful for the parched grounds out here. Puddles are disappearing as we speak and most of the farm is already mud free. The far end of the flower field, a low spot in the Barnyard Maze and the tunnel still have some drying out to do. We will have the tunnel the goes between the tow sides of the Farm cleaned out by afternoon. It is very easy to tell that the trees/plants/grass/parking lot/dusty areas and just about everything out here loved the moisture.
After a brutal summer, the cooler temperatures have been fabulous. Is it going to freeze tonight? It looks like it will be close! The Strawberry plants have quite a few blooms on them that are subject to freezing temperatures. Normally we would just throw the covers on them but the recent rainfall has complicated things a bit. We don't want to drive a tractor through the wet field and we certainly don't want the covers laying in any residual puddles. The covers are 50 feet wide by 300 feet long and they are a bear to deal with when wet. Fortunately it is not raining so we are going to pull some covers into the field by hand and see if we can protect a few fields.
The flowers are super sensitive to freezing temperatures as well. We haven't ever covered the flowers for protection but I think we might try a portion of the field if we get time. Normally, objects touching the underside of the cover still gets frozen so I am not sure how much good it will do but, we are going to give it a try.
Anyway, I better stop writing and get to work! We are here today with smiling faces and the rest of the week (closed Wednesday). Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning 10/30 ---- Almost an inch of rain here on the Farm last night, it is still drizzling and the wind is cold - you might want to pump the brakes on your plans if you wanted to come out this morning.. Sand Art, Paint a Pumpkin, Stuff a Scarecrow, Scarecrow Island Hayride and the Sweet Berry Express Barrel Train will be running this morning. There will be flowers to pick but the field is sure to be muddy today. The Mazes will be closed most of the day. Once the rain subsides and the hay dries out some we will start cleaning up the wind/rain damage.
Lets hope the forecast for clearing skies this afternoon is accurate. Everyday is a good day, just different challenges. We were waiting for a cool down and here it is.
Sunday morning 8:55am --- No rain here at the farm so far. It is 73 degrees at the Farm right now, the forecast calls for it to fall to 51 by 5pm. I guess that means some time this afternoon the wind will shift around to the North and blow in some cold air and possibly some rain with it. The Farm will be open rain or shine and the grounds are currently in good shape. I don't think we will have to worry about mud today, only falling temperatures and actual showers. An umbrella might be a good idea for today. The Farm will stay open for a bit longer through November so if you don't want to chance it today, come later. Either way, we hope to see you soon!
Saturday morning 10/28 7:55am --- It is a beautiful sunrise here on the farm today. We did not get any rain last night and only a few spotty showers are in the forecast which should make today a great day to come out to the farm. The grounds are drying up nicely and folks should be able to have a mud free day. Hope to see you soon!
Friday evening 10/27 8:30pm ------ So far, it has not rained on the Farm today. The grounds are drying up nicely and even the flower field is looking better. I will post here in the morning if we get any rain overnight. The Farm will be open this weekend rain or shine and we will be here with smiling faces.
Friday 10/27 ---- A little wet here now but we are open with smiling faces. Todays forecast has some rain in it, especially after 1pm. Sand Art, Paint a Pumpkin and Stuff a scarecrow are under cover, everything else is open to the elements.. Some of the grass stalks in the Mazes will invariably lay down across the paths after a storm with high winds and rain at the same time. Yesterday we went through and cut those canes to clean up the pathways and were surprised that it wasn't that bad.
The grassy areas of the Farm are all easily passable but picking flowers will be a bit muddy. We will keep you updated here later today or tomorrow morning concerning the weekend.
Monday evening 10/23 ------- Only enough rain fell today to settle the dust. So far, all is good, come on out!
Saturday evening 10/21 --- Another great day! A bit of summer has returned but thankfully we had some cloud cover so it wasn't too bad. Tomorrow is supposed to be a couple of degrees cooler but still in the 80s (after this past summer can you believe I would say upper 80's was warm? I must be out of my mind)
Everything seems to be working pretty well. I do want to remind folks that the pumpkins the kids paint are yours to take home. There are a lot left on the drying racks every day but I am not sure if that is by accident or on purpose :).
The Flower field on the main farm side of the road (the side with the welcome barn and Berry Bounce) has the most amount of blooms in it. Pick there for Flower picking.
The Farm received a poor review about the absence of food options. I must say there is some truth to it. We do have a grille but currently we don't have much to offer but Pulled Pork Sandwiches, PBJ sandwiches, chips and water. We were all fired up about making fresh Donuts but .... the Donut machine broke after the first weekend and we are having trouble fixing it. Hopefully we will be able to offer, they were really good, Donuts in the future. The Grille has always been a struggle for us as we have found out we are Farmers, not Restaurateurs. We did also have some food trucks lined up but seems they found something better to do elsewhere. Anyway, we are working on it and someday we will have a better menu. For now, eat light with us (the sandwiches are pretty tasty) or feel free to bring a picnic lunch and enjoy one of the 50 Tree covered Picnic tables.
A story that is only Funny after the fact: We are running 7 to 8 tractor pulled Hayrides. 'Hulk" is a big old John Deere tractor that has been reallocated to Hayride duty only. Last weekend a disconnected hydraulic hose made its way down to the side of the hot engine. A bit of old oil seemed out of the hose and when it ran onto the hot engine a big puff of smoke popped out. The driver immediately shut it down ------- in the worst possible spot on the Hayride route as there was no room for anyone to go around. I was three tractors behind , stopped my ride and ran up to assess the situation. Without knowing what the problem was I unloaded his riders and went to move the tractor out of the way --------- the battery was too weak to start it! Ugh! I ran (yes, I can still run - not well but luckily I don't think anyone saw me attempting to run) up and got the spare tractor "Fireball" which is a old Massey Ferguson 65. I threw it in high gear and rushed around to the Hulk (which is much bigger and heavier). Like the little engine that could, ole Fireball spun and sputtered and pulled ole Hulk up the hill where we had to readjust the tractor and straps to turn Hulk in order to move to a spot off the road. After the re hook up I grabbed a higher gear and took off on Fireball proud of the job it was doing. About 50 yards down the route I pulled over to deposit Hulk and go back for his passengers only to look around and see that the strap had come loose and the guys frantically waving for me to come back because Hulk was still where we started LOL We did eventually get Hulk out of the way but it took awhile for us to catch back up. As I said before, our customers are the greatest and they seemed to take it in stride. I am sure all you John Deere fans will be chagrinned to hear that from now on we will follow those green tractors with an orange one (kubota) so we can push it out of the way when they break, ha. And ..... we made up some free popsicle coupons for the riders of any future breakdowns (don't go sabotaging the tractors to get a free popsicle). OH, and wouldn't you know it, when I went back at the end of the day to pull Hulk up to the barn ------- it started right up and we drove it back!
Strawberry plants are still being planted. We ran into a little snafu with this last shipment so it is taking a little longer than we would like but I am confident everything will work out for the better. The first 85,000 planted are establishing themselves very well and I have even seen a few blooms! The last two years we have been able to pick some berries around Thanksgiving before winter set in. Thanksgiving might be a bit of a push this year but don't rule out some early December berries - it all depends on the weather. If we can go a few more weeks without a freeze we might just try to protect them to ensure that happens.
It has been a great season so far and we still have more to go! Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 10/15 --- Wow, God really put on a show this weekend with the weather - it was delightful. It was a great weekend and we still have a few weeks to go if you haven't been able to join us. The temperatures should be outstanding the next few days - with a reduced crowd during the week there is nothing to hold anyone back.
We have three Mazes: Easy- Barnyard and Candy Corn (about 15 minutes each) and hard, Texas. (about an hour). The objective of the Candy Corn Maze is to run in, find the Candy Corn bell, ring it and make your way out. In the Barnyard Maze folks get a gamecard with the pictures of our 'lost' animals. Run in, find the animals and come out. As mentioned, these two are fairly easy and directed more to kiddos but plenty of Adults go through them. The objective in "Texas" is to find 14 Texas cities. The Maze itself is planted in the shape of Texas, the cities to find are in the approximate same location as they exist in the State. All the pathways are connected so it is not a true Maze, it is more of a Labyrinth. Take a look at the map, get your bearings and head on in. Your prize? a free water upon exit.
Another 65,000 Strawberry plants should arrive tomorrow. We will get to planting as soon as possible this week. So far, the first 85,000 planted are looking pretty good. This is the time of the season we are full of hope about the crop outlook.
Everything's going great, hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening October 12 --------We are loving this weather. This morning was cloudy and it was wonderful, tomorrow is supposed to be the same! And the forecast for the weekend looks just right too! The grounds are a little dry but other than that, looking good!
From a distance the Flower field is not as vibrant as before last weekend. I picked a bouquet today and found a ton of beautiful flowers to choose from. The trick is to go to the far end of the field (just like when picking Strawberries) to find the good ones. Everyone seems like they start picking right up by the barn but not you, you are going to go down where the good ones are - right? Also, I see folks walking around with just a few flowers in their vase, don't be afraid to fill that thing up! Pick as many flowers as you can get into that vase. And cut the stems long. The longer you cut them the better it is for the plant and the stems reach all the way to the bottom of the vase. I cut long stems and strip away the bottom leaves. If like to fill the vase with water before going out into the field so the blooms get an immediate supply. If someone is with you, have them hold the vase while you cut the flowers.
I am pleased with how the Mazes are holding up. They are not in the best shape but certainly not in the worst. I am told an average time to find all the cities in Texas is about one hour. Industry and Goodrich seem to be giving pedestrians the hardest time.
It is a great time to come out to the farm, we hope you can make it!
Monday evening October 9 --- It was an amazing weekend, so many wonderful folks came out and enjoyed the Farm with us. We are going full steam now and loving these cooler temperatures. God is good and so are the smiling faces and happy kids we see out here., you folks make this job worth it.
Open tomorrow, then Closed Wednesday so we can do a little clean up and then back at it on Thursday. Weekdays are more relaxed , weekends get busier but the farm is big enough that everyone can spread out. Either way, we would love to see your smiling face.
Friday afternoon October 6 --- What a great day! I hope your day has been equally as good. And tomorrow should be even better with cooler temperatures (can you tell we are a little tired of summer temps?) in the ...... 70's! In just a few months we will be crying for warmer weather but for now, bring it on.
The Farm has dried out nicely (some rows in the Flower field are still slick) and all the activities seem to be going great. Some storm damage has been cleaned up in the Mazes, the dust has been settled and the grass is greening up - what a great time to visit the farm. The Farm is open for the holiday on Monday as well. If you can't make it out here this weekend - at least get out and enjoy this amazing weather.
Thursday afternoon, October 5 ---- Whew! what a job! The Mazes have been hedged and cleaned up from the storms last night and we are loving these cooler temperatures. The Farm has already dried out greatly, although the Flower field still has some mud to deal with. Tomorrow and this weekend will be a great time to come out and enjoy the "Harvest of Fall Fun", all the activities will be going full steam and Raelynn will be making fresh DONUTS Saturday and Sunday morning!
The Farm will be open Monday the 9th with all activities, even Pony Rides. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday morning October 5 ---- 8 tenths here, how much rain did you get? The freshly planted Strawberry plants will love that shower and so will the Farm grounds. I think it will soak in fairly quickly considering how dry we were. I am sure the Mazes will require a little touch up to fix any wind damage but all in all - it was just right! We are definitely going to appreciate the cooler temperatures in the forecast for the next few days!
The Farm is open today and the grounds are already drying out, We probably need a couple of hours to dry out and fix any wind damage. Tomorrow and this weekend should be fantastic.
Sunday evening October 1 --- Another great weekend!!! Even with the too warm afternoons people were having fun, God has blessed us with the absolute best patrons! It was good to have the Pony Rides back in place too.
85,000 Strawberry plants were delivered on Friday morning - about 40,000 have been put in the ground.. We hope to plant another 20,000 tomorrow and maybe finish before the rain that is predicted for Tuesday evening. That sure would make me happy as a rain after planting would do wonders in settling those plants in and getting them off on a good start. The plants look pretty good after the long trip from Canada. Can you imagine being taken off a refrigerated truck into our 95 degree heat and then planted on hot black plastic the following day? I am surprised they even live. I do believe the hot temperatures kick them into a vegetative reproductive mode which causes the growth of runners that we have to cut off later. Another 70,000 should be delivered the week after this one coming. That second order is running a little behind so we will have to hustle to get them in the ground as soon as possible.
We are super happy with the way the farm is looking and the how the events are running With a cool down in sight we can hardly contain ourselves. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening September 27 ---- October is almost here and I am ready! for a little cooler weather. Mornings are pretty nice but the afternoons are still getting warm, especially if there is no cloud cover. The Farm looks great and is in very good shape, The grounds are easily passable, no problems there ..... or anywhere here.
After the first weekend we have a better gauge of how long it takes to find all the cities in the Texas Maze - a little over an hour is the average. Of course, no one has to stay in that long.
Now is a great time to come out to the Farm while it is not busy, especially mornings. Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning September 25 ----- It was a great opening weekend! We are now open regular business hours meaning every day except Wednesday (closed all Wednesdays).
A tenth of an inch of rain last night and i am surprised it was that much because you can't hardly tell. In other words, the farm is in great shape and easily passable - there is no mud . We are looking forward to a great season, all we need is you! Hope to see you soon!
Friday night September 22 ---- Wahoo! tomorrow is opening day for the Fall season! The Farm is in pretty good shape and ready to receive visitors. The grounds have greened up from last weeks rain, the Flowers are blooming well, the Mazes have not had any damage from pedestrians yet, , the Scarecrows out on the Hayride are fresh, and the Pumpkins are nice, clean and big!.
It is getting warm in the afternoons. be prepared. We have water or you can bring your own water. Be careful if you are not used to being out in the heat, that Sun can be intense and sneak up on you before you know it. If you do come in the afternoon, we will happily wave at you with one hand while holding a bottle of water with the other.
Also, there will be no Pony rides or Pumpkin grille tomorrow and Sunday. Those two will start up Sept. 30.
All in all, we are very excited to kick off the season. It is going to be a great year if you can make it out.
Tuesday September 19 ---- It is a great week, just right to get ready for opening this Saturday. We are very excited about the upcoming "Harvest of Fall Fun". Last weeks rain total was almost 3.5 inches which has gone a long way in sprucing up the place just in time. The morning temperature have been wonderful of late, afternoons are starting to get a little warm. Hope to see you soon!
Friday September 15 ----- 1.56 inches of glorious rain has fallen on the Farm in the last few days. The place should green up nicely by opening the 23rd. So that means the countdown is on and the Farm Hands are frantically trying to get everything in place but that makes it fun!
The Scarecrow village is still growing with new scenes. The Hayride will be the same but different this year. Same beat up ole Tractors but a few new things to see on the route. If you haven't been on it before - the tractor pulled trailers peruse out through the woods where 350+ stuffed Scarecrows are placed in 'scenes'. Every year the village seems to grow and I hear there is a drive in theater now - wow! It is a truly unique ride that I think you will only find at our Farm.
The Mazes are hit and miss. Candy Corn Kid Maze looks great and should be a ton of fun. The Texas Maze looks pretty good. Yesterdays storm pushed some of the cane down in places but overall it is in good shape. The Barnyard kid Maze is good in some spots and average in others. It will still be fun for kids but adults might find it too easy.
Lots to do so I better get out of the office. It is going to be a great year, we hope that you all can make it!
Thursday August 24 ---- Sure is plenty hot here but we will just grin and bear it. I don't see any rain in the forecast so we put out some sprinklers to wet some of the Strawberry fields down enough for us to build beds. We sure don't like doing it that way because it is a lot of work and the sprinklers don't do near as good a job as God does. WE struggled through and have a good portion of the beds built, I would say about 8 of the 10 miles of beds needing to be built.
The girls and their crew have been busy getting Scarecrow village set up for the Hayride. Normally this is Grannies job but she is now in 'Coach Mode". I did hear her make a comment the other day that the girls are not talking to the scarecrows as they put them in their places, LOL. IF you are not familiar with our Hayride, let me explain. Upon loading up on the tractor pulled Hayride trailer, folks are carried down a trail that peruses through many different Scarecrow scenes. There is the Clubhouse, the Indian Village, Crowville, The Parade, Beauty Pageant, Wash day, Super Heroes and many many more. I don't know what the count is now but I think there are well over 300 Scarecrows on the ride. I have heard that a drive in theater has been added this year.
The calendar says Fall is coming, I hope you all can join us soon! Opening September 23rd.
Monday August 14 It is a bit HOT and DRY here, you would think it is summer! I believe hotter than you know what is the new normal. Oh well, its all good because Fall is right around the corner. I think I can feel a change in the weather in the mornings and evenings..
No rest for the weary around here. Even though the Farm has been closed to the public, lots of work has been going on. The Zinnias have been planted (about 45,000), and somehow are living through this heat. The Mazes have growing and paths cut. I am still trying to do a better job with uniformity but it looks like this year will be another with no rain through the summer. We have sprinklers out but they don't do the job God does. The theme this year for Texas is "Riches across Texas". In other words folks will be looking for the Texas towns of Richland, Oilton, Crystal City, Mercedes, Ore City, Mineral Wells, Industry, Goodrich, Mercury, El Dorado, Pumpville, Goldsmith Silverton and La Isla (that one doesn't seem to fit:)).
Granny is teaching her granddaughters to put up and do the Scarecrows out on the Hayride route. For some reason she thinks she is going to get out of that job, She is only 86, I figure she is still good for another ten years. I hope you all are as blessed as I am to have a mother like her!
Believe it or not, Pumpkin season is right around the corner!!!
Monday 6/19 -- What a wonderful sunflower season it was! A wonderful spring on that note! We are now closed to the public so that we can focus on farming and preparing the farm for our highly anticipated 'Harvest of Fall Fun' a HUGE pumpkin festival hosted late September thru early November. We will have hayrides, 3 different mazes, scarecrow stuffing, bounce pillows, and more! We will miss y'all in these 3 months of preparation, and we will be glad to have y'all back on the farm really soon! Head over to the activities/cost tab to learn about our different seasons.
Thursday morning 6/15 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We are nearing the end of sunflower season, but there is still a spectacular display! Fair warning: You will have to walk at least 1 mile round trip to get to the good ones! Be sure to pack waters and take lots of breaks! Check out our Facebook page for up to date pictures! Only 4 days left to get those beautiful sunflowers!
Saturday Morning 6/10 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We got a summer shower last night? Not super common in an area accustomed to drought in the summer! Walking grounds are perfectly fine and so are the majority of the sunflower rows. It gets muddier towards the highway and on the house side on the lower rows of sunflowers. Sunflowers will be fading fast in next weeks high temps. We recommend coming sooner rather than later to get those amazing pictures and flowers for the house! It looks like the last day for sunflower picking will be June 18th! June 19th until late September the farm will be closed for summer.
Sunday Morning 6/3 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! The farm is in full bloom! Right now you'll get the most sunflowers blooming at the same time! This will only last about a week before we start seeing some dying off. Pro picking tips: bring your own bucket or vase to take your flowers home in. We provide a hydration solution and wrap your flowers up for you, but sometimes (especially if you take advantage of our awesome bulk pricing) you can go home with more than you can carry! #2 pull the sunflower leaves off the plant before you cut it! This will give you a great visual to see how long the stalk is before you cut it. #3- Cut your flowers longer than you think you'll need! You can always cut off extra, but can't regrow the stalk. It looks like the latest variety just started blooming... meaning... we have about two and a half to three weeks left of sunflower season. You don't want to miss it! After sunflower season the farm will close for the remainder of the summer to prepare for the fall season full of hayrides, mazes and more!
Thursday Afternoon 6/1 -- Hey there Future Farm Goers! Strawberries have finished but the sunflowers are putting on a show! We have most of the farm side blooming and about 1/2 of the house side blooming. If you've been waiting for peak bloom this is it!!! Next week we will be open "after hours" to have a unique opportunity to get pictures at sunset! June 8th and 9th open 7pm-9pm! The farm will be open regular hours, close at 5:30, and re-open at 7. No reservations! Just show up. Last entry at 8:30. Can't wait to have you out!
Sunday evening 5/28 ---- What a beautiful day on the farm full of smiling faces! Tomorrow is sure to be another great day with the exception of ......... the Strawberry plants are just about played out. Folks can still look but the picking is getting pretty slim for Strawberries. But what the Strawberry plants are not doing, the Sunflower plants are making up for. More and more blooms are popping out every day. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday Morning 5/28 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We now have not one, but TWO fields with blooming sunflowers! That's right, we are opening up the tunnel for access to what we call - The Jungle. Parking is still on the right side of the road. To access the second field you'll have to walk under the highway through the tunnel to get to our massive sunflowers. Right now they are about 8 ft tall and growing by the day! We have over 200,000 sunflowers planted over about 5 acres. We anticipate sunflower season lasting until late June or Early July. It really just depends on the weather. We have a measly $5 entry fee per person ages 2 and up at this time of year that applies to all visitors to the farm. Strawberries are still hanging around but you'll have to do some searching for them. Some folks go home with 1/2 a pound and some folks go home with 6 pounds, it really just depends on how much time you want to dedicate to strawberry picking. Fields are considerably dryer now with marginal mud spots. You will have to go through some mud in the tunnel. As always we recommend wearing shoes that you don't mind getting dirty to the farm and bringing a back up pair to go home in ... just in case. I know almost all the farm hands have extra shoes in their cars! We will have all farm activities going throughout the sunflower season! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! We are so excited to see all your beautiful photos at the farm!
Saturday Morning 5/27 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! It's time to put on those old walking shoes, strap on that step counter, and get to the farm! When you arrive to the farm you will park on the RIGHT side of the road (if coming in from 120, it is the left side of the road) Once you get unloaded head to the welcome barn and the ladies there will greet you and tell you all there is to know about the farm. Remember there is a $5 entrance fee for ages 2 and up (only at this time of year). The entry fee applies to everyone, even if you are just picking fruit, here for photos, want to walk around, etc.
Field Conditions: Walking grounds are great (no mud.) You will encounter some mud in the strawberry and sunflower fields, but most mud spots are avoidable. We always recommend that you wear shoes that you don't mind getting dirty here on the farm... just in case :)
Sunflowers: I'll just go ahead and say they are beautiful every day. They are beautiful! We have a section of 10 rows that are blooming and it makes a stunning photo!! More are blooming throughout the field but not all in a row... planted all at the same time but different varieties have different bloom times to help extend our sunflower season. We have some flowers blooming in another field that we will open up this afternoon after we get the tunnel open.
Strawberries: There is still fruit out there! Looking at about 45 minutes to an hour of picking for about 5 lbs. of fruit. Remember to move those leaves around and check all around the berry before putting it in your basket. I don't expect there to be much berry picking after the Memorial Day weekend. This is the end of the season, and the berries won't produce again until Fall, hopefully, but for sure next Spring!
Activities: We will have all farm activities going throughout the weekend! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot!
See y'all soon!!
Friday Morning 5/26 - - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We are all in awe of the beauty of this sunflower field, and we are only at about 35% bloom! When picking sunflowers go down EVERY OTHER row (even if it is not prolifically blooming). You will not be disappointed. We have lots of different varieties planted, so get that dimension and complete your bouquet with different colored centers and petals. There is some mud in the sunflower field, but it is drying up quickly. Strawberries: THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE! The berries are out there! Picking will be difficult, and you are going to have to get through some mud. After walking the fields this morning there is more fruit out there than my initial observation on Wednesday. These plants are TIRED! This is one of the longest strawberry seasons we have seen here at the farm. Starting February 25th till the end of May? Almost unheard of! I don't think there will be much in the way of strawberry picking after this weekend. We will have all farm activities going throughout the weekend! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! We love sunflower season, and we can't wait for you to love it too!
Wednesday Morning 5/24 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We had a rock 'em sock 'em storm last night, but the farm is still standing! And so are 98% of the sunflowers. We are closed all Wednesdays, but wanted to give y'all an update for tomorrow. Fields will dry up considerably today, but will still have mud patches for tomorrow's picking. Starting tomorrow there is a $5 entrance fee for ages 2 and up. The entry fee applies to everyone, even if you are just picking fruit, here for photos, etc. The strawberry supply is extremely limited, but you are welcome to comb the fields for the last of the fruit! I don't expect there to be any strawberries to pick after Sunday. The sunflowers are looking AMAZING! More and more are blooming everyday! Check out our Facebook page for up-to-date pictures of the field. We will be posting regularly so you can determine the best time to visit for you! We're so excited that you are going to visit us soon! Open regular hours all through the holiday weekend (even on Monday.)
Monday Morning 5/22 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! The farm is looking good today! After Sunday's showers the fields are a bit muddy. Strawberry season is winding down quickly, but they have been working hard since February keeping us stocked with delicious fruit. More sunflowers are blooming every day! So so beautiful! Here's what to expect starting on Thursday May 25th:
$5 admission into the farm for ages 2 and up. We hate the admission fee as much as you do, believe me, but we have to charge it to help keep up maintenance on the farm.
Once you enter the farm you have the opportunity to pick any remaining strawberries in the field ($3.50/lb), pick sunflowers (1-11 blooms $2 each, 12-23 blooms $1.50 each, 24+ blooms $1 each), and do lots of farm activities at their normal price.
Saturday Evening 5/20 -- Wowzers! Y'all are the pickers I know! The LEFT side of the road has been picked out! The LEFT side of the road will be closed tomorrow. Strawberry picking will be slim tomorrow but like I said today, the harder you work the more you'll be rewarded! We had some great looking berries come out of the field today. We started the day with 2 full rows of solid yellow sunflowers and now we are down to about a half a row. Not to worry though! The sunflowers will continue to open up this evening and more will be in tomorrow! Be sure to check the whole field even if the row isn't covered in blooms, you'll find a surprise every now and then! Don't drive out just for pictures... I'll let you know when you can get amazing photos in a field of sunflowers. Open 1-5 tomorrow we'd love to have you out!
Saturday Morning 5/20 --- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! NO RAIN HAS FALLEN AT THE FARM! (okay only 100th of an inch a couple of hours ago) Fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn mud pockets that just refuse to go away. Beginning at 9:00 we will open the LEFT side of the farm for berry picking, but we will still be open for berry picking on the right side as well. Picking will be what you make of it today! The harder you look the more you will be rewarded. We are still looking at about 1 hour for a box of berries. My expert picking advice... look under leaves!
We have more sunflowers coming on but not a spectacular display just yet, you'll get great flowers and good close up shots, but the entire field is not yet blooming. You might have to get in some mud in the sunflower field, Edder did a great job of making that soil fluffy and perfect for sunflower growth.
We will have all farm activities going today! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! This is one of the rare chances we get on the farm to do flower picking, strawberry picking, AND activities! Come on out for an excellent day!
Thursday Morning 5/18 -- We still have strawberries in the field! Edder just picked a 1/2 box in about 30 minutes. The LEFT side of the road is CLOSED today and tomorrow but will be open for picking this weekend. Picking this time of year typically requires a bit of effort. Look under the leaves, and be a little selective of the berries you put in your box. Sunflowers are coming on fast! We have about 2,000 in bloom currently with an anticipated 6,000 in bloom Sunday afternoon. Sunflower season won't officially kick off until Memorial Day weekend, so get those fresh cut flowers early! It is easy to fill up a half day here at the farm with all the fun farm-themed activities and picking! We can't wait to have you out to the farm!
Sunday evening 5/14 --- We had a nice surprise today, a few Sunflowers popped out unexpected. So we picked some Sunflowers today along with some very nice Strawberries.
We still have mud and water to deal with in approximately half of the Strawberry fields. it will take a few days for them to dry up completely. The Berries are still coming on, not as thick as before but still easily pickable. Production will dwindle with every day that goes by.
Sunflowers! are coming faster than we expected! The Sunflowers are the daughters project. I think they planted probably 200,000 seeds on 5 acres. The flowers today are just on one early variety, from listening to them, it will take about two weeks to start really getting into the blooms. Regardless, they are going to be from now to July. 1 to 11 blooms are $2 each, 12 to 23 blooms are $1.50 each, 24 or more blooms drop them to $1 each. Imagine, 24 heads of beautiful Sunflowers for $24! For now there is no admission but start May 25, entry into the Sunflowers will be $5 per person. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 5/14 ---- Happy Mothers Day! Today is a ditto of yesterday with the exception it is a tad drier and we are going to have the Barrel Train running. We haven't had any rainfall since yesterday morning but we do have a chance today so keep an eye on the sky! Hope to see you soon! Open 1 to 5 on Sundays.
Saturday morning 5/13 ---- Good Morning! 1.37 inches of rain here at the farm last night. Currently, the skies have cleared up and there are lots of ripe Strawberries to pick. The field on the left side of the road will be much easier picking. The fields at the main area of the farm have berries but will be more muddy. We won't run the barrel train today but the Berry Bounce, Sand Art and Paint a pot will still be going.
Friday evening 5/12 ---- Lets have a talk about this weekend: There are lots of ripe Strawberries for everyone to pick .and at the moment it is not hard to get into the fields and stay mud free. We have a really good chance of rain tomorrow through Monday. If we don't get caught in a storm, only moderate amounts of rain are predicted. The Farm is open rain or shine so we can pick between showers. The Strawberry fields on both sides of the road will be open. IF it does rain, the field on the LEFT is much better drained and because it is more granite gravel - less muddy. If we get any rain tonight I will put up a post in the morning. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening—- Tomorrow’s picking will be pretty good but be prepared, there will be dry spots and muddy spots between the rows. The berries should be clean with an inch of rain yesterday. Lacy has been busy making fresh batches of Strawberry Jam and Ice Cream. The main parts of the farm are grass covered, between the rows is the area that gets messy.
Monday evening --- The picking today was better than I thought it would be. Tomorrow should be good too and the fields will be drier. Keep an eye on the weather, we have a 40% chance of rain in the afternoon. We will be here rain or shine. Hope to see you soon.
Sunday 5/7 ---- Today was nice and easy. A little warm but that can be expected for this time of year.
Tomorrow and Tuesday will be ok picking. There will be plenty of berries for everyone it just takes a little longer to pick a box full. As you walk down the row, look to either side a few rows over so you can see the pockets of berries hiding under the leaves. Rubber boots would be great because the areas most unpicked are in the wettest spots. Everyone wanting to avoid mud today was easily able to do so.
The crowds have diminished somewhat so expect a comfortable relaxing time when coming out this week and next. When no one is around the farm hands normally let kids bounce a little longer, you almost have the paint a pot and sandart activities to yourself, and you also get the attention of all the goats. It is a grat time to enjoy the farm. Hope to see you soon.
Saturday evening 9:30pm --- What a great set of folks that came out today - ya'll are the best. It turned out to be a pretty good day after all. so far, no rain here today and none on the radar heading this way. I think we are safe tonight. Tomorrow we have a small chance of rain in late afternoon. Strawberry picking will be good. Everyone today seemed like they got plenty. The field on the LEFT side of the road continues to be drier and easier picking,.
Tomorrow will be the last day for Pony Rides this Spring. They will return in the Fall but for now, they have some other jobs to go do. The Sand Art, Paint a pot, Berry Bounce and Barrel Train will continue to run daily. Lacy made a fresh batch of Strawberry Ice Cream to satisfy your cravings.
The Sunflower plants are growing nicely. We hope to be able to have Cut Your Own Sunflowers at the end of this month through June. Stay Tuned!. .
Friday evening 9:45pm ----- It looks like I spoke a little too soon about the farm being dry. Almost an inch of rain just fell in the last 35 minutes. Tomorrow, the main side Strawberry aisles are sure to have mud. The LEFT side of the road is better drained, the aisles will be slick but not muddy. Now is definitely the time to break out the boots or old shoes. I'm sorry but we do not have places to wash shoes off, please bring a bag to put them in for the way home.
The walking areas of the farm are grass covered and should be easily passable. I'm not sure the Pony Rides or Barrel Train will be running tomorrow but the Bounce, Paint a Pot and Sand Art will be fun and the Ice Cream will be delicious. The Farm will be open and waiting for you.
Friday afternoon 5/5 --- Still picking some wonderful Strawberries! Those plants continue to produce. While not as many as before, everyone is still getting nice berries. Tomorrow will be very good picking. The LEFT side of the road will be open all day as well as the right. I think the berries are more plentiful on the LEFT side but the right (main farm) side still has plenty to choose from.
The fields are almost completely dry. There is still a few stubborn spots for the kids to find if not careful. Hope to see you soon.
Thursday 5/4 ---- Tomorrow will be decent Strawberry picking. In the AM we will pick on both sides of the road. The picking on the LEFT side is a little bit better than the right but not substantial. All the activities, goats, and ice cream is on the right side so either pick Left and come right or just park, pick and do activities on the left side. Almost everyone comes through Marble Falls but I am sure someone will come the backroads, if so, think backwards. Currently the fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn wet spots. Saturday should be decent picking too, it is too early to tell about Sunday. It is taking folks a little longer to fill their box, we can see the supply diminishing.
Tony and I put the bucks (the fancy name for male goats, these are not just plain ole billies:)) in their own pen today because we want to give the does (once again, not just plain ole nannies) a little break and target our kidding a little better. In what we call the Bridge Pen where kids do the feeding, we have some Myotonic Fainting Goats. Earlier this Spring one of them had twin boys. The grandaddy was easy to catch, just scare him and he will lock up and he can't move for 10 seconds or so. I was telling Tony that we might end up selling those little bucklings and I'm not sure they will "Faint" so catching them might be tough. Well, we gingerly meandered in their general vicinity and 'BOO!' ................... they both locked up and fell over! We were laughing so hard we almost didn't grab them before they came out of it. I hate doing that but it is so funny. Now I'm not sure we want to sell them. Don't go and try to scare the goats when you come out, you have to do it just right, anyway I think we just took the best fainters out. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday 5/3 ----- Tomorrow will be good Strawberry picking. In the AM we will pick on both sides of the road. The picking on the LEFT side might be a little bit better than the right but not much. Currently the fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn wet spots. Friday and most of Saturday should be good picking too, it is too early to tell about Sunday. Overall I think production is about to dwindle rapidly, next week we should see a decline in the harvest so now is the time to come and get some berries. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 5/1 - Berry picking was great today. Everyone left with big red juicy Strawberries. The Ice Cream and popsicles were especially popular today and all the children were having a blast.
Tomorrow, closed Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday should be equally as good. Don't wait too much longer to get your berries because I think production will slow down soon.
Sunday evening 4/30 ---- It was a wonderful day! The boxes of Strawberries I saw coming in at closing today were just as nice as the ones at opening. The plants continue to produce and berry size is even getting bigger. I expect this week to be wonderful picking and probably this coming weekend too. The fields are drying up nicely although there are still plenty of stubborn wet spots for the kids to find. Staying mud free is as easy as getting muddy.
We have been steadily picking berries for the kitchen to freeze for later use in our products. Lacy said we have brought in just about 5,000 pounds of berries.. For awhile earlier in the season, she was using the berries just about as fast as we brought them in.
Saturday evening 4/29 --- The wind today went a long way in drying out the farm. Tomorrow the berry picking will be very good and folks should be able to avoid any mud. The left side of the road is dryer but the right side has a little bigger berries. There are lots of berries in either patch. Tomorrows high should be in the upper 80s with plenty of sunshine. It will be a great day to come out to the farm - open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays..
Saturday morning 4/29 ----- This time we had rain. The storms yesterday afternoon rolled through with some power, almost 1/2 inch of rain fell. But with the wind last night and some wind today the Farm will dry out quickly. Pick your Strawberries on the LEFT side of the road today to stay away from the mud. That field is more granite gravel and while a little slippery is not muddy. The sun has come out to reveal a cloudless beautiful sunrise and with high temps in the 70's today it will be a wonderful day to be at the farm.
Lots of big luscious red Strawberries are available for todays harvest. There might be a few nicks from some sporadic hail to watch for but all in all it will be excellent picking. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday morning 4/27 ---- Those storms last night completely missed the Farm, which will make the Strawberry picking excellent the next few days. We are very happy with the size and quality of the berries coming out of the field. Now is a great time to pick berries! Hope to see you soon
Monday afternoon 4/24 ----- Ok, here is the scoop for the upcoming week. We have a 30% chance of rain Tuesday, which means a 70% it is not. If coming on Tuesday, we have lots of berries but you might have to dodge a shower. The Farm is closed all Wednesdays. Thursday and Friday will be excellent picking with beautiful weather in the forecast. I suspect the picking this coming Saturday will also be amazing with a high in the 70's! It is a little too early to tell about Sunday. The Strawberry plants are loving this cooler weather but with the days getting longer they will soon decide to quit flowering. We have picked berries all the way through May in the past - this might be another one of those years.
The Ranunculus are finished for the year. Before long we will dig up the corms and store them for next years planting. We will then cultivate the field and get it ready to plant the Candy Corn Maze in July.
Raelynn, Lacy and Edder have planted about 3 acres of Sunflowers. The plants are coming up now and they hope to be cutting your own Sunflowers in June.
Sunday morning 4/23 ------ It did not rain on the Farm last night, it seems the storms went all around us. We still have a chance of rain today but so far, the radar is clear. Open today, rain or shine, 1 to 5. There is plenty of Strawberries to pick today and the fields are mostly dry with some stubborn muddy spots for the kids to find. A breezy north wind has a forecast high of 60 today! Hope to see you soon!
Saturday afternoon 4/22 ----- What a beautiful day full of beautiful people picking beautiful Strawberries and Flowers. For tomorrow: Sunday, the Farm is open rain or shine and 1 to 5 on Sundays, there will be Berries to pick in both fields. Here is the thing though, we have a good chance of rain tonight and tomorrow. We will update here in the morning to let you know how it is looking
Friday evening 4/21 ---- Pretty much ditto yesterdays post. The only change is the fields are a little drier. There are still muddy spots but you should be able to avoid mud and the kids will be able to find mud. The picking will be outstanding,. The Strawberries are sure to be ripe so folks should plan to eat or put up within a day or two. It is going to be a fantastic Saturday, I hope you can make it out!
Thursday night 4/20 ----- Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry picking. The field on the LEFT side of the road is better drained than the main farm so that is where folks should pick. Turn LEFT by the white house, where it says "Field Trips". The Strawberry aisles are sure to be slick but not super muddy. The field is mostly granite gravel so some mud will only stick to the bottoms of shoes. Even so, Old shoes are recommended. Pick your berries there and then go over to the main field for the children's activities and Ice Cream. The main farm will also have a great supply of berries but the aisles between the rows will be muddy. The main part of the farm outside the fields is grass covered and should be easily passable.
The Ranunculus are all but finished. That field will be open through the weekend and there will be blooms, just not many. Raelynn has lowered them to 2 blooms for the price of 1 (75 cents) here on the last days.
1.15 inches of rain here. At 9:30 pm it looks like most of it has gone by, I don't see any more on the radar around us. We did have a little pea size hail, I don't think it was enough to damage the plants much. That was a nice rain, the ground sure needed it. Tomorrows forecast is for afternoon sun and a wind. That will go a long way in drying up the fields for the weekend. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday night 4/18 --- The Farm is closed on Wednesdays, please don't come out tomorrow. Thursday will be excellent Strawberry picking. In addition to the main farm, we are going to pick in the field on the LEFT side of the road. No one has picked there this week so the picking will be fantastic. So, if coming for Strawberries Thursday, and possibly Friday, pick your berries on the LEFT side of the road. Just turn in at the white house where it says Field Trips. Hope to see you soon!
Monday mid morning 4/17 ---- Last weekend was wonderful and it looks like this week will be too! So far, the weather forecast looks great with highs in the 80's and just small chances of rain. The Strawberry plants are still producing. but maybe not quite as much as two weeks ago. There are still plenty of berries for everyone. The plants are getting larger so a little more rummaging through the leaves is in order to get those berries. Todays crowd has been very light, I suspect tomorrow will be too, closed Wednesday so Thursday morning should be the next excellent picking day.
The Ranunculus are almost finished. Raelynn thinks this week will finish them off. We sure have enjoyed them and are making plans for next years crop.
Saturday evening 4/15 ---- It was a glorious day full of glorious people picking glorious berries, glorious flowers and eating glorious Shakes, Ice Cream, Popsicles and even freshly made specialty cake donuts.
Tomorrow (Sunday) should be another ........... glorious day:) Open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays. A high of 78 degrees tomorrow will be amazing! There is still a few stubborn muddy spots in the fields for the kids to find, but overall the fields are nice and dry.
You only hear it here ........... when driving to the farm, pick your strawberries on the LEFT side of the road (turn in by the little white house - it is labeled Field Trips but you can go on in there). The berries in that field are not just glorious, they are insane! Then drive to the main farm which is a little farther down on the right for activities, flowers and all the cold goodies. That field is only open today. We will keep it closed most of the coming week so take advantage of it.
Saturday morning 9am 4/15 ---- It is a glorious morning and the picking will be equally glorious. The fields look great, the crop looks great, everyone is smiling - is it possible to get better than this? I don't think so.
Thursday evening 4/13 --- The Strawberry and Flower picking will be excellent tomorrow and Saturday for sure. I suspect Sunday will be too but check here Saturday night to make sure. Other than a few stubborn spots, the fields have dried out nicely. With a forecast high of 80 tomorrow and 89 Saturday, it should be a wonderful weekend.
The Strawberry plants continue to put on a show. The far end of the rows and fields have the greatest supply of berries. Don't look down until you get there or you will stop way short of the good stuff. The plants are enjoying this cooler weather which I think we prolong production into at least mid May or beyond.
The Ranunculus flowers are beautiful. The field is loaded with blooms just ready to cut. Raelynn is the flower expert and she says that we probably have only two more good weekends before supply starts to dwindle.
This is crazy, I am only going to mention it here............... cake donuts......................... "What?!" you say. We have lost our blooming minds but ......... Saturday Raelynn is going to make some fresh Cake Donuts to sell in the Sweet Shack where Lacy will be making fresh Strawberry Lemonade and unbelievably good, Strawberry Shakes. Supplies of the cake donuts will sure to be limited but please stop by and let us know if you like them.
Tuesday evening 4/11 --- Remember, the Farm is closed on Wednesdays - please don't come out to the farm on Wednesday. That is the day we do maintenance like stuff that is better done without customers around.
Thursday will be excellent flower and berry picking. The fields have dried out considerably. I don't know how we went from muddy on Sunday to dry today. It is like the sun came out and just sucked up the moisture. There are still some muddy spots for the kids to get into but staying mud free will not be a problem at all.
Monday evening 4/10 -----That rain last week was the little rain that is acting like a big one. Only this afternoon did the sun come out to give us some drying. - still not enough though. The farm was pretty dry so I am surprised it is taking so long to dissipate. Now I am thing we need another rain gauge to check the accuracy of the current one.
Tomorrow will be very good Strawberry and flower picking. Expect some mud between the rows so a set of picking shoes will be in order. I would expect the field to be in decent condition by Thursday.
The temperatures should stay in the 80's this week which the Strawberry plants will love. They are still blooming, which should set in these temperatures, which means berries in a month. I am expecting us to be harvesting ripe berries through mid May.
The field of Ranunculus is putting on a show! I think those flowers are beautiful. Now is a great time to cut your own bouquet. Raelynn says they might last another week or so or until the temperatures start climbing into the 90's.
Sunday evening 4/9 ---- Happy Easter! We need to have a talk ............. I am sorry the aisles between the Strawberries are muddy but ............. please don't walk on top of the Strawberry plants like a lot of people I saw today do. There is no way to walk on top of the plants without stepping on berries. I had to just take a deep breath and come into the office this afternoon so I wouldn't see. I can understand though, especially if someone is not accustomed to outdoor life or accidently wore the wrong shoes (like the flip flops with white socks I saw) . All is good, we are happy to have everyone out.
The sun did come out late afternoon and the farm is drying up a bit but I would still expect mud tomorrow. The Strawberry and Flower picking should be great. Just wear those rubber boots or old shoes and you will find the good ones. Berry supply should increase each day this week and by Thursday the picking will be excellent again. I see a ton of green ones coming, this weekend should be glorious. Hope to see you soon!
Saturday evening 4/8 ---- It was a good day! The Farm will be open tomorrow (Easter Sunday) from 1 to 5. The Strawberry and Flower picking will be excellent but it is still going to be a bit muddy getting to them.. All the grassy areas are easily passable and some of the Strawberry and Flower aisles are not bad. I saw a lot of folks changing into clean shoes for the way home today. When walking up to the welcome barn, the Strawberry field in the back left corner has dry rows. To get to the dry spot, walk between the berries and the flowers to enter the field from the back where there is more sand.
Ripe berries are sure to be available. Those fully ripe berries are not going to have much shelf life after you pick them. I think it best to deal with them within a day or so. For a longer shelf life: refrigerate them as soon as possible and don't wash them until ready to eat. Any fruit begins to decay as soon as it comes off the plant,. The closer to 32 it gets after picking the greater the delay in ripening (decaying).
Friday evening 4/7 ---- 4 tenths of rain today brings our two day total to .83 which is not a whole lot of rain but the way it fell makes it seem like more. It has been a heavy drizzle for the last two days with cloudy skies and 50 degree temperatures meaning little to no drying out. The grass covered green belts will be mud free this weekend but not the aisles between the Strawberries and Flowers. There will be standing water between the rows and I guarantee those big ole huge berries you want are right in the muddy spot. Now is the time to use those designer rubber boots you have in the closet or your favorite old shoes that you refuse to throw away. We do not have a place to wash off shoes so a clean pair might be in order for the drive back, plus a bag to put the old shoes in.
Expect excellent Strawberry and Flower picking tomorrow and most likely Sunday too. The Pony rides will be going as well as the Barrel Train, Sand Art, Paint a Pot and probably the Berry Bounce (if the canvas dries off). Ice Cream, Popsicles, and fresh Strawberry Lemonade will be available and a limited supply of those amazingly delicious Strawberry Smoothies. It is going to be a great weekend but muddy.
Not only did this rain give the plants/grounds a nice drink, it kept pickers away which means a larger supply for the weekend. Between the two days we were able to pick, cut and get about 1400 pounds of berries in our freezers for use in our products. That is not enough to get us through to next year but we are certainly getting closer to the goal of 2500 pounds.
Friday morning 4/7 8:50am ---- yep, it is raining. It started then stopped then started and on and on. The Farm will be open today, the Berries should be freshly washed, the aisles between the Strawberry rows will be a little muddy. Previously our forecast had the showers moving out by noon but now it seems like it might be all day. Tomorrow looks clear at the moment.
Thursday evening 4/6 ----- We ended up getting four tenths of rain today. Not enough to make things miserable but enough to make the aisles between the rows pretty slick and a little muddy. We still have a good chance of rain for tomorrow. I will be sure to update this page in the morning concerning tomorrow. The Farm is open rain or shine and the berries are sure to be clean.
Concerning Saturday and Sunday: We for sure will have lots of freshly washed berries to pick Saturday, the picking should be excellent. Currently we have no chance of rain but I am sure there will be some mud to contend with. Please bring a second pair of shoes for the way home - we do not have wash stations to clean shoes. My suspicion is that we will have Berries on Sunday afternoon (1 to 5 on Sundays) but we need to wait a bit more to make a better determination. Happy Easter everyone, Hope to see you soon.
Thursday morning 10:30am -- Now raining off and on, but strawberries the strawberry picking is great :) Come prepared for the rain. Open till 5:30 today regardless of the weather!
Thursday morning 7:30am --- At the moment, it is nice and dry here on the farm. The band of rain seems to be staying just to the East of us so far. It could change quickly but I don't see anything heading our way currently. It is chilly though! A light wind and 52 degrees requires a jacket for me. Bundle up and come on out to see us, the Farm is open rain or shine.
Wednesday afternoon 4/5 ---- We just had a few drops from that line of rain that passed through this morning. Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry and Flower picking. Friday should be great too but we have a pretty good chance of rain, we give an update tomorrow evening. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/2 ---- And yet another great day! It is such a pleasure to work at the farm because the patrons are some of the best people ever, your smiles are contagious and we certainly appreciate your good attitudes.
There will be ripe berries to pick tomorrow and beautiful flowers too. The supply will get better each day this week. Good Friday before Easter is historically a big day. At the moment we have a 60% chance of rain for that day. We will just have to wait two days or so before we can make a better Berry and weather prediction for Friday and the days after.. It is going to be a wonderful Easter week. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 4/2/23 ---- Yesterday was a great start to April! and today should follow in it's footsteps. Lots of berries and flowers to pick. We do have a 40% chance of rain before 2pm so keep an eye on the sky. The farm is super dry, a little shower wouldn't hurt. Hope to see you soon!
Friday evening 3/31/23 --- And March has just about marched out of here. 'Thanks' to all you folks that made it a fantastic month. And now let's make April fantastic too! For sure we will start the month with excellent Strawberry and Flower picking! The Strawberry fields have turned red with ripe berries and the flower field has turned red/yellow/white/orange/ purple with beautiful blooms ready to pick.
The farm kitchen has been busy this week making fresh batches of Ice Cream/Popsicles and even 95 jars of Strawberry Jam. The Sweet Shack will be serving Fresh Strawberry Lemonade this weekend as long as it lasts.
The weather forecast for this weekend looks good, the farm looks good - all we need is you to make it look even better.
Tuesday evening 3/28 ---- The Berries are making a rebound from a busy weekend. The farm is closed tomorrow (Wednesday) which will make Thursday and Friday pretty good picking. Saturday morning will be good picking too. We won't be able to predict Sundays picking until we see how Saturday turns out. With the warm temperatures coming up a couple hundred pounds of berries will ripen overnight. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 3/26 --- Good Job!! Good job you pickers that came out yesterday and today! Y'a'll cleaned up the fields pretty good. Don't fret though, there is waaay more green berries about to ripen and Ranunculus about to bloom. Tomorrow, the picking of both will be marginal at best, Tuesday much better, closed Wednesday, and very good Thursday. We just can't say enough about how great the folks that come out here are. 'Thanks for being awesome! Hope to see you soon ....... or again soon :)
Saturday evening 3/26 ----- An absolute beautiful day full of beautiful people picking beautiful Strawberries and Flowers! "Thank You" to all you amazing folks that came out and enjoyed the Farm with us, you are the best!
The fields still have ripe Strawberries in them for tomorrows picking! Yay. At the end of the day today a man came in with three loaded boxes of ripe Strawberries. He said he just moved the leaves around and found gobs of berries people had just walked by. If coming tomorrow, it is probably best to arrive earlier than later, just to make sure you get good picking (open at 1 on Sundays). All next week should be good picking (closed Wednesdays) .
Ranunculus: Raelynn said there is still a lot of Flowers to pick but folks might want to cut them before picking Strawberries to make sure there is a good selection to choose from. The plants will bloom more and more through most of April. They don't like it when it gets in the 90"s on a regular basis so lets shoot for a cool Spring.
Lacy said she will be making Strawberry lemonade tomorrow but not Strawberry shakes. Her shakes are delicious, we will be sure to update here when she is going to make again because they are worth a drive out.
Friday late afternoon 3/25 --- Tomorrow will be excellent picking and my feeling is Sunday (1 to 5) will be too! The fields have turned red with ripe Strawberries. Important: Do not start picking on the first row you come to, everyone else did that. Always go to the far end of the row or the far end of the field and pick back. You will be happy you did! Don't look down before you get to the far end or you will never make it to the good stuff. Every day the flower field has more and more blooms. They are beautiful!!
Shhhh ....... this is only for the Fresh News readers. Lacy is going to open the Sweet Shack in the morning to sell fresh Strawberry Lemonade and my favorite, Strawberry Smoothies. Those smoothies are perhaps the best thing I ever tasted. Supplies will be limited on opening day so come early.
Friday morning 10am --- No rain here, No mud, beautiful skies, loads and loads of ripe berries and beautiful flowers. Its going to be an awesome day and looks like tomorrow too! Wow, I don't think it can get better than this!
Thursday evening 3/23/23 ----- Everyone that came out today left with all the Strawberries they wanted and maybe even a few more. Of course they would start producing abundantly the week after Spring Break :). It is all good though because we are just thrilled to be back in the Berries again. Friday will be excellent picking and I am pretty confident that we will have loads of berries all the way through Saturday. We are giving out as many boxes as folks want now - remember, they hold about $22 worth level full. It is extremely hard to pick only half a box..
These Ranunculus flowers are beautiful! They make a fantastic bouquet and at only 75 cents each it won't break the budget. Their season is just getting started and we hope to pick them all the way through April. Every week they will have more and more blooms.
We have a decent chance of rain in the morning but "less than a tenth of an inch except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms". A tenth of an inch will just wet the soil down. If it rains we will post here.
Wednesday morning 3/22 --- Closed Wednesdays, please don't come out to the farm today. We have to have one day where we can mow, clean port o potties, weedeat and do stuff we need to do without customers around.
Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry picking! Finally we are getting back into some ripe berries. I am guessing we will have plenty of berries all the way through Saturday morning and maybe all the way through Sunday as well. Be sure to look here every day before coming out.
The Ranunculus are coming on. That is the flower we are picking now as Tulips are finished. We might have some to pull tomorrow - we will see when you get here. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 3/20 Happy Spring! YaY, Nothing like celebrating with a day colder than the last three weeks of winter :) A little chilly it was today, tomorrow should be a bit warmer.
As promised, tomorrow morning will be very good Strawberry picking, we will just have to wait to see how long they go. Then closed Wednesday so Thursday morning should be good picking too.
The Tulip selection is getting smaller and smaller. Ranunculus are just getting started. Another update will be posted Wednesday concerning Thursday picking. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 3/19 ---- It turned out to be a gorgeous day! Wow!
The Strawberry fields are very close to turning red. The ripe Berry forecast for Monday is just so-so picking. Tuesday will be excellent picking, closed Wednesday, which will make Thursday excellent picking as well. My feeling is we will have loads of ripe berries for Friday and the weekend but we need to get a little closer to make an accurate forecast. The aisles between the rows are mostly dry. Get ready, we are finally about to have a lot of ripe berries to pick.
The Ranunculus flower field was a big hit today. I really do like this flower and at 75 cents each, they are affordable. The plants will continue to grow and the bloom will become more profuse in the coming weeks.
All the activities will be going this week except Pony rides which will return Saturday. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 3/19 --- Whew, that was close. 32.7 this morning! Not much ripening is taking place in these temperatures. Today will not be a good Strawberry picking day. Tons and tons of green ones that are not quite ripe. Give them a couple of days and the fields are going to turn red!
We will be picking the last of the Tulips and the start of the Ranunculus today along with children's activities. It is a bit cool here but the skies are clear and the sun is starting to shine..
The Farm is open 1 to 5 on Sundays. If you do come out we will be waiting for you with a smile.
Friday evening 3/17 ---- only here at the end of the day did it warm up. IF you have a choice of weekends: Next Saturday will be much better picking than tomorrow. There are loads and loads of berries almost ripe. Tomorrows Strawberry picking will be marginal at best. A bunch of berries ripen overnight but with a low of 40 tonight, I am not confident that many will turn.
Some very nice Tulips were pulled today but the overall amount available is dwindling. We think that they are almost finished for the season. therefore there is no admission fee. Don't worry though, Monday we will start cutting Ranunculus which in my opinion, are more beautiful than Tulips.
One thing for exactly sure about this weekend: the goats will be hungry, ponies ready to walk, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train and Berry Bounce ready for children, and the Ice Cream and Popsicles will be amazing.
Friday morning 3/17 --- Yep, its muddy ........ and its cold. I just came out of the fields and now I am 2 inches taller than when I went in :) I did not sink to my ankles but this mud here sticks to the bottom of your shoes and accumulates. The bottoms of my boots are flat without tread, how can the mud stick to them so well? I think the wind is supposed to blow today which will go a long way in drying out the fields.
Strawberries: a TON of almooooost ripe berries, not a whole lot of ripe ones today. I think tomorrow will be better picking., By the end of next week I think we will be back to swimming in ripe berries - I can't wait!
Tulips: they are in the last three days. Raelynn has decided to waive the admission fee for the last three days. The fields are not as full and vibrant as they once were but there are still a good number of nice Tulips to find.
Thursday night 3/16 --- That was a pretty strong little storm! About a quarter of an inch of rain - enough to create some mud between the rows tomorrow but not enough to create big problems. Bring extra shoes for the ride back home. The rain was sure to wash off the berries! We should have berries to pick tomorrow - while we are not swimming in berries yet (I think that will start late next week) we definitely have more than earlier this week. Strong winds accompanied the rain so I am not sure what the Tulips look like - I suspect they are ok but only daylight will tell. This is the last weekend for Tulips, it has been a pretty good Tulip year for a change. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday 3/15/23 ----- Here is the scoop for tomorrow (Thursday): 60% chance of rain in the morning, 70% afternoon/evening. We will have some Strawberries to pick! The are ripening fast! Maybe not super ripe but very close. The Tulip season is in it's final days, come now before they are played out. The Farm is open rain or shine, just come prepared for some mud if we do get rain. We will update here when/if it does rain. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 3/13/23 --- Lots of Tulips, plenty of fun activities for the kiddos (including Pony rides) and ......... no Strawberries. There are no ripe Strawberries to pick tomorrow. We are soooo sorry but 145,000 plants do not have any ripe berries on them at the moment. Tons of green ones that need a little time to ripen, The problem is that the berries are getting picked before they get fully ripe. Normally Thursday mornings are the best picking because we close Wednesdays. I am not sure this Thursday will be the case just because we are picking so close. At the moment we have a high chance of rain Thursday morning which would make Friday better picking but muddy depending on how much falls.
The children I saw today did not seem to be deterred from having fun by the lack of Strawberries - it was the parents that are most disappointed. The Berry Bounce is a great way to extract some energy while Sand Art and Paint a Pot appeal to the creative side. Kids seem to enjoy the Pony rides and small ones under 5 yrs are infatuated with the Barrel train, which is by far the most boring thing ever.
Don't give up on those Strawberries - it will not be long until the fields turn red with ripe berries. Their typical season start is just around the corner.
Sunday afternoon 3/12 --- Pretty much Ditto yesterdays post. I think Thursday morning will be the next best time to pick Strawberries if we can get them a little rest Monday and Tuesday. Its going to be a great week, we hope to see you soon
Saturday afternoon 3/11 ----- You are the best! We are humbled by a big attendance of wonderful customers! God is really putting on a show with this amazing weather. A little crazy though with 90 degree high today and 70 degree high tomorrow :),
Tons of Tulips, Tons of fun ....... No Strawberries. The fields are picked out of ripe berries. Tons of green ones but it is going to take a few days for them to ripen. Don't worry though, we are only in the early stages of the Strawberry season. Typically, the first three weeks of April are the peak of the season.
If you are thinking about coming out tomorrow, 1 to 5 on Sundays, expect a gorgeous field of Tulips, plenty of fun activities for the kiddos and no strawberries to pick.
Spring Break week, shoot for Thursday, Friday or Saturday morning. Hope to see you all soon!
Friday evening 3/10 --- Fields are mostly dry, just a few stubborn low spots that don't want to dry out. Tons of gorgeous Tulips, lots of wonderful Ice Cream, delicious popsicles, Fun activities like Sand Art, Paint a pot, the Berry Bounce jumping pillows, Pony Rides and ............ not so many Strawberries. The sun came out Friday afternoon and brought a passel of folks with it. We will have some berries in the morning, try to come before 10, but the afternoon might be a little iffy. Tomorrow has a 89 degree high forecast which will turn those berries almost ripe,, ripe fast. One thing about it, we will be here to greet you with a smile. Come out and enjoy a beautiful day at the farm, if you don't find enough berries just bring your box back in about two weeks when we are sure to have a bunch more. Hope to see you soon!
Friday morning 3/10/23 --- Nope, no rain fell on the farm last night so the fields are good shape for pickers. There are still a few stubborn spots that refuse to dry up but they are easily avoided for anyone that is not a 5 year old kid :). We do have overcast skies right now and a heavy fog/mist which is forecast to burn off by 9am. The High today should be around 65 which is perfect for Tulips. Tulips look fantastic, the Fields are full of color and waiting for pickers. Strawberries: The plants have loads and loads of green berries that are almost ripe. Todays picking will be decent and tomorrows picking before 10am should be good. Tomorrow afternoons availability depends on picking pressure. We are harvesting about 80,000 plants. That might seem a lot but the season lasts almost two months so each plant might only have one or two ripe berries every couple of days. The peak of the season is normally the first two weeks of April and then we have a gradual slow down until mid May. Everything depends on the weather. It is looking good for Spring Break, keep an eye here for updates. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening 3/8/23 ---- The Tulip fields are gorgeous. They really are putting on a show and we are loving it. The aisles are mostly dry and passable (a little water down on the very far end).
Strawberries - there will be some to pick tomorrow morning, They are not quite as ripe as I would like to see them. so I will label the picking as marginal. Tons of green berries are coming, we just need some time to ripen them up.
The farm grounds look great for tomorrows crowd. There are a few stubborn wet/muddy spots so keep an eye on the kids :We do have a 60% chance of rain tomorrow afternoon/evening so be sure to check here Friday morning for an update on field conditions.
The Berry Bounce, SandArt, Paint a Pot, and Barrel Train have been good activities for the kiddos. The Barrel Train is super boring but little little children seem to be enamored with it. I don't recommend it for anyone over 5. Pony rides are available on Saturdays and Sundays.. Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning March 6, 2023 ---- The Tulips are going great! They are beautiful and there is sooo many. I saw some very nice bouquets go out over the weekend. A few observations: If the bulb comes up when you pull the plant, it's ok we will just cut it off at the counter. We charge $2 if you want to keep the bulb only because in the past we have had folks just dig up the bulbs and ditch the flower. I don't know why because chances are that the bulb will not flower again for two reasons: they need 10 to 14 weeks of chill in the winter and the leaves might not have had enough time to put energy back into the bulb for next years growth. Regarding the flowers:, Tulips like it cold, move them to a cooler spot if they begin to droop when you get home. It helps to trim the ends of the stems and put them in cold water when placing in a vase.. If it doesn't get too hot, we hope to have Tulips through March 19. .
The Strawberry plants need a little breather:) The fields are picked pretty clean right now but don't worry , more berries are on the way! These moderate temperatures and warm nights will certainly help ripen some up. Thursday morning will be the best time to pick this week for sure.
While most of the fields are dry, there is still some muddy spots to get into.
Saturday evening March 4 --- It was a beautiful fantastic day here on the Farm, wow. "Thanks" to the city of Austin for coming out today, we enjoyed having you. Maybe the entire city didn't come out but a good many did.
Regarding Sunday: The Farm is open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays. Loads of Tulips to pick tomorrow but not so many Strawberries. The Strawberry fields were picked pretty heavy today so they will need some days to replenish themselves. The aisles between the rows are drying but are still muddy - just less muddy than today. Pick in an old pair of shoes and change into a clean pair to drive home. Sorry, we don't have a place to wash off shoes/feet. The Ice Cream is fantastic, the Ponies are here to ride, activities for the children too. Come on out and have some fun but remember, there will not be many Strawberries to pick.
The Tulips should last for two to three more weeks and the Strawberry harvest should go through mid May. Hope to see you soon
Friday afternoon March 3 --- Hey hey, today has been busier than I thought it would be. I understand why since it has been a beautiful afternoon of full sunshine.
A few things to consider if coming to the farm tomorrow (Saturday):
The aisles between the Strawberry and Tulip rows are still muddy. They have dried out considerably but still need a little more time. Bring an extra pair of shoes for the trip home.
The Tulip field has exploded with color. There are lots to choose from.
There will be a good supply of Strawberries to pick in the morning but I'm not sure how far through the day they will go. We are going to limit families to one box to start with, fill it up and come back for another one.
The Strawberry Ice Cream is amazing!
Concerning Sunday - the fields will definitely be drier, there will still be lots of Tulips but the Strawberry supply could be limited depending on Saturdays crowd. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening 7:15pm March 2 ---- Whew, that was close, no bad weather today for the Farm.! We had 6 tenths out of this storm this evening, 4 tenths this morning so an inch for the day -- just right! Tomorrow will be a two pair of shoes day - one to pick in and one to drive home in. The aisles between the rows are sure to be very slippery in the morning, hopefully dried out somewhat in the afternoon. There will still be some muddy spots on Saturday but the majority of the farm should be dry.
It should be a fantastic weekend with lots of Strawberries to pick and a field full of Tulips! That's right, the Tulip field has exploded with color. Yehaw! I hope you are excited as we are! Come see us.
Thursday noon March 2 ---- No more rain so far today. but the aisles between Strawberry rows are very slippery. We need to talk about Shoes :) Please bring with you a towel, another pair of shoes and a plastic bag. This way you can change your shoes before getting in the car for the trip home. We don't have a feet washing station. You would think that we would but it doesn't take very many kids playing in the water to make a huge mess so we don't - sorry.
The Tulip field has exploded - all of the sudden we have a very good supply of Tulips to pull They too are wet between the rows but the flowers are wonderful.
Still a good chance of rain here tonight - we'll keep you posted.
Thursday morning March 2 ---- .45 inches this morning. We didn't expect that little storm. Currently the skies have cleared and a breeze is kicking up. I don't think we are out of the woods yet though because the forecast calls for a chance of rain all day. The Strawberry fields are passable but expect some mud this morning. The Farm is open rain or shine. We will be here with a smile on our face.
Wednesday March 1, 2023 ---- These warm temperatures are doing a great job ripening up some berries. There is a good chance of rain in the forecast for tomorrow. If you do come out, come in the morning and there should be plenty of ripe Strawberries to pick, Friday even more and Saturday morning should be good picking.
Tulips! Friday is the start of the Tulip Season! It looks like it will be a great season, weather permitting. While there is no entrance fee to the general farm, there is a $5 entrance fee to the Tulip patch.
We will update here again tomorrow evening or Friday morning concerning rain received or rain that " just split and went right around us". Hope to see you soon
Sunday evening February 26, 2023 -----You guys are the best!!! What a great group of customers we have. The picking was difficult today but folks just took it in stride and seemed to enjoy the day anyway. Thank You!
More Strawberries are on their way. I recommend giving them a couple of days to ripen up a fresh batch. Thursday should be the next best day. The crop looks good overall and we are super excited about it. Lets hope that we can keep any nasty weather away.
Tulips will be ready for sure by Saturday, perhaps even Friday or Thursday if Raelynn gives the go ahead. Maybe you remember, last year was a 100% wipe out, the year already looks 100% better. They wont like these upper 80 degree days coming up, good thing a small cool down is coming toward the end of the week.
Saturday evening February 25, 2023 --- It was a fantastic day! Super big Thanks to all the pickers that showed up and harvested a ton of Strawberries! Tomorrow, the farm opens at !pm on Sundays, there will still be berries to pick but the selection wont be near as good as it was today. Try to arrive closer to 1pm if possible, Berry supply will greatly diminish the farther we go into the afternoon. My mom answered the phone this morning and if she told you there would be a great supply of berries tomorrow - it is my fault. She asked me if I was sure and I said "oh yes there will be lots tomorrow, Don't you worry". Well, that was before the city of Austin decided to show up. By next weekend the fields should be replenished and we should even start picking Tulips as well. Hope to see you soon!
Friday February 24, 2023 ---- Pretty much ditto last Mondays post with the addition of "Oh my Goodness, look at all the berries!". There is nothing like opening with fields full of berries. You will have only one problem this weekend - stopping. When the fields are loaded like this it is very hard to stop picking so just pace yourself, get those big ones hiding under the leaves and definitely look for solid red berries. We don't mind if you take out four boxes for the kids, just know that chances are, you will have four full boxes when you come back and each box level full is running about $22.00
We are super excited about what looks like will be a fantastic Tulip season! We see a pretty good stand of leaves popping out, now we just need some blooms.
The fields look great - no mud. The grass is getting green and the goats are hungry. Hope to see you soon!
Monday February 20, 2023 - Wowzers! We pulled the covers off after that last freeze, and the berries have gone to town! Plants and berries are in excellent health for this time of year. We are anticipating very good picking on our first day Saturday February 25th! As far as we can remember (but we could be wrong) we believe that this is the earliest we have opened the gates for berry picking! A 1st after 24 years of growing the fruit. Tulips are not far behind, keep checking in for an update on those!
Tuesday February 14, 2023 --- Happy Valentines!
Tulips ---- yep, we are doing Tulips again this year. What do you do when you have a complete crop failure out of 150,000 bulbs? You plant 330,000. The 2022 season was a bust so this year is going to be awesome! We are already seeing lots and lots of growth and hope to start picking some flowers in a couple of weeks. Colorblends Tulips have been a huge help to us, be sure to check them out on the internet for your Tulip needs.
Strawberries - coming fast! Mild temperatures and early varieties have combined to give us some berries that are almost ready for harvest. The Farm is going to open up Saturday February 25 for the 2023 season. The plants and crop look good so far, it is going to be a great season for sure! Hope to see you soon!
Saturday January 7, 2023 --- Happy New Year everyone! The calendar says January, the temperatures say March. Wow, what a weather pattern we are in. After the Christmas freeze event that had temperatures down in the low teens we are now in a mild pattern of Highs in the low 70s and lows in the 40s. As you would expect this has 'told' the Strawberry plants to get going. This is a pretty dicey situation because I would expect that winter is certainly not over and cold weather will be heading our way late January. We will just have to roll with the flow.
on the farm: goats are having babies, we are pulling runners off Strawberry plants, getting ready to protect Ranunculus and should be planting 160,000 Tulip bulbs this week.
Sunday evening December 18 ----- Well, that was fun! We just had a splash of winter berries that were big and tasted good . A heavy frost the past two mornings and cold weather coming this week will surely put the plants to sleep for a while and burn off any remaining berries. Currently, 17 is the forecast low for Thursday night. I don't think the plants have sufficiently hardened off for low teen temperatures. If we can, I think we will try to comer up a good many plants with frost blankets. The covers only give us about a max of 8 degrees protection which is good because we want the plant temperature to stay above 20. Remember, the plants can handle freezing weather but the blooms can not. Therefore we will start covering blooms in late January.
Ha Ha, my daughter and I had a little miscommunication ("no way" you say, "I can't believe it"). Somehow we ended up with a lot of extra Ranunculus corms.. So...... we built some more beds and planted another 8000. 33,000 Ranunculus corms are now planted in the ground and ready to grow.
We are all very excited and hopeful about 2023. The Ranunculus field looks great, the Strawberry plants are in good shape without deer damage! (so far), Tulip bulbs are coming, and everyone is healthy, God is Good! We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.
Saturday morning December 17 --- Did you know Santa Clause likes to garden? Yep, its because he likes to Hoe, Hoe, Hoe.
There are berries in the field to pick today but the picking is just going to be marginal. The grounds are in good shape, the goats are sure to be hungry and the kids love to jump on the berry bounce. I do think tomorrow will end the season as cold weather appears to be headed our way next week. These winter berries were fun but it is time for the plants to get a little rest. Merry Christmas!!
Thursday morning December 15 ---- Hey hey, the Farm is open for picking ! The Berries are very nice and the picking is pretty good. The grounds are in pretty good shape and the goats are sure to be hungry. Come on out!
If we don't get all the berries picked this weekend we might be open next Monday and Tuesday as well (we will update here).
Tony, Edder, Raelynn, Lacy and I have been busy planting 25000 Ranunculus corms. If all goes according to plan, we will have some beautiful Springs blooms to harvest in March, 2023. But they won't be the first blooms of next year because we are going to give Tulips another go in 2023. The 2022 Tulip crop was a complete failure so lets hope 2023 turns out a little better, sure can't be any worse :)
Sunday evening December 11 ----- Another great day! It was overcast and cool today. The Strawberries were/are outstanding. The fields are still loaded so we will be open for picking again this Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The varieties we are picking are some of the ones grown in Florida which are also producing berries you might find in the stores right now. When I explained this to a friend of mine his comment was "Well they taste a heck of a lot better than you find in the store!~. We have the luxury of letting them get fully ripe before picking them so yes, they do taste better. Remember, the Redder the Better!!!!
Sunday morning December 11 ---- Just right! A little rain fell on the farm last night but not enough to cause any problems. I don't see any puddles. There might be a few slick spots out in the field but shouldn't be anything to worry about. Maybe some old shoes would be in order. The Berries are sure to be big and freshly washed! Hope to see you soon.
Saturday December 10 ---- Wow! Whoa! Are you kidding me! Super Nice! Oh man! Just a few of the comments I heard today regarding these incredibly rare winter Strawberries we are picking right now. They are big, easy to pick and taste very goo. The Farm will be open tomorrow and next Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday for picking. Strawberry Jam makes a wonderful Christmas present! Pic and make some or just buy some we already made for you. Open !!am to 5pm on Sunday.
The fields look great at the moment but there is a chance of rain tonight. If it does rain, we will try to get a post up tomorrow morning.
Friday December 9th -- The strawberry picking will be great today! The strawberry plants are growing rapidly with this warm weather and have developed quite the leaf canopy --- just move those pesky leaves around to find the sweet fruit underneath. I recommend being a little selective about the berries that you pick there is so many good berries it's a great chance to get the best ones you want! The fields are 97% dried out... finally we wont sink to China getting out in the field! We are starting our 'close down' process and are limiting our activities to Berry Bounce and Sand Art. My daughter and I plan to make chocolate covered strawberries to give to her classmates at a Christmas Party! MMMMmmmm! I hope they all make it there....... we love strawberries at our house! We are so glad to have winter berries because our spring berries have long run out.
Monday December 5th ----- Wow! The Strawberry plants just keep on giving! We thought last weekend would be it but we were WRONG. Ha! The absence of freezing weather has kept the early varieties producing nice luscious red bundles of Joy that taste amazingly well. The Farm will be open for some very good picking this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We are new to winter berries so we will just have to take it week by week. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday 11/29 -- Strawberries look to be replenishing after a hard picking over last weekend. Finally we are getting some nice weather again to ripen up those berries in the field now. The best picking will be on Friday, Saturday with good picking, Sunday... we'll see how Friday and Saturday go!! The rows in-between the fields are drying out nicely as well! We are very excited to offer this unique opportunity at this time of year.
Sunday 11/27 -- IMPORTANT Picking Update: Believe it or not... We pulled over 600lbs. of berries in the rain and cold on Friday and Saturday! Picking will be harder today, all the good berries will be in the hardest to reach spots (i.e. super muddy, and farthest from the barn). We strongly recommend old shoes or rainboots to navigate the strawberry field. It looks like this week's weather will be wonderful for strawberry ripening. Which should make next weekend good picking. That's right! We will be open for one last weekend December 2-4 Friday and Saturday 9-5 and Sunday 11-5. Can you believe it?!? Strawberries in December! What a gift!
Saturday 11/26 -- The sun is shining! Open 9-5 today! We did get a considerable amount of rain last night, in between the strawberry rows will be very muddy and slick. There is still a good amount of berries in the field today! I would guess it will take about 20 minutes to fill a box. Mazes are open but muddy this morning, with less mud this afternoon/tomorrow. See you soon!
Saturday 11/19 -- We are open today 9-5! Rain or shine! Come out to pick strawberries (picking will be good today, we have more in the field than I originally estimated!) and do fun fall activities.
Strawberries will be "in season" until next weekend (November 25-27) At that time we will have a lot of strawberries to pick! Remember: we are a u-pick farm so come on out to get as much or as little as you'd like!
Thursday 11/17 -- We'll be open this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday regardless of what the weatherman says!
We will have activities and strawberry picking.
Strawberry picking will be best on Friday with slim picking on Saturday and Sunday.
The candy corn maze got mowed down to make room for spring flowers, but we still have the Texas Maze and the Barnyard Maze going strong. Lots of new baby goats and they sooooooo cute!
Sunday 11/13 -- Open today 11-5! All of our activities are open... except..
We had a light freeze last night that wiped out the flower field. All strawberries that have developed past the bloom stage should be fine. So we are still looking at a good crop of berries for the next 2 weeks, but probably not much after that. The mazes didn't take too much damage and are still holding up well. We have a few new baby goats on the farm! All in all the farm is good, can't wait to have y'all out to have some fun!
Saturday 11/12 -- We are open today (9-5) and tomorrow (11-5). It is cold, layer up when visiting today. All activities will be open! The grounds look good! I was able to successfully walk around the farm without getting mud on the bottom of my boots. Areas where the mud will be: Flower Fields.
Mazes are still (mostly) upright and in decent condition with little to no mud in them.
Come by and get your fall flowers before they are gone! See y'all soon!
Friday 11/11 -- We're open today 9-5 ... rain or shine! So far... no rain...and it looks like the chances are decreasing as the day goes on. There are ripe berries in the field, but it will take some time to pick 2 pounds. Come on out for fall activities! See you soon!
Monday 11/7 --- What a great season! Not the biggest but definitely not the worst. We are super happy to get whatever comes our way, Thank You Lord.
The Farm is going to transition to a Thanksgiving theme now, staying open on Friday, Saturday and Sundays.. Nothing has frozen, the Flowers are still growing well and before long we will have Strawberries to pick. Yep, Strawberries to pick in about a week or so. The weather has been unusually warm so those plants we planted back in September have decided to fruit. I don't think there will be much to pick this weekend but the following (18, 19 and 20) we should have some ripe fruit and I think there will be a lot of berries to pick the Friday, Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving. The weather will dictate how long the picking goes. Hope to see you soon!
Friday 11/4 ----- No rain here, just a lot of wind today. Thats fine because everything is a-ok for tomorrow. Historically the first weekend of November is super relaxed and not busy at all. We are excited about a good easy weekend. The Flowers are still going strong and the Mazes .are still doing good (although there are a ton of new paths).
The Strawberry plants that we planted back in September are becoming established. IF we don't have any freezing weather - expect some berries to pick in late November! Wouldn't that be something? Who knows what this crazy weather is going to do so we will just have to wait and see.
Friday morning 10;40am ---- And just like that the rain ahs stopped and the sun is trying to peak out. Everything is open and ready to go. The grounds have soaked up the rain well. There might be a few muddy spots today between the rows of flowers. Other than those spots the rain did nothing but make everything better for the weekend! Hope to see you soon.
Friday morning 7:35 am ---- Hey hey, a nice little shower just passed through. I wonder if the cracks in the ground will close? According to the radar we have another little line coming and then we will be done by mid morning. The Farm is open rain or shine. Paint a Pumpkin, Stuff a Scarecrow and Sandart are under a barn. The Berry Bounce will be good to go not long after the rain stops. We have one patch of flowers on gravel/sand, be sure to pick on the house side to avoid the chance of mud. Hayrides will be dry and the grounds are mostly grass covered. The Mazes shouldn't be muddy but will be slippery for a couple of hours, I'll try to get an update up by mid morning. Nothing like a good shower to freshen everything up! Yeah!
Tuesday morning 9am --- That wind storm you had last night - we had too! A cold front blew through last night, we had a little rain and a lot of wind, strong wind! The Farm grounds are easily passable, no mud at all. Just the right amount of rain fell to settle the dust and freshen us up. The Mazes are going to require a little cleanup before we open them back up. We should have the Candy Corn and Barnyard Mazes opened up by mid morning. "Texas" might take us the rest of the day so I would say it will be closed until Thursday morning. The pathways are all fine they just have occasionally stalks of grass leaning through the pathways. I would say the ten foot tall stalks about thumb size diameter held up pretty well considering the wind gusts.
Cooler! It is cooler! Could it actually be Fall? Loving these temperatures - hope to see you soon.
Monday morning 10/24 9am ---- Well...... it was forecast to rain ........... maybe later today? So far we have not had any rain and there is none on the radar remotely close to us. The grounds are sure are thirsty, a little shower would be nice but as my granddaughter says "we get what we get and we won't throw a fit!".
This past weekend was awesome. We truly have the best customers in the world. Folks seemed to be having a good time even when it was way too warm, windy and a bit dusty at times. I have not heard of any of our farmhands being yelled at or disrespected this year. When you lose faith in humanity, come hang out at the Farm a bit.
Speaking of temperatures ....... if the forecast holds true ......... we might see highs in the high 60s/low 70s!!!! Wow, that will be great because I was thinking we might have to change the name of the season to "Harvest of Summer supposed to be Fall Fun". This is going to be a good couple of weeks, hope to see you soon!
Tuesday 10/18 9:40 am --- What a great day it is going to be! Finally it is beginning to feel like Fall (at least for the next few days).. A little chilly this morning with a forecast high of 70 and sunshine today. We hardly had any rain yesterday so the grounds are easily passable with no mud. Hope to see you soon!.
Monday morning 9:30am 10/17 ---- So far just a drizzle of rain here. There is nothing on the radar heading this way at the moment but keep an eye out if you were thinking about coming today. A little more rain sure would be nice but we are super happy with anything we get. I'll try to update again tonight or first thing in the morning concerning field conditions.
Occasionally, throughout the season we like to go in and tidy up the Mazes by cutting any grass hanging out into the pathways with hedgers. We just finished the Barnyard and Candy Corn Mazes. I like that job because it is good ole fashioned work and a good way to burn calories after eating too many Strawberry Popsicles. The Mazes look amazingly well considering they haven't had a drink of water in over a month.
The Season seems to be going great, hope to see you soon..
Thursday evening 10/13 ----- That bloomin pig!!!!! I figured I should check out the Barnyard Maze to see how it was looking in there. The object of that Maze is to find our 4 "lost" Farm animals, a cow, chick, sheep and pig. That pig alludes me every time I go looking for it! I did find it and tried to figure out how I made it so hard so I could use the technique in Texas - I did nothing new, it shouldn't be that hard :). After the Barnyard, I went through the Candy Corn to check it. I am happy to report that both Mazes look very good considering the hot dry weather pattern we have been. I am very pleased! The very back of the Candy Corn Maze has a strip of sandy soil that does not hold water - the grass is dried and withered in that section. Luckily it is in a non important area.
Has anyone ever been to Megargel? That is a town in Texas and I want to know how the towns folk pronounce it.
The Texas Maze looks good as well. It is odd, one set of pedestrians will find all the towns in under 45 minutes whereas half the pedestrians can't get them all. It is still hot in the afternoons, do the Maze in the morning while it is still cool.
I often drive a Hayride tractor and it never ceases to amaze me that I see new little tidbits Granny has put out on the route. I think I mentioned that a bunch of Gnomes had moved in over by the Trick or Treat Scarecrows area. Well, she also added a dressing area to the Beauty pageant that has a large mirror. Every time I see the tractor in that mirror, I look around for another tractor! If you get on my Hayride, you better be ready for a quiz when you get off:). There is a Super Hero scene and I like to ask the kids which hero's were on the hill. Most of the time they miss one and I say "He is faster than a speeding bullet, he leaps tall buildings and can stop a locomotive". Yeah, evidently that is the OLD Superman because none of the young kids know that description. You just dated yourself if you knew who I was talking about, Ha Ha.
Until we get a cold front in here, I suggest mornings.. Afternoons are ok if folks are dressed accordingly. We sell water but you can bring your own. Make sure you stay hydrated, especially if you are not accustomed to the outdoors. The season is going great, everything on the Farm seems to be working well. All we are missing is you!
Sunday evening 10/9 ----- It was a good weekend! The Farm is open tomorrow for Columbus / Indigenous peoples day . Attendance is down a bit which is not all bad, because folks have been able to do everything they want without much of a line at any event. While in some years tomorrow is a big day - I wouldn't worry about crowds.
A few observations from the weekend: 1. The Farm has two fields of Flowers, the field on the house side of the road has been picked less therefore has a greater abundance of flowers to choose from. 2. The Texas Maze is getting warm in the afternoons. Until these temperatures start to come down - do the Texas Maze in the mornings. Save the other activities for the afternoons when you can catch a breeze. 3. There are cashiers all over the Farm, feel free to walk around and see what activities you like and then purchase a ticket. 4. Take your time. Don't be in a hurry, relax and enjoy the Farm.
A nice little wet cold front sure would be nice to lower the temperatures and give this dry land a drink. About a month ago we had a inch and a half of rain which greened up the farm in an amazing way. That rain has pretty much gone now. I am surprised at how well the Mazes look considering the lack of rain. One thing for sure, we do as my granddaughter says "We'll get what we get and we won't throw a fit!". But my natural farmer inner being can't help but grumble a little :). Hope to see you soon!
Monday October 3 --- Ahhh, it was a great weekend. It was good to see some folks having a good time again. The mornings have been cool and enjoyable. Afternoons are still a tad warm but not too bad if there is a breeze. We have highs in the low 80s forecast for this coming weekend! Wow, that is going to be soooo nice.
The Farm continues to run on all cylinders. We have been running the water truck a lot to keep the dust down in the parking lot. It is getting dry here and the grass is starting to show it. But there is always a good side so NO mud! Hope to see you soon!
Friday September 30 --- These cooler temperatures are wonderful! The afternoons are still a little warm but the mornings are delightful. Things are going great here on the Farm. This is one of those years where all the events and activities seem to be running smoothly. ....... so far. We have up to 8 tractors pulling hayrides and two pulling barrel trains. Since all of our tractors are pretty old, (ranging from 1948 to 2013) those two areas are the first to have issues - but not so far this year. The Flower fields are incredibly beautiful, the Mazes look great and tall. Attendance has been down the last two weeks so it is a good time to come out and enjoy a relaxed farm outing.
79,000 Strawberry plants have been put in the ground. They are already starting to grow and even a few blooms have popped out! Another 47,000 should be delivered soon. We will try to get them in the field as soon as possible after they arrive as well. The goal is to have everything planted by the end of the third week in October in order to get them established before any cold weather heads our way. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday September 20 --- It's fun in the mornings, way too hot in the afternoons. The afternoons lately have been crazy hot, don't come in the afternoon. Instead, come in the mornings when it is still bearable and fun.
The Mazes are in as good of shape as they have ever been. We are super proud of them. It is turning off hot and dry again so they, and the rest of the farm, are looking a little parched.
Zinnias love it hot. The Flower fields are loaded with big beautiful blooms to cut.
Just about everything on the farm is working and looking great. We just need a little cooler weather to be able to enjoy it all.
Side note: 75,000 of the Strawberry plants should arrive later today. They certainly are not going to like the heat either
Monday September 12 ---- The Farm is in amazing shape! Maybe the best I have seen in a long while.
The flower fields are just gorgeous. They are loaded with blooms of all colors and sizes. Edder has done a great job of irrigating and growing the plants. Not often can you walk through a field with flowers up to your waist in every direction.
Not often are all the Mazes in his good of shape. In years past a storm or high winds have blown a portion down - not this year.! We are happy with the uniformity and growth of the grass which ranges from 7 to 10 feet tall. How hard are they this year? Well, we will find out this weekend when we get some pedestrians.
Granny and crew have been busy adding scarecrows to the themed hayride. The other day I was out there and it looks like a bunch of gnomes have moved to town! Every year it seems like Scarecrow village gets bigger and bigger.
I guess what I am trying to say is God has blessed us immensely and the Farm is really showing it. We are so proud to be able to be a part of offering families a good old fashioned wholesome event. I wish is wasn't so costly to do everything but hopefully, we have it set up where folks can do what their budget allows while still enjoying the day.
Monday September 5 ---- Getting closer! the Harvest of Fall Fun is coming fast, opening September 17 for all the fun sooooo...... we have some work to do!
The Farm looks spectacular. All the rains we have had for the last two weeks have turned it green and lush. The Mazes are doing very well. What are we working on? Lacy is making Ice Cream, popsicles and working on group bookings. Raelynn is doing HR (trying to hire some folks) , signage, booking birthday parties and some advertising. Granny and her crew are busy working on the Scarecrow Island Hayride. Edder is installing irrigation on all the Strawberry beds we just made. Tony, George and I are removing sprinklers from the Mazes, mowing, painting and building fences. I love to work so this is an exciting time for us. Hope to see you soon!!!
Wednesday 8/3/22 ---- Its been awhile! Well! Let me catch you up: I am sure you have noticed that it has been hot and dry, if you haven't noticed - let me tell you, it has been HOT and DRY. I guess you would be right in saying "What do you expect? It's summer". Yes, but it feels extra hot and dry.
Mazes: all planted and pathways are cut. We are very blessed with strong water wells. We water through the night and are just barely able to keep them growing. My son in law has done a great job fertilizing and keeping the army worms away. There are a few week spots but overall we expect them to be tall and full, assuming we don't get a nasty rain event with strong winds that will lay a lot of the cane down. There is the Barnyard Maze (maybe the easiest of them all) where the object is to find our lost barnyard animals (signs) and come back out. The Candy Corn Maze which is significantly bigger this year. The object is to find the giant Candy Corn and ring the bell before coming back out. We will see but this could be a little more difficult than in years past. The School Group Maze,, reserved for school field trips and of course the Texas Maze. The theme this year for the Texas Maze is "uniquely" Texas. Folks will be looking for 14 uniquely named towns in Texas: Fabens, Coyanosa, Shafter, Mobettie, Flomot, Fluvanna, Knickerbocker, Blewit, Falfurrias, Nordeim, Heidenheimer, Yantis, Votaw and Megargel. I am sure you know exactly where all those towns are ---- if not, get the map out. The object now is to keep the pathways mowed and the grass watered.
Zinnias: only my stubborn head would transplant small plants in this kind of heat! But we are. Only a few more plants to go and we should have 40,000 in the ground. We are making a few changes to the flower patch this year, we will be growing them on both sides of the road. We need to rotate some of our tired Strawberry ground so we are going to move the Strawberries where last years group maze was, the group maze where the Barnyard Maze was, the Barnyard Maze where some of the Zinnias were, and some of the Zinnias where some of the Strawberries were. I love annual farming just for this reason! We can move things around.
My beloved mother, "Granny", is amazing! She has started her crew out on the Scarecrow Island Hayride and the village is coming together nicely. If you haven't been,, our Hayride is definitely one of a kind all because Granny and her keen sense of creativity has produced almost 400 friendly scarecrows in a myriad of 'scenes'. It's just good ole country fun.
Among every thing else they do, the daughters, Raelynn and Lacy have the kitchen cranked up making homemade popsicles, Ice Cream and Jam.
So all in all, the Farm looks great for this time of the year. We are super excited about the upcoming Fall season that will start September 17 or maybe a little sooner if the weather cooperates.
Monday 6/27 - - The sunflower field is now closed, as is the rest of the farm. We do this every year in preparation for our annual Harvest of Fall Fun! We will have mazes, pumpkins, hayrides, and wayy more to make all of your fall dreams come true. It will be here before we know it, and we can't wait to have people back to have some good old fashioned farm fun!
Monday 6/20 -- It sure is amazing how quick the sunflowers go! This will be our last full week of sunflower picking. The LAST DAY for sunflower picking will be Sunday June 26th. We are now doing our 'clear the field' sale for $1.00 per sunflower. There are still plenty of sunflowers in our field, we can't wait for you to come get them! :)
Monday 6/13 -- My computer is finally working again! The sunflowers look fantastic! There are only about 2 weeks left of sunflower season, so come out fast. We are at 95% bloom right now so it is a great time to come out and get those photos and sunflowers!
Saturday 6/4 -- We did have a rain shower this morning, but the flowers are better off for it. We do have some mud in the field but I don't anticipate it lasting long. We will be open normal hours this weekend, and we can't wait to have you out!
Friday 6/3 -- The sunflowers are looking much better today! This weekend will be a great time to come for pictures and lots of variety. The forecast is showing hot hot hot, so I would come out sooner rather than later in the season because we predict that the blooms won't last very long in that heat. Follow us on facebook for live video and photo updates so you can determine the best time to come for you :) Can't wait to have y'all out!
Monday May 30 ----- We do have sunflowers in the field, but I would wait until later in the week to visit for photographs. The plants are not producing as uniformly as they have in the past and we are a bit in limbo between varieties. There is probably around 5000 blooms ready to pick for tomorrow scattered through the field but, at the moment, we just don't have that stunning display of blooms that photographs well. It looks like that will come toward the weekend, we will post again Thursday morning to let you know.
Thursday Morning May 26 -- This is the most beautiful time of the year in my opinion. It is VERY hard to be unhappy while looking at a field of sunflowers!! :) Right now we are about 25% in bloom. With more on the way everyday! We are so thankful that we have ANY in bloom right now, this has been a very challenging growing season for us with the quick turn over of land, inconsistent weather patterns, and EXTENSIVE deer damage. The deer don't usually touch our sunflowers, but with no rainfall, they had nothing else to eat. This season is also a bit tricky for us because a highway cuts right through our property. With the Texas heat and spacing issues, we've decided to only open one side of the farm: the "house side". That means that we will only have sunflower picking and goat feeding going on at this time. No other farm activities will be open. We can't wait to have you out to pick some lovely sunflowers!
Monday May 23 -- We have been busy busy busy, closing one season and getting ready to open for the next. Sunflowers will be in bloom this weekend! This is the beginning of the season. We should be open for about 3-4 weeks of sunflower blooms! We will not have any other of our normal farm activities... just goat feeding and flower picking going on right now. See y'all soon!
Thursday morning 5/12 ---- It's a hot one, yes it is. The Strawberry crop is finished, there are no berries to be picked. The Farm will be open through this Sunday with Farm Activities and fresh Ice Cream.
It was a late start and an early finish to the Strawberry season, we are glad we had some berries in between. Concerning Strawberries: now is the time to evaluate varieties and order plants for this Fall planting, mow the plants, lift and discard the mulch and drip and someday we will get some rain to cultivate the fields. Come August the entire process starts again with the building of the beds and a renewed sense of hope for the 2023 crop.
The Spring Bloom field is being worked on at the moment. The field is mostly Ranunculus which are a perennial plant. They produce a corm that needs to be pulled up and stored in a dry place until planting again this Fall. That is a dirty tough job. There is no easy way to do it other than just getting in there and getting sticky, sweaty and dirty. I am glad to say that we have finished pulling the plants, the plastic mulch and the drip line. All that is left is to rip and cultivate that field. In July we will plant it to a Sorgum Sudan hybrid grass that will turn into the Candy Corn Maze this Fall.
There are always plenty of things to do on the farm but right now we don't feel the pressure of getting anything done quickly (hence me hiding out in the air conditioned office - ha ha).
Sunday evening 5/8 --- Happy Mothers Day! We hope it has been a wonderful day for all of you mothers.. Whew! it was plenty hot for Mothers Day this year. We were very thankful for that wind that we were wishing would go away three weeks ago. 104 yesterday and 103 today here at the farm Since this is the year of "I don't remember it ever ....", I will go ahead and say "I don't ever remember it being this hot, this early.". The hot and dry has put a halt to Strawberry production. There is nothing in 8 acres of Strawberries to pick, their season is done. Now comes the job of removing the plants and cultivating the fields, which won't happen until we get a little rain to soften the soil.
The Farm will stay open this week for those folks that haven't got the memo yet. The Farm Activities will still be going, the Ice Cream is sure to be delicious this week.
Next up is Sunflowers, which love this kind of weather. We expect them to really turn on the jets and do some growing this week. An added bonus to the Sunflowers will be a ton of volunteer Zinnia's. Zinnias normally do not come back true to their parents lineage so it will be very interesting to see what kind of flowers we get.
Thursday evening 5/5 ----- Unbelievable! My dear old late preacher father used to say "Those rain clouds always split right before Marble Falls just like Moses parted the Red Sea" . Well, I have been hearing his voice in my head all day because he is exactly right concerning todays events. I watched the rain on the radar go North, East, West and South of us today and only by a few miles! In the afternoon there was a good line of showers heading our way and we just happened to be in the only break in that line. I am going to be upset if it starts raining on our next event - Sunflowers. Well, maybe not ....... we will take the rain when we can get it and as my grandaughter says "we get what we get and we won't throw a fit".
Thursday morning 5/5 ----- Is it going to rain? It looks promising but we'll believe it when we see it. Some years it seems we have a target on us for storms but not this year (which is not all bad).
Ripe Strawberries are getting very hard to find, I believe they are just about finished for this year. We had a late start to the season and it looks like we will have an early end. In early April we had a string of mid 90's and even a 101 degree day which Strawberry plants do not like. That warm weather told the plants to stop blooming which translates to the lack of berries right now. We were happy to get the berries we got but now is the time to start planning for the next cycle.
The Farm will temporarily close at the end of Sunday May 15. Until then, the Farm Activities will still be going, the Ice Cream is sure to be delicious, and not many Strawberries will be in the fields to pick.
Sunflowers! the next crop will be cut your own Sunflowers starting in the first part of June. We'll let you know as we get closer when they are coming.
Tuesday Evening 5/3 --- Aaaannndd just like that we are back to hot weather. I think this year is a true Texas weather year, it has sure kept us on our toes!! Berry picking for Thursday will fair slightly better than the last few days. Berry supply is dwindling, but berries are still out there! Smaller than earlier in the season (which is normal) and scattered. Where you could pick a box on half a row 2 weeks ago, now it will take 2 or 3 rows to get you a box of berries. Wear your step tracker and make it a fun way to get those steps in! If you don't pick a whole lot of berries you can also get your berries in frozen form! Ice Cream and Popsicles are sure to be a treat on these warmer days. Weekend Picking Forecast: Same as Thursday, but the earlier in the day you come, the better supply of berries we will have. See y'all soon!
Monday Morning 5/2 - - Hey y'all! Lacy here. I'm taking over the Fresh News for a couple of days. Berry picking at this time of year is a patience game.... the berries are out there.... you just have to spend the time to look for them. Gently move those leaves around to find the fruit that is in the shade. I think the average right now is about 30 minutes a box. We've still got lots of activities for the kids and you'll be sure to enjoy the day in the great outdoors! Can't wait to have you out to the farm soon!
Saturday evening 4/30 ----- It was a good day, everyone seemed happy and understood they needed to look a little harder for Strawberries. They looked - and they found! I saw some very nice boxes of berries come out of the fields today ......... and some that didn't look so good. It looks like tomorrow will be just about the same. There are ripe berries out in the field but they are scattered so it takes more of hunt to find a full box. The Farm opens at 1pm on Sundays (tomorrow). all the activities will be running and the Ice Cream will be delicious. The season is winding down fast so better come get them while you can.
Friday evening 4/29 ---- Where was this fantastic weather a month ago? Seems like we went from a winter to mild Summer and now back to Spring. I am loving this weather for sure.
Tomorrow: It will be like today = everyone found berries but not without a little hunt. An early arrival is best for sure. Strawberry availability will probably be limited by mid to late afternoon. There is about nine miles worth of Strawberry rows here at the farm. The later in the day folks arrive - the more walking is required to find those berries. Remember: always start picking at the FAR end of the row and work back. The last 75 feet of the row normally have the most berries. If you are in a spot with few berries, move around and as you walk look to the two or three rows to the right and left to see the berries hidden under the leaves.
Farm activities will be going strong and Ice Cream is always delicious. On the weekends Lacy adds fresh Strawberry smoothies and Lemonade to the mix --- they are 'wow'! Hope to see you soon as this Spring season is winding down fast.
Thursday afternoon 4/28 --- Yesterday and this morning was fantastic working weather - cloudy with a touch of cool. Seems like the last week or so have finally been Spring like weather after the summer like weather in the first of April. That warm weather a month ago is the reason the Strawberry production is slowing down now. The Strawberry plants do not like temperatures above 90 which we had in early April Since it is about 30 days from bloom to ripe fruit, that heat up caused the plants to stop blooming hence the lack of green fruit coming now.
Everyone today found berries, everyone tomorrow will find berries but it will increasingly take longer to find that boxful. Start out with one box per family, grab another after you fill that one up. All the activities are going great and the Ice Cream is delicious. Come see us.
Tuesday afternoon 4/26 ---- Remember: the Farm is closed on Wednesdays. --- 2 tenths of an inch out of yesterdays rain. A little less than we would like but much much better than nothing. The berries did get some washing and the farm is a little fresher today. That moisture is pretty much gone now, so there is no mud to deal with.
While the berries are much cleaner, I'm not too happy with the amount of berries I see available for picking. And not many green berries coming so It looks like we are going to see a slow down in production soon. Thursdays picking will only be decent. The berries are medium to small and an early arrival is better than later. We are going to go down to giving out one box per family to start with (multiple boxes are no problem if you are bringing back your old ones), fill that box back and hurry back for another. This is not to limit the amount anyone picks, it is only to limit the amount of unusable boxes we find hidden around the farm. Just think of it as a good way to teach the kids (or adults) to share and work together to fill a box. I believe everyone that comes out will find a boxful of berries - later in the day it might take longer to find that boxful. Same for Friday. We will update before Saturday.
The Flowers are finished now. We enjoyed them very much and look forward to expanding the field and making a few changes to planting. That's what we love about annual crops - every year we can do things to try to make them better. Soon we will begin working to take out that field and get it ready for the Fall Candy Corn Maze.
Sunday evening 4/24 ---- I believe I underestimated how many berries folks were going to pick this weekend - Tomorrow we have a 90% chance of rain (which means that there is a 10% of no rain) --- Tuesday we will be drying out if it does rain ---- Wednesday the Farm is closed soooooo Thursday should be great picking again!! I am most excited about the possibility of getting the plants and berries washed off. There will be berries for the folks that do come out tomorrow or Tuesday, just not as big a selection as Thursday.
Saturday evening 4/23 --- Another good day in the books! Folks picked a LOT of Strawberries today, some of the best ones we have seen this year. The only frowny face I saw today was on the little boy who got upset when his dad took his box of Strawberries away so he could carry it to the car. It is so good to see folks enjoying themselves. Tomorrow will be another good picking day (Open 1pm to 5pm), maybe a few less available than today but still good. Looks like rain chances are pretty high on Monday (we'll believe it when we see it) , a good washing sure would be nice for the Farm. After tomorrow, next Thursday should be amazing picking, especially if the plants and berries get that rain on Monday. Remember 1pm to 5pm on Sundays, Hope to see you soon..
Friday evening 4/22 ----- It was a busy day today and you can't even tell out in the Strawberry fields. The next few days will be wonderful picking regardless of the time folks arrive.
I will say today was windy and tomorrow is forecast to be the same. As a farmer we like to put the plants in the ground with the proper spacing to allow lots of air flow to prevent diseases ------- needless to say, with this wind, we have had zero disease pressure this year! I am sure every year I say "well, I've never seen it this ______".. This year it is "I have never seen a Spring this dry and windy".
Friday morning 4/22 ---- These Strawberries are putting on a show. All of the sudden it seems they decided to put on one last show. It looks like the picking will be spectacular through the next week, no matter what time of day you come, and then a slow down starting in May. This might be the last best time for "Jam Picking". We are trying to load up ourselves for our freezers. Lacy uses over 2500 pounds in her Ice Cream, Smoothies, Lemonade, Popsicles and Jam - yikes!
The Flower field is just about finished. Raelynn is eeking out a few more flowers while trying to get every last one. She said this will probably be the last weekend for flower picking.
It is still dry!!! but a couple of cloudy cooler days sure have been nice. It looks like we have a pretty good chance next Monday and we will take it!
Thursday morning 4/21 ----LOTS of Strawberries! Maybe the best picking of the season now. It should be great Strawberry picking all the way through the weekend. The flower field is just about done. but the Ice Cream is still delicious. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/17 --- Happy Easter everyone! It was a good day on the farm today. Not too busy and not too slow. We missed a rain shower by just that much. I watched it on the radar scoot just to our South. Oh well we will get some rain eventually. Good thing we have strong water wells.
Tomorrow will be great Strawberry picking as we are going into the School group field where noone has been for a few days. There are still lots of flowers in the field too. This should be a great week to come out to the Farm and guess what - NO mud!
Saturday evening 4/16 ---- And another good day! The Farm will be open tomorrow, Easter Sunday. 1pm to 5pm. We will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus in the morning and then opening the farm in the afternoon. There are Strawberries and Flowers to pick, Farm Activity fun to have, Ice Cream, Smoothies and Popsicles to eat. It will be a good afternoon we hope to see you soon.
This morning was cloudy and boy was it nice. This afternoon the clouds broke, the Sun came out and it got a little toasty for me.
Friday evening 4/15 ---- Wow, what a GOOD Friday (Happy Easter everyone). The Reason was awesome, the Strawberries were awesome, the Flowers were awesome, the Weather was awesome, the Smoothies/Ice Cream were awesome and best of all - the customers were/are awesome. I saw two little boys holding hands coming out of the field today and thought, "what a great picture (as a tear began to well up in my eye) that is what the Farm is all about". Just then the youngest yanked his hand away from his brother, gave him the what for and poof, that tear was replaced with a big ole laugh.
Tomorrow (Saturday) will be almost as good! We might not have quite the supply of Berries so come in the morning to make sure you get plenty. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening 4/14 --- Lookin good! Tomorrow morning will be good Strawberry picking, just depends on customer flow but hopefully the picking will stay good most of the day. Be sure to check here tomorrow night concerning Strawberry availability for Saturday.. There is lots of flowers to pick, they should last all weekend. The Farm activities will be lots of fun all weekend, and the Ice Cream is sure to be great. Happy Easter everyone, hope to see you soon.
Tuesday evening 4/12 ---- The same as yesterdays post with additions: No! we did not get any of that rain on the radar! Oh well, maybe next time. Strawberries: Thursday we are going into the school group field for some amaaaazing picking! Wow! This will take all the pressure off of the main fields so Friday will be good picking in the morning, customer flow will determine how long it takes to go from good picking to a bit of a hunt picking. A little too early to tell about Saturday and Sunday.
Monday evening 4/11 ------ I was pleasantly surprised with the berries that came out today. They weren't the best but for sure not the worst. This morning was cloudy with pleasant temperatures which finally felt like a Spring day. There is a chance of rain tomorrow afternoon, only 30% but we will take anything right now. A shower sure would be a God send for the Farm but if it doesn't rain, oh well, we will just continue to irrigate. Good thing about being so dry - we haven't had to mow very much.
Next few days:
Ranunculus flowers - lots of beautiful blooms to choose from. Should be great picking through Friday and I suspect through the entire weekend. They sure are nice.
Farm Fun Activities - going great! The Pony rides join the fun on Friday, Saturday and Sunday too.
Ice Cream - simply delicious, Lacy is making more as we speak and there should be plenty of fresh Ice Cream and Popsicles all weekend. Fresh Strawberry Smoothies and Lemonade join the menu on Saturday.
Strawberries ----- better not give more than a couple days outlook on them. Tomorrow: slim picking in the morning but then in the afternoon after the school kids leave, about 1:15 pm, we are going to pick in their field which will be awesome picking. If we don't clean out that School field tomorrow, we are going to let you die hard Thursday pickers in there between 8:30 - 9:30am before the school kids arrive. So, if you really want some good picking - come tomorrow afternoon or Thursday morning before 9:30.. This should take a little pressure off the main fields so I expect there to be decent picking in them Thursday if you don't make it early. Friday, Good Friday, is historically a big day - come early for berries (before 11am). We will just have to wait and see how the picking goes before we guess at Saturday and Sunday. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/10 ----- We have the best customers in the world!! There weren't many Berries to pick today but everyone seemed to take it in stride and have a good time.
For Monday: I think we will have a lot of fun with the children activities, Pick some gorgeous flowers, eat some delicious ice cream and ................. scratch out a few Strawberries. If you are solely after Strawberries, - don't come tomorrow. The Activities and Flowers will be doing very well but not the Strawberries. We will once again be giving out one box per family tomorrow. Berries will continue to ripen with every passing day but I think it will be Thursday before the fields have recovered.
Saturday evening 4/9 ------ Whew! What a day. A lot of fine folks braved the wind and came out to the farm today. I don't understand but I would see a dozen or so boxes of so so berries and then out of the blue someone would bring in a box of nice big red ones! When asked where they picked they would just say "a little here and a little there".
For Sunday - the Farm opens at 1pm on Sundays - I think we will have a lot of fun with the children activities, Pick some gorgeous flowers, eat some delicious ice cream and ................. scratch out a few Strawberries. If you are solely after Strawberries, - don't come tomorrow. The Activities and Flowers will be doing very well but not the Strawberries. We willl once again be giving out one box per family tomorrow.
Friday evening 4/8 ---- Well, tomorrow and Sunday will be a great time to pick beautiful flowers, eat delicious ice cream, sip amazing strawberry smoothies, have fun with the activities but NOT picking Strawberries. T
Flowers: the field of Ranunculus looks very good. Lots of colors and lots of blooms to choose from. At only 50 cents per bloom who can resist?
The Spring activities are a lot of fun for the children. Paint a pot (paint a white pot, fill it with soil and plant a seed to take home), Sand Art (make a necklace with colored sand), Sweet Barrel Express (a tractor pulled train of barrels the kids ride in. This has to be the most boring ride ever but when my grandaughter was 1 to 4 we couldn't keep her off), Pony rides, and the Berry Bounce (just a giant jumping air filled pillow the kids can jump on). On the weekends the Sweet Shack is open with fresh made Strawberry Smoothies, Strawberry lemonade and some light snacks.
Strawberries: ugh! tomorrow we will be handing out one box per family. Fill that box and hurry back for another. This is not to limit the amount of berries anyone picks, it is to prevent folks from soiling 5 boxes, combining them into one and leaving the other 4 stuffed under benches, on picnic tables, in trash cans, in the fields and any other place they can be hidden. Once the box is stained, we do not reuse it. A plethora of things are going on with the plants. It is super dry here and the plants are just covered with dirt from the blowing dust. There is also a lot of berries in the fields that are damaged from the wind and the upper 90s and even 101 on last Tuesday and the list goes on. Sooooo, we need a little rain and the temperatures to moderate a little bit to get our plants back in a groove. For now it will take some effort to find your berries, just get down there in amongst the leaves sort through those berries and find the good ones. If you accidently pick a berry not up to your standards, just throw it on the ground and go in for another. We see strong green berries on the way, lets hope the weather cooperates to bring them safely to maturity.
Wednesday evening 4/6 --- Tomorrow we will be staying in the main fields for Strawberry picking, which should be decent. There are lots of flowers to pick. That field is just gorgeous.
Monday afternoon 4/4 ------ Those berries coming out of the school group field are amazing! We are going to pick there as much as we can the next few days to let our main fields recover from a busy weekend. We have to pick around the school groups, so tomorrow (Tuesday) we are going to pick in that field from 8:30 - 10am, 2pm to 5:30pm. From 10am to 2pm folks will pick in the main field where there is berries, just not like the school group field yet. The Farm is closed Wednesday. Thursday we might possibly do this again - it just depends on how many get picked tomorrow. If you are wanting to pick a lot for jam, - tomorrow is the day to come. The Berries are super nice and super abundant. I picked 6 boxes (30 pounds) in 30 minutes this morning from that field. This is a special thing, it is only going to happen when the school group field is crazy loaded and the main fields are not.
Sunday evening 4/3 ---- The fields are picked pretty close. Tomorrow (Monday) morning will be slim pickings BUT in the afternoon we are going to let folks pick in the School Group Field which has some wonderful berries in it. So if coming tomorrow - definitely come after 1pm. We might do that Tuesday as well. Thursday the main fields should be back in the berries so we will plan on picking in them..
The Spring blooms are doing great! The flowers are just beautiful and folks are really getting a lot of enjoyment picking them.
Saturday evening 4/22/22 ---- Beautiful berries went out this morning and then ....... they got harder to find. There are almost ripe berries in the field now that will ripen overnight for tomorrows picking (open at 1pm) but still, the picking wont be great. We are going to start the day giving one box (holds 5 pounds) per family. Fill up the box and run back for another one if needed. Don't worry, with a little diligence you'll find those berries! With this weather the berries will ripen fast - next Tuesday should be good picking and by Thursday we will be swimmin in berries again!
The Spring Blooms pick your own flowers are off to a great start! The flowers are beautiful, be sure to stop and check them out. At only 50 cents per bloom, who can resist?
4/1 ---- No Foolin - the Strawberries are looking much much better and there is a decent amount to pick this weekend. We for sure will have plenty through mid day tomorrow - just depends on the crowd how tomorrow afternoon looks. I suspect there will be plenty of berries for Saturday and Sunday it will just take longer and longer to find them as the days go on. There are nine miles of Strawberry row to pick, finding that spot where no one else has been is sometimes tricky. I will say: ALWAYS go to the FAR end of the row and pick back, everyone else started up front and never made it to the good stuff..
The incredibly delicious fresh homemade Strawberry smoothies have returned!!!!!! The 'Sweet Shack' is now open on Saturday and Sundays with Smoothies, Strawberry Lemonade, Ice Cream, Popsicles and ......... pickles (what?!) Everything but the pickles are made right here on the farm and boy are they good. Look for the Sweet Shack (Pumpkin grille in the Fall) down by the Picnic Tables.
3/30/22 ---- Closed Wednesdays, (today). This is the day we do stuff like pumping port o potties, mowing, weedating, misc stuff that is best to do without folks around. Speaking of Port o Potties - we try to have the cleanest ones in the country - hint: the farthest ones away from the front are the least used.
What a wonderful rain we had this morning! Only two tenths but we will take it for sure. The Farm feels so much better and fresher, The Berries were desperately needing a wash and if you were here last weekend in the blowing dust you'll agree that the ground did too. It is windy again today so I don't expect any mud by tomorrow. Other than the occasional wet spot, the fields should be in great shape.
Strawberries: tomorrow and Friday should be pretty good picking. I am not super proud of these berries because they are on the small side. I know the small ones taste as good as the big ones but I still like to pick those big ole juicy red ones (I see some strong blooms now so maybe in a month we will have those big ones). We still have some frost cover damaged berries out there as well so keep that in mind..
Tulips: I don't think we will have Tulips this year. That's farming, sometimes you just have a crop loss, nothing you can do but grin, bear it and move on. We DO have some gorgeous Spring Flowers to pick on the farm side. They are just now getting started and should continue to bloom through April.
3/26/22 ---It was a great day on the farm! A bit windy and dry. Strawberry supply started out pretty good but by mid day they were getting harder to find. It was a real hunt by closing. Tomorrow (Sunday) - the farm opens at 1pm - it is going to be another warm day and the wind is supposed to continue to blow - some berries will ripen overnight but the picking is not going to be that good. With this kind of warm weather, berry supply will increase rapidly. Monday will be ok picking, Tuesday - decent picking, Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning - great picking.
3/22 ----- Looks like those storms formed just to our East yesterday and went away from the farm. We hope you folks that were in the path are ok.
Did it rain here at the farm? We saw some water fall from the sky but ... where did it go? The ground was so dry that it was soaked up immediately. Just a little 20 minute shower here at the farm and boy were we glad to see it! These last two months have been super dry so any rainfall at all is much appreciated.
The Strawberries are ripening nicely. We have enough berries now that we can gladly tell folks to come on out, there is a lot to pick. The berries ripening right now have some cosmetic damage from forming under whipping frost covers but the main thing is there is lots to pick! Closed Wednesday but after that the rest of the week should be great picking!
Those crazy Tulips! Two or three varieties are blooming but 95% of the field is yet to emerge. I know, what?????!!!!!!! Believe me, the bulbs are a big investment and no one is more anxious than us - actually, as an old farmer I know how these things go but the daughter in charge of flowers is losing sleep. There are sooooo many factors that could play into this delayed growth, we really don't know which one or ones are causing the issue. For now all we can say is, stay tuned.
3/21 - Wow this rain is a sight for sore eyes! (And I mean sore with all the dust that has been blowing around) The farm is open today rain or shine 8:30-5:30! We'll have berry picking, paint-a-pot, sand art, and the berry bounce (depending on the weather). The Barrel Train will be closed today. There is no mud, currently everything is being soaked up by our super dry ground. See y'all soon!
Saturday evening March 19 --- This was an outstanding weather day! The best day of the entire week turned out to be the slowest in attendance, ha. Looks like their will be Strawberries to pick tomorrow.. They are not jumping in the box yet and some have a little damage from the frost covers but they are to fun to pick. The Farm opens at 1pm on all Spring Sundays - Hope to see you soon!.
Saturday March 19 --- This is what I wrote last year at this time "A beautiful but windy day today. These last two weeks have been super windy. Last week we were all leaning to the North, after yesterday and today, we are all leaning to the South.
It was good to see kids having fun again! If only we could harvest some of the energy spent out here... The activities went over well and it seemed like everyone was enjoying their selves. We will stay open with activities only until the Strawberries get here and then things will be back to normal." Sound familiar?
We are going to start picking some Strawberries! These first berries don't look too hot because they have some damage from all the frost cover use. When the covers are deployed and whipping in they wind they tend to rub the immature berries causing some cosmetic damage. It is going to be a hunt for berries today and tomorrow but by next week production should be picking up a good bit.
Thursday 3/17 ---- Still not ready. These days with sunshine and highs in the mid 80's make us think we should have berries but we have to remember that just a week ago it was down to 24 degrees. The plants don't respond overnight, it takes them a week or so to get things moving. We still think it will be a week from now before we have berries and Tulips but even that date is not for sure. We will continue to update as we get closer.
Reckon we are through with freezing weather? Normally the last thing to break bud are Pecan and Mesquite trees and right now they look pretty dormant. We watch the forecast for several towns around and north of us, currently Llano shows a low of 34 tomorrow night - that is getting way too close! We will check it again tomorrow morning to decide whether or not to cover up the plants. It is a big job to cover 8 acres of Strawberry plants so I would prefer we didn't.
The Farm is open with Farm Activities: Berry Bounce, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train, Pony rides (this week all week), goats to feed, Ice Cream, Popsicles and lots of room to run.
Tuesday 3/15 ---- Not yet, arghhhh. The Strawberries and Tulips are behind schedule! We believe it will be Thursday the 24th before we get rolling on either of those crops. Before then we might pick a few here and there but they will be very hit and miss. Until then, the Farm is open with Farm Activities: Berry Bounce, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train, Pony rides (this week all week), goats to feed, Ice Cream, Popsicles and lots of room to run.
What happened? Didn't you open in the first of March last year? February two years ago? Why are they late? Wellllll, let me tell you - it's the weather.
For Strawberries: I believe it was the researchers at North Carolina State that determined we would be picking Strawberries around 450 Growing Degree Days (GDDs) after planting. GDD units are derived by taking the high temperature plus the low temperature divided by 2. The base temperature for Strawberry growth is 50, so we subtract 50 form this number to obtain GDDs for that day. If the average temperature is less than 50, no GDDs are counted. Example: a 85 degree high plus a 59 degree low = 144 divided by 2 = 72 minus 50 = 22 units for that day. a 55 degree high plus a 30 degree low divided by 2 would be less than the 50 base so no units counted. While we had an unusually warm Fall we had a cold January/February. This combination led to a delayed crop. Do we keep track of the GDDs here at our Farm - no but understanding this principle gives us an idea of what is going on.
Tulips: We don't know much about Tulips! The bulbs are very sensitive to temperature requiring the necessary chilling units before growth. We purchase pre chilled bulbs that should have most of their cold requirement met so we don't think the temperatures had too much to do with their lateness. We can say that it has been incredibly dry. This is the one year we decided not to put in a irrigation system when planting and that might have been a mistake. Week after week we had a chance of rain and it just never materialized. I always say that you can't trust a rain forecast but yet I continue to make the mistake of letting it keep me from irrigating. Well we now have sprinklers on the field and it seems to be bring the plants on. Hopefully before long we will be picking tulips.
Monday 3/7 - - - We will be opening March 14th for farm activities only. And I'll tell you one thing you can count on.... Not being able to count on this Texas Weather! With the high highs, and then back down to low lows all our plants are confused! They put energy into growing when the weather is warm, just for the weather to tell them to stop growing when it gets cold. All the drastic fluctuations and lack of rain have put us into a late opening this year. Strawberries are lookin' to be around 2 weeks away (with the 2 weeks having perfect growing conditions) and tulips? they could take another week or two to come up. Thanks for being patient with us, we can't see into the future and don't know what the weather will bring. We will keep you updated as much as we can. We will see y'all when Spring decides to get here to central Texas.
Tulips are pretty close!!! We are pretty sure there will be a good supply of blooms to harvest next Thursday so that is when we plan to open the Farm up for the 2024 season!!!!
Monday February 12 ---- Getting closer! The Tulips are going to be first up this Spring. It is as frustrating to us as it is to you that we don't know exactly when we will be able to open up. The weather plays such an important role in the growth of the plants that it is impossible to predict when they are going to bloom. We can say that we see flower buds forming in the base of the plant which would leave us to believe we are within two weeks of harvesting Tulips. A cold spell will delay that estimate as much as a warm spell will hasten it. Tulips like cold weather so it would have to stay in the 20's or 30's to slow them down. They do not like warm weather, so 70s and above will cause them to bolt. As mentioned before, we believe the Tulip season is going to be short so be ready to jump when they start blooming. We believe that planning a trip toward the latter part of this month would be pretty reliable.
The Strawberry harvest is a bit easier to predict because it is about 30 days from a bloom to the ripe fruit. I doubt it would be warm enough to shorten that time but a cold spell of 40/50s for highs would add a couple of days. We saw some viable blooms begin to emerge at the beginning of this month and a pretty good supply of them currently. We predict opening for Strawberry harvest around March 10 or a few days before. We are super conscious of making sure we have ample supply for everyone to harvest so even though we might be picking a few berries, we won't throw the gates open until we have a lot. In some years we will only advertise on the Fresh News that we are open to allow the faithful followers the first chance. As supply increases we will be more public in the announcement.
Thursday February 8, 2024 ---- I just wrote a long explanation of happenings on the farm and lost it all when I went to publish! LOL Since it takes me so long to write anything I will just give you the abbreviated version for now.
Tulips are coming fast! We hope to be picking flowers later this month. Raelynn thinks the season is going to be short and concentrated. Tulip lovers should be ready to jump when we put the word out but we think the last week of February and first week of March.
The Strawberry plants look very good and are starting to put out some blooms. We should be harvesting fruit by the tenth of March.
Ranunculus flowers will be close behind the Tulips and Strawberries. Their season is a little longer so plan on picking them mid March through April.
Lacy has been busy making Ice Cream/Popsicles and Jam. She says a fresh supply will be ready when we open up for these tasty treats.
Friday January 26, 2024 ---It sure has been a wet start to 2024. Somehow we were able to get the Tulips in the ground, the Ranuculus growing and the Strawberry plants looking pretty good. Two weeks ago the temperatures got into the mid teens and below freezing for several days. We had all the frost covers we had deployed in hopes they would mitigate the temperatures. We think they did and on the whole the farm looks unscathed, with just some minor damage.
Tulip bulbs were a little harder to come by for us this year so we only ended up planting 30,000. With the smaller number of bulbs we took a little more time to individually plant each one in hopes for a stronger stand. Our cost per flower dramatically increases if only 1 out of 3 end up with a viable flower and then if we have any damage by customers the cost increases even more. Couple this with one flower per bulb *one and done* and you end up with an expensive flower. But ................ if you love Tulips, it is worth it - it is hard to put a price on something that makes you happy. We hope to be harvesting Tulips in the first part of March.
The Strawberry plants are in very good shape for this time of year. We hope the plants will start becoming a little active and if we can protect the blooms ----- maybe we will have fruit to pick by Mid March.
Wednesday December 13 -- there will not be any picking for the rest of the winter. The good news is that it did not get cold enough to dole out any damage to the strawberry plants! So we will be looking forward to Strawberries in the Spring! We will keep you updated here and there throughout the winter, but we are wishing everyone a very happy, jolly, merry holiday season! Enjoy and see y'all at the farm real soon!
Monday December 11 --- Woo hoo hoo! It got a lot colder last night than was forecast! A bit of a strawberry lesson for y'all..... During this time it is important to distinguish PLANTS from BLOOMS from FRUIT. Strawberry PLANTS can withstand temperatures in the teens. Strawberry BLOOMS cannot survive below 32 degrees. Strawberry FRUIT can survive down to about 26 degrees. Now lets apply what we just learned... The temperature last night got down to 26 degrees.
- Strawberry PLANTS are fine! (This means that the plant will produce more blooms when the time is right.)
- Strawberry BLOOMS have died off (This means that we will not have any more fruit to pick unless it is already on the plant.)
- Strawberry FRUIT - It will be a close call. We will have to wait and see if the fruit has taken any significant freeze damage and see if we will be able to open the gates Thursday and Friday.
Friday December 8 — A big thank you to all our pickers yesterday and today! Y’all were able to pretty much clean the field out! We are so thankful for y’all! We will be CLOSED tomorrow (Saturday) thru Wednesday and will pop open again next Thursday and Friday (12/14 & 12/15) for picking regardless of weather! Stay tuned! We’ll be throwing out weather and berry updates early next week! See you out on the farm real soon!
Thursday December 7 --- Man alive! We had some amazing strawberries leave the farm today! Lots of folks with full baskets and full hearts! I picked a berry this afternoon that was so big I had to eat it in 3 bites!! There are still plenty in the field for tomorrow. I anticipate that the morning pickers will go away with the most berries and the afternoon pickers will have to walk to the far end of the rows to fill their basket.
We are waiting to see what tomorrow's crowd brings along with the weather forecast to determine if we will be able to have another pop-up event soon. Check back tomorrow evening if you are wanting some more info on another pop-up event. We are so excited to have some fruit for y'all and can't wait to see you tomorrow!
Wednesday November 29 ---- We hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving as we now turn our attention to Christmas Wouldn't some fresh Christmas Strawberries be great? Well, the lack of freezing weather has let the Strawberry plants put on some fruit. While we did pick some berries last weekend, we won't have another batch to pick until next Thursday and Friday because the berries ripen very slowly in the cooler weather. Currently the Farm is closed but we will be have a special opening for Strawberry picking December 7 and 8. It is hard to tell for sure but I think the picking will be pretty good, especially on Thursday. The berries I have ate sure were tasty! and big too! Next week we will take a look at the weather and determine what the following week will bring.
Ranunculus ---- we have been hard at work on the Ranunculus flower patch. We mowed down the 7 foot tall Candy Corn Maze, tilled all the stubble into the ground, plowed the field over and over, built beds, laid irrigation and are now planting the corms. So far we have about 22,000 planted with just another 5000 to go. Things like this make farming fun. Farming annual crops is fun because we can make changes every year and always have the ability to improve. We did a little better job building the beds this year and a few changes to the layout will be nice. The beginning stages are great because the field looks like a cute little puppy that has not had time to grow up and get all weedy. When planting the corms, I personally have visions of a beautiful solid field of flowers ----- sometimes it works that way but often there is always one or two spots that doesn't grow well or has issues of some kind. I am sure this is the year 100% of the plants will come up and all will be a robust plant full of blooms.
I suppose the next project will be taking down and storing all the Fall items including the over 300 Scarecrows out on the Hayride. I guarantee we will be moving at a slower pace getting it done.
Hope to see you nest week!
Tuesday November 21 ----- Happy Holidays!!!! Can you believe those Flowers are still producing beautiful blooms! Well, they are! Maybe it was the sunlight but today they seemed extra vibrant. Only once this Fall have the temperatures been close to freezing so here we are in the end of November with beautiful blooming Zinnias ....... and a few almost ripe Strawberries!
CLOSED Thursday for Thanksgiving, open Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoon for flower picking, the Mazes, Hayrides, Sandart, Pumpkin Painting the Berry Bounce and lots of Fall fun.
Friday November 17 — Still going! The Farm is open on weekends now to enjoy this great Fallish weather. The Flower field continues to impress, the Texas and Barnyard Mazes are still standing, the Hayride and Barrel train are running and the Bounces are bouncing. Open tomorrow and Sunday this week, Friday through Sunday next week (closed Thanksgiving). There are no crowds, now is the time to enjoy a relaxing outing to the farm. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 11/5 ---- Another gorgeous day filled with wonderful people! I don't know if it can get any better. Now we switch gears just a bit. The remainder of November the Farm will be closed Monday through Wednesday - Open Thursday through Sunday.. We still have flowers to pick, Mazes to walk, Pumpkins to Paint, Necklaces to fill with colored sand, pillows to jump on, hayride trailers to ride, a barrel train and hungry goats to feed Thursday through Sunday.. These November weekends can be pretty nice, normally the temperatures are a little more Fall like and the crowds are greatly diminished. If you like to enjoy the farm in a slow leisurely way, November is the time to come.
And ........ if the weather cooperates there is a chance that we will have Strawberries to pick later in the month. Last week the temperatures went down to 31 for an hour or so. We had a lot of things covered but luckily everything is ok, even the uncovered stuff. The plants we planted in the first of October have taken off and are producing blooms now. If we can keep them from freezing, we will have berries late this month and early December.. We have some plants about to bear fruit and 30,000 still to plant! Hopefully we will get the remaining plants in the ground this week - later that desired but better than never.
It is a great time to come to the farm, hope to see you Thursday!
Friday 11/3 -- This is going to be a great weekend! Great weather, small crowds, and big smiles! All activities will be open this weekend including pony rides and flower picking. Our pumpkin supply is limited, so grab them while you can. We will be open our regular hours for the weekend, and will go to reduced hours next week. Meaning closed Monday-Wednesday and Open Thrus - Sun. We only had a slight freeze and not for long so flowers and strawberries came out mostly unscathed and are looking good! Can't wait to see you soon!
Tuesday morning 10/31 ---- The sun is out and it looks like it is going to be a fantastic day and rest of the week.. The recent rainfall has been wonderful for the parched grounds out here. Puddles are disappearing as we speak and most of the farm is already mud free. The far end of the flower field, a low spot in the Barnyard Maze and the tunnel still have some drying out to do. We will have the tunnel the goes between the tow sides of the Farm cleaned out by afternoon. It is very easy to tell that the trees/plants/grass/parking lot/dusty areas and just about everything out here loved the moisture.
After a brutal summer, the cooler temperatures have been fabulous. Is it going to freeze tonight? It looks like it will be close! The Strawberry plants have quite a few blooms on them that are subject to freezing temperatures. Normally we would just throw the covers on them but the recent rainfall has complicated things a bit. We don't want to drive a tractor through the wet field and we certainly don't want the covers laying in any residual puddles. The covers are 50 feet wide by 300 feet long and they are a bear to deal with when wet. Fortunately it is not raining so we are going to pull some covers into the field by hand and see if we can protect a few fields.
The flowers are super sensitive to freezing temperatures as well. We haven't ever covered the flowers for protection but I think we might try a portion of the field if we get time. Normally, objects touching the underside of the cover still gets frozen so I am not sure how much good it will do but, we are going to give it a try.
Anyway, I better stop writing and get to work! We are here today with smiling faces and the rest of the week (closed Wednesday). Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning 10/30 ---- Almost an inch of rain here on the Farm last night, it is still drizzling and the wind is cold - you might want to pump the brakes on your plans if you wanted to come out this morning.. Sand Art, Paint a Pumpkin, Stuff a Scarecrow, Scarecrow Island Hayride and the Sweet Berry Express Barrel Train will be running this morning. There will be flowers to pick but the field is sure to be muddy today. The Mazes will be closed most of the day. Once the rain subsides and the hay dries out some we will start cleaning up the wind/rain damage.
Lets hope the forecast for clearing skies this afternoon is accurate. Everyday is a good day, just different challenges. We were waiting for a cool down and here it is.
Sunday morning 8:55am --- No rain here at the farm so far. It is 73 degrees at the Farm right now, the forecast calls for it to fall to 51 by 5pm. I guess that means some time this afternoon the wind will shift around to the North and blow in some cold air and possibly some rain with it. The Farm will be open rain or shine and the grounds are currently in good shape. I don't think we will have to worry about mud today, only falling temperatures and actual showers. An umbrella might be a good idea for today. The Farm will stay open for a bit longer through November so if you don't want to chance it today, come later. Either way, we hope to see you soon!
Saturday morning 10/28 7:55am --- It is a beautiful sunrise here on the farm today. We did not get any rain last night and only a few spotty showers are in the forecast which should make today a great day to come out to the farm. The grounds are drying up nicely and folks should be able to have a mud free day. Hope to see you soon!
Friday evening 10/27 8:30pm ------ So far, it has not rained on the Farm today. The grounds are drying up nicely and even the flower field is looking better. I will post here in the morning if we get any rain overnight. The Farm will be open this weekend rain or shine and we will be here with smiling faces.
Friday 10/27 ---- A little wet here now but we are open with smiling faces. Todays forecast has some rain in it, especially after 1pm. Sand Art, Paint a Pumpkin and Stuff a scarecrow are under cover, everything else is open to the elements.. Some of the grass stalks in the Mazes will invariably lay down across the paths after a storm with high winds and rain at the same time. Yesterday we went through and cut those canes to clean up the pathways and were surprised that it wasn't that bad.
The grassy areas of the Farm are all easily passable but picking flowers will be a bit muddy. We will keep you updated here later today or tomorrow morning concerning the weekend.
Monday evening 10/23 ------- Only enough rain fell today to settle the dust. So far, all is good, come on out!
Saturday evening 10/21 --- Another great day! A bit of summer has returned but thankfully we had some cloud cover so it wasn't too bad. Tomorrow is supposed to be a couple of degrees cooler but still in the 80s (after this past summer can you believe I would say upper 80's was warm? I must be out of my mind)
Everything seems to be working pretty well. I do want to remind folks that the pumpkins the kids paint are yours to take home. There are a lot left on the drying racks every day but I am not sure if that is by accident or on purpose :).
The Flower field on the main farm side of the road (the side with the welcome barn and Berry Bounce) has the most amount of blooms in it. Pick there for Flower picking.
The Farm received a poor review about the absence of food options. I must say there is some truth to it. We do have a grille but currently we don't have much to offer but Pulled Pork Sandwiches, PBJ sandwiches, chips and water. We were all fired up about making fresh Donuts but .... the Donut machine broke after the first weekend and we are having trouble fixing it. Hopefully we will be able to offer, they were really good, Donuts in the future. The Grille has always been a struggle for us as we have found out we are Farmers, not Restaurateurs. We did also have some food trucks lined up but seems they found something better to do elsewhere. Anyway, we are working on it and someday we will have a better menu. For now, eat light with us (the sandwiches are pretty tasty) or feel free to bring a picnic lunch and enjoy one of the 50 Tree covered Picnic tables.
A story that is only Funny after the fact: We are running 7 to 8 tractor pulled Hayrides. 'Hulk" is a big old John Deere tractor that has been reallocated to Hayride duty only. Last weekend a disconnected hydraulic hose made its way down to the side of the hot engine. A bit of old oil seemed out of the hose and when it ran onto the hot engine a big puff of smoke popped out. The driver immediately shut it down ------- in the worst possible spot on the Hayride route as there was no room for anyone to go around. I was three tractors behind , stopped my ride and ran up to assess the situation. Without knowing what the problem was I unloaded his riders and went to move the tractor out of the way --------- the battery was too weak to start it! Ugh! I ran (yes, I can still run - not well but luckily I don't think anyone saw me attempting to run) up and got the spare tractor "Fireball" which is a old Massey Ferguson 65. I threw it in high gear and rushed around to the Hulk (which is much bigger and heavier). Like the little engine that could, ole Fireball spun and sputtered and pulled ole Hulk up the hill where we had to readjust the tractor and straps to turn Hulk in order to move to a spot off the road. After the re hook up I grabbed a higher gear and took off on Fireball proud of the job it was doing. About 50 yards down the route I pulled over to deposit Hulk and go back for his passengers only to look around and see that the strap had come loose and the guys frantically waving for me to come back because Hulk was still where we started LOL We did eventually get Hulk out of the way but it took awhile for us to catch back up. As I said before, our customers are the greatest and they seemed to take it in stride. I am sure all you John Deere fans will be chagrinned to hear that from now on we will follow those green tractors with an orange one (kubota) so we can push it out of the way when they break, ha. And ..... we made up some free popsicle coupons for the riders of any future breakdowns (don't go sabotaging the tractors to get a free popsicle). OH, and wouldn't you know it, when I went back at the end of the day to pull Hulk up to the barn ------- it started right up and we drove it back!
Strawberry plants are still being planted. We ran into a little snafu with this last shipment so it is taking a little longer than we would like but I am confident everything will work out for the better. The first 85,000 planted are establishing themselves very well and I have even seen a few blooms! The last two years we have been able to pick some berries around Thanksgiving before winter set in. Thanksgiving might be a bit of a push this year but don't rule out some early December berries - it all depends on the weather. If we can go a few more weeks without a freeze we might just try to protect them to ensure that happens.
It has been a great season so far and we still have more to go! Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 10/15 --- Wow, God really put on a show this weekend with the weather - it was delightful. It was a great weekend and we still have a few weeks to go if you haven't been able to join us. The temperatures should be outstanding the next few days - with a reduced crowd during the week there is nothing to hold anyone back.
We have three Mazes: Easy- Barnyard and Candy Corn (about 15 minutes each) and hard, Texas. (about an hour). The objective of the Candy Corn Maze is to run in, find the Candy Corn bell, ring it and make your way out. In the Barnyard Maze folks get a gamecard with the pictures of our 'lost' animals. Run in, find the animals and come out. As mentioned, these two are fairly easy and directed more to kiddos but plenty of Adults go through them. The objective in "Texas" is to find 14 Texas cities. The Maze itself is planted in the shape of Texas, the cities to find are in the approximate same location as they exist in the State. All the pathways are connected so it is not a true Maze, it is more of a Labyrinth. Take a look at the map, get your bearings and head on in. Your prize? a free water upon exit.
Another 65,000 Strawberry plants should arrive tomorrow. We will get to planting as soon as possible this week. So far, the first 85,000 planted are looking pretty good. This is the time of the season we are full of hope about the crop outlook.
Everything's going great, hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening October 12 --------We are loving this weather. This morning was cloudy and it was wonderful, tomorrow is supposed to be the same! And the forecast for the weekend looks just right too! The grounds are a little dry but other than that, looking good!
From a distance the Flower field is not as vibrant as before last weekend. I picked a bouquet today and found a ton of beautiful flowers to choose from. The trick is to go to the far end of the field (just like when picking Strawberries) to find the good ones. Everyone seems like they start picking right up by the barn but not you, you are going to go down where the good ones are - right? Also, I see folks walking around with just a few flowers in their vase, don't be afraid to fill that thing up! Pick as many flowers as you can get into that vase. And cut the stems long. The longer you cut them the better it is for the plant and the stems reach all the way to the bottom of the vase. I cut long stems and strip away the bottom leaves. If like to fill the vase with water before going out into the field so the blooms get an immediate supply. If someone is with you, have them hold the vase while you cut the flowers.
I am pleased with how the Mazes are holding up. They are not in the best shape but certainly not in the worst. I am told an average time to find all the cities in Texas is about one hour. Industry and Goodrich seem to be giving pedestrians the hardest time.
It is a great time to come out to the farm, we hope you can make it!
Monday evening October 9 --- It was an amazing weekend, so many wonderful folks came out and enjoyed the Farm with us. We are going full steam now and loving these cooler temperatures. God is good and so are the smiling faces and happy kids we see out here., you folks make this job worth it.
Open tomorrow, then Closed Wednesday so we can do a little clean up and then back at it on Thursday. Weekdays are more relaxed , weekends get busier but the farm is big enough that everyone can spread out. Either way, we would love to see your smiling face.
Friday afternoon October 6 --- What a great day! I hope your day has been equally as good. And tomorrow should be even better with cooler temperatures (can you tell we are a little tired of summer temps?) in the ...... 70's! In just a few months we will be crying for warmer weather but for now, bring it on.
The Farm has dried out nicely (some rows in the Flower field are still slick) and all the activities seem to be going great. Some storm damage has been cleaned up in the Mazes, the dust has been settled and the grass is greening up - what a great time to visit the farm. The Farm is open for the holiday on Monday as well. If you can't make it out here this weekend - at least get out and enjoy this amazing weather.
Thursday afternoon, October 5 ---- Whew! what a job! The Mazes have been hedged and cleaned up from the storms last night and we are loving these cooler temperatures. The Farm has already dried out greatly, although the Flower field still has some mud to deal with. Tomorrow and this weekend will be a great time to come out and enjoy the "Harvest of Fall Fun", all the activities will be going full steam and Raelynn will be making fresh DONUTS Saturday and Sunday morning!
The Farm will be open Monday the 9th with all activities, even Pony Rides. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday morning October 5 ---- 8 tenths here, how much rain did you get? The freshly planted Strawberry plants will love that shower and so will the Farm grounds. I think it will soak in fairly quickly considering how dry we were. I am sure the Mazes will require a little touch up to fix any wind damage but all in all - it was just right! We are definitely going to appreciate the cooler temperatures in the forecast for the next few days!
The Farm is open today and the grounds are already drying out, We probably need a couple of hours to dry out and fix any wind damage. Tomorrow and this weekend should be fantastic.
Sunday evening October 1 --- Another great weekend!!! Even with the too warm afternoons people were having fun, God has blessed us with the absolute best patrons! It was good to have the Pony Rides back in place too.
85,000 Strawberry plants were delivered on Friday morning - about 40,000 have been put in the ground.. We hope to plant another 20,000 tomorrow and maybe finish before the rain that is predicted for Tuesday evening. That sure would make me happy as a rain after planting would do wonders in settling those plants in and getting them off on a good start. The plants look pretty good after the long trip from Canada. Can you imagine being taken off a refrigerated truck into our 95 degree heat and then planted on hot black plastic the following day? I am surprised they even live. I do believe the hot temperatures kick them into a vegetative reproductive mode which causes the growth of runners that we have to cut off later. Another 70,000 should be delivered the week after this one coming. That second order is running a little behind so we will have to hustle to get them in the ground as soon as possible.
We are super happy with the way the farm is looking and the how the events are running With a cool down in sight we can hardly contain ourselves. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening September 27 ---- October is almost here and I am ready! for a little cooler weather. Mornings are pretty nice but the afternoons are still getting warm, especially if there is no cloud cover. The Farm looks great and is in very good shape, The grounds are easily passable, no problems there ..... or anywhere here.
After the first weekend we have a better gauge of how long it takes to find all the cities in the Texas Maze - a little over an hour is the average. Of course, no one has to stay in that long.
Now is a great time to come out to the Farm while it is not busy, especially mornings. Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning September 25 ----- It was a great opening weekend! We are now open regular business hours meaning every day except Wednesday (closed all Wednesdays).
A tenth of an inch of rain last night and i am surprised it was that much because you can't hardly tell. In other words, the farm is in great shape and easily passable - there is no mud . We are looking forward to a great season, all we need is you! Hope to see you soon!
Friday night September 22 ---- Wahoo! tomorrow is opening day for the Fall season! The Farm is in pretty good shape and ready to receive visitors. The grounds have greened up from last weeks rain, the Flowers are blooming well, the Mazes have not had any damage from pedestrians yet, , the Scarecrows out on the Hayride are fresh, and the Pumpkins are nice, clean and big!.
It is getting warm in the afternoons. be prepared. We have water or you can bring your own water. Be careful if you are not used to being out in the heat, that Sun can be intense and sneak up on you before you know it. If you do come in the afternoon, we will happily wave at you with one hand while holding a bottle of water with the other.
Also, there will be no Pony rides or Pumpkin grille tomorrow and Sunday. Those two will start up Sept. 30.
All in all, we are very excited to kick off the season. It is going to be a great year if you can make it out.
Tuesday September 19 ---- It is a great week, just right to get ready for opening this Saturday. We are very excited about the upcoming "Harvest of Fall Fun". Last weeks rain total was almost 3.5 inches which has gone a long way in sprucing up the place just in time. The morning temperature have been wonderful of late, afternoons are starting to get a little warm. Hope to see you soon!
Friday September 15 ----- 1.56 inches of glorious rain has fallen on the Farm in the last few days. The place should green up nicely by opening the 23rd. So that means the countdown is on and the Farm Hands are frantically trying to get everything in place but that makes it fun!
The Scarecrow village is still growing with new scenes. The Hayride will be the same but different this year. Same beat up ole Tractors but a few new things to see on the route. If you haven't been on it before - the tractor pulled trailers peruse out through the woods where 350+ stuffed Scarecrows are placed in 'scenes'. Every year the village seems to grow and I hear there is a drive in theater now - wow! It is a truly unique ride that I think you will only find at our Farm.
The Mazes are hit and miss. Candy Corn Kid Maze looks great and should be a ton of fun. The Texas Maze looks pretty good. Yesterdays storm pushed some of the cane down in places but overall it is in good shape. The Barnyard kid Maze is good in some spots and average in others. It will still be fun for kids but adults might find it too easy.
Lots to do so I better get out of the office. It is going to be a great year, we hope that you all can make it!
Thursday August 24 ---- Sure is plenty hot here but we will just grin and bear it. I don't see any rain in the forecast so we put out some sprinklers to wet some of the Strawberry fields down enough for us to build beds. We sure don't like doing it that way because it is a lot of work and the sprinklers don't do near as good a job as God does. WE struggled through and have a good portion of the beds built, I would say about 8 of the 10 miles of beds needing to be built.
The girls and their crew have been busy getting Scarecrow village set up for the Hayride. Normally this is Grannies job but she is now in 'Coach Mode". I did hear her make a comment the other day that the girls are not talking to the scarecrows as they put them in their places, LOL. IF you are not familiar with our Hayride, let me explain. Upon loading up on the tractor pulled Hayride trailer, folks are carried down a trail that peruses through many different Scarecrow scenes. There is the Clubhouse, the Indian Village, Crowville, The Parade, Beauty Pageant, Wash day, Super Heroes and many many more. I don't know what the count is now but I think there are well over 300 Scarecrows on the ride. I have heard that a drive in theater has been added this year.
The calendar says Fall is coming, I hope you all can join us soon! Opening September 23rd.
Monday August 14 It is a bit HOT and DRY here, you would think it is summer! I believe hotter than you know what is the new normal. Oh well, its all good because Fall is right around the corner. I think I can feel a change in the weather in the mornings and evenings..
No rest for the weary around here. Even though the Farm has been closed to the public, lots of work has been going on. The Zinnias have been planted (about 45,000), and somehow are living through this heat. The Mazes have growing and paths cut. I am still trying to do a better job with uniformity but it looks like this year will be another with no rain through the summer. We have sprinklers out but they don't do the job God does. The theme this year for Texas is "Riches across Texas". In other words folks will be looking for the Texas towns of Richland, Oilton, Crystal City, Mercedes, Ore City, Mineral Wells, Industry, Goodrich, Mercury, El Dorado, Pumpville, Goldsmith Silverton and La Isla (that one doesn't seem to fit:)).
Granny is teaching her granddaughters to put up and do the Scarecrows out on the Hayride route. For some reason she thinks she is going to get out of that job, She is only 86, I figure she is still good for another ten years. I hope you all are as blessed as I am to have a mother like her!
Believe it or not, Pumpkin season is right around the corner!!!
Monday 6/19 -- What a wonderful sunflower season it was! A wonderful spring on that note! We are now closed to the public so that we can focus on farming and preparing the farm for our highly anticipated 'Harvest of Fall Fun' a HUGE pumpkin festival hosted late September thru early November. We will have hayrides, 3 different mazes, scarecrow stuffing, bounce pillows, and more! We will miss y'all in these 3 months of preparation, and we will be glad to have y'all back on the farm really soon! Head over to the activities/cost tab to learn about our different seasons.
Thursday morning 6/15 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We are nearing the end of sunflower season, but there is still a spectacular display! Fair warning: You will have to walk at least 1 mile round trip to get to the good ones! Be sure to pack waters and take lots of breaks! Check out our Facebook page for up to date pictures! Only 4 days left to get those beautiful sunflowers!
Saturday Morning 6/10 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We got a summer shower last night? Not super common in an area accustomed to drought in the summer! Walking grounds are perfectly fine and so are the majority of the sunflower rows. It gets muddier towards the highway and on the house side on the lower rows of sunflowers. Sunflowers will be fading fast in next weeks high temps. We recommend coming sooner rather than later to get those amazing pictures and flowers for the house! It looks like the last day for sunflower picking will be June 18th! June 19th until late September the farm will be closed for summer.
Sunday Morning 6/3 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! The farm is in full bloom! Right now you'll get the most sunflowers blooming at the same time! This will only last about a week before we start seeing some dying off. Pro picking tips: bring your own bucket or vase to take your flowers home in. We provide a hydration solution and wrap your flowers up for you, but sometimes (especially if you take advantage of our awesome bulk pricing) you can go home with more than you can carry! #2 pull the sunflower leaves off the plant before you cut it! This will give you a great visual to see how long the stalk is before you cut it. #3- Cut your flowers longer than you think you'll need! You can always cut off extra, but can't regrow the stalk. It looks like the latest variety just started blooming... meaning... we have about two and a half to three weeks left of sunflower season. You don't want to miss it! After sunflower season the farm will close for the remainder of the summer to prepare for the fall season full of hayrides, mazes and more!
Thursday Afternoon 6/1 -- Hey there Future Farm Goers! Strawberries have finished but the sunflowers are putting on a show! We have most of the farm side blooming and about 1/2 of the house side blooming. If you've been waiting for peak bloom this is it!!! Next week we will be open "after hours" to have a unique opportunity to get pictures at sunset! June 8th and 9th open 7pm-9pm! The farm will be open regular hours, close at 5:30, and re-open at 7. No reservations! Just show up. Last entry at 8:30. Can't wait to have you out!
Sunday evening 5/28 ---- What a beautiful day on the farm full of smiling faces! Tomorrow is sure to be another great day with the exception of ......... the Strawberry plants are just about played out. Folks can still look but the picking is getting pretty slim for Strawberries. But what the Strawberry plants are not doing, the Sunflower plants are making up for. More and more blooms are popping out every day. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday Morning 5/28 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We now have not one, but TWO fields with blooming sunflowers! That's right, we are opening up the tunnel for access to what we call - The Jungle. Parking is still on the right side of the road. To access the second field you'll have to walk under the highway through the tunnel to get to our massive sunflowers. Right now they are about 8 ft tall and growing by the day! We have over 200,000 sunflowers planted over about 5 acres. We anticipate sunflower season lasting until late June or Early July. It really just depends on the weather. We have a measly $5 entry fee per person ages 2 and up at this time of year that applies to all visitors to the farm. Strawberries are still hanging around but you'll have to do some searching for them. Some folks go home with 1/2 a pound and some folks go home with 6 pounds, it really just depends on how much time you want to dedicate to strawberry picking. Fields are considerably dryer now with marginal mud spots. You will have to go through some mud in the tunnel. As always we recommend wearing shoes that you don't mind getting dirty to the farm and bringing a back up pair to go home in ... just in case. I know almost all the farm hands have extra shoes in their cars! We will have all farm activities going throughout the sunflower season! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! We are so excited to see all your beautiful photos at the farm!
Saturday Morning 5/27 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! It's time to put on those old walking shoes, strap on that step counter, and get to the farm! When you arrive to the farm you will park on the RIGHT side of the road (if coming in from 120, it is the left side of the road) Once you get unloaded head to the welcome barn and the ladies there will greet you and tell you all there is to know about the farm. Remember there is a $5 entrance fee for ages 2 and up (only at this time of year). The entry fee applies to everyone, even if you are just picking fruit, here for photos, want to walk around, etc.
Field Conditions: Walking grounds are great (no mud.) You will encounter some mud in the strawberry and sunflower fields, but most mud spots are avoidable. We always recommend that you wear shoes that you don't mind getting dirty here on the farm... just in case :)
Sunflowers: I'll just go ahead and say they are beautiful every day. They are beautiful! We have a section of 10 rows that are blooming and it makes a stunning photo!! More are blooming throughout the field but not all in a row... planted all at the same time but different varieties have different bloom times to help extend our sunflower season. We have some flowers blooming in another field that we will open up this afternoon after we get the tunnel open.
Strawberries: There is still fruit out there! Looking at about 45 minutes to an hour of picking for about 5 lbs. of fruit. Remember to move those leaves around and check all around the berry before putting it in your basket. I don't expect there to be much berry picking after the Memorial Day weekend. This is the end of the season, and the berries won't produce again until Fall, hopefully, but for sure next Spring!
Activities: We will have all farm activities going throughout the weekend! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot!
See y'all soon!!
Friday Morning 5/26 - - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We are all in awe of the beauty of this sunflower field, and we are only at about 35% bloom! When picking sunflowers go down EVERY OTHER row (even if it is not prolifically blooming). You will not be disappointed. We have lots of different varieties planted, so get that dimension and complete your bouquet with different colored centers and petals. There is some mud in the sunflower field, but it is drying up quickly. Strawberries: THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE! The berries are out there! Picking will be difficult, and you are going to have to get through some mud. After walking the fields this morning there is more fruit out there than my initial observation on Wednesday. These plants are TIRED! This is one of the longest strawberry seasons we have seen here at the farm. Starting February 25th till the end of May? Almost unheard of! I don't think there will be much in the way of strawberry picking after this weekend. We will have all farm activities going throughout the weekend! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! We love sunflower season, and we can't wait for you to love it too!
Wednesday Morning 5/24 - Good Morning Future Farm Goers! We had a rock 'em sock 'em storm last night, but the farm is still standing! And so are 98% of the sunflowers. We are closed all Wednesdays, but wanted to give y'all an update for tomorrow. Fields will dry up considerably today, but will still have mud patches for tomorrow's picking. Starting tomorrow there is a $5 entrance fee for ages 2 and up. The entry fee applies to everyone, even if you are just picking fruit, here for photos, etc. The strawberry supply is extremely limited, but you are welcome to comb the fields for the last of the fruit! I don't expect there to be any strawberries to pick after Sunday. The sunflowers are looking AMAZING! More and more are blooming everyday! Check out our Facebook page for up-to-date pictures of the field. We will be posting regularly so you can determine the best time to visit for you! We're so excited that you are going to visit us soon! Open regular hours all through the holiday weekend (even on Monday.)
Monday Morning 5/22 -- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! The farm is looking good today! After Sunday's showers the fields are a bit muddy. Strawberry season is winding down quickly, but they have been working hard since February keeping us stocked with delicious fruit. More sunflowers are blooming every day! So so beautiful! Here's what to expect starting on Thursday May 25th:
$5 admission into the farm for ages 2 and up. We hate the admission fee as much as you do, believe me, but we have to charge it to help keep up maintenance on the farm.
Once you enter the farm you have the opportunity to pick any remaining strawberries in the field ($3.50/lb), pick sunflowers (1-11 blooms $2 each, 12-23 blooms $1.50 each, 24+ blooms $1 each), and do lots of farm activities at their normal price.
Saturday Evening 5/20 -- Wowzers! Y'all are the pickers I know! The LEFT side of the road has been picked out! The LEFT side of the road will be closed tomorrow. Strawberry picking will be slim tomorrow but like I said today, the harder you work the more you'll be rewarded! We had some great looking berries come out of the field today. We started the day with 2 full rows of solid yellow sunflowers and now we are down to about a half a row. Not to worry though! The sunflowers will continue to open up this evening and more will be in tomorrow! Be sure to check the whole field even if the row isn't covered in blooms, you'll find a surprise every now and then! Don't drive out just for pictures... I'll let you know when you can get amazing photos in a field of sunflowers. Open 1-5 tomorrow we'd love to have you out!
Saturday Morning 5/20 --- Good Morning Future Farm Goers! NO RAIN HAS FALLEN AT THE FARM! (okay only 100th of an inch a couple of hours ago) Fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn mud pockets that just refuse to go away. Beginning at 9:00 we will open the LEFT side of the farm for berry picking, but we will still be open for berry picking on the right side as well. Picking will be what you make of it today! The harder you look the more you will be rewarded. We are still looking at about 1 hour for a box of berries. My expert picking advice... look under leaves!
We have more sunflowers coming on but not a spectacular display just yet, you'll get great flowers and good close up shots, but the entire field is not yet blooming. You might have to get in some mud in the sunflower field, Edder did a great job of making that soil fluffy and perfect for sunflower growth.
We will have all farm activities going today! Barrel train, goat feeding, sand art, berry bounce, and unique paint a pot! This is one of the rare chances we get on the farm to do flower picking, strawberry picking, AND activities! Come on out for an excellent day!
Thursday Morning 5/18 -- We still have strawberries in the field! Edder just picked a 1/2 box in about 30 minutes. The LEFT side of the road is CLOSED today and tomorrow but will be open for picking this weekend. Picking this time of year typically requires a bit of effort. Look under the leaves, and be a little selective of the berries you put in your box. Sunflowers are coming on fast! We have about 2,000 in bloom currently with an anticipated 6,000 in bloom Sunday afternoon. Sunflower season won't officially kick off until Memorial Day weekend, so get those fresh cut flowers early! It is easy to fill up a half day here at the farm with all the fun farm-themed activities and picking! We can't wait to have you out to the farm!
Sunday evening 5/14 --- We had a nice surprise today, a few Sunflowers popped out unexpected. So we picked some Sunflowers today along with some very nice Strawberries.
We still have mud and water to deal with in approximately half of the Strawberry fields. it will take a few days for them to dry up completely. The Berries are still coming on, not as thick as before but still easily pickable. Production will dwindle with every day that goes by.
Sunflowers! are coming faster than we expected! The Sunflowers are the daughters project. I think they planted probably 200,000 seeds on 5 acres. The flowers today are just on one early variety, from listening to them, it will take about two weeks to start really getting into the blooms. Regardless, they are going to be from now to July. 1 to 11 blooms are $2 each, 12 to 23 blooms are $1.50 each, 24 or more blooms drop them to $1 each. Imagine, 24 heads of beautiful Sunflowers for $24! For now there is no admission but start May 25, entry into the Sunflowers will be $5 per person. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 5/14 ---- Happy Mothers Day! Today is a ditto of yesterday with the exception it is a tad drier and we are going to have the Barrel Train running. We haven't had any rainfall since yesterday morning but we do have a chance today so keep an eye on the sky! Hope to see you soon! Open 1 to 5 on Sundays.
Saturday morning 5/13 ---- Good Morning! 1.37 inches of rain here at the farm last night. Currently, the skies have cleared up and there are lots of ripe Strawberries to pick. The field on the left side of the road will be much easier picking. The fields at the main area of the farm have berries but will be more muddy. We won't run the barrel train today but the Berry Bounce, Sand Art and Paint a pot will still be going.
Friday evening 5/12 ---- Lets have a talk about this weekend: There are lots of ripe Strawberries for everyone to pick .and at the moment it is not hard to get into the fields and stay mud free. We have a really good chance of rain tomorrow through Monday. If we don't get caught in a storm, only moderate amounts of rain are predicted. The Farm is open rain or shine so we can pick between showers. The Strawberry fields on both sides of the road will be open. IF it does rain, the field on the LEFT is much better drained and because it is more granite gravel - less muddy. If we get any rain tonight I will put up a post in the morning. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening—- Tomorrow’s picking will be pretty good but be prepared, there will be dry spots and muddy spots between the rows. The berries should be clean with an inch of rain yesterday. Lacy has been busy making fresh batches of Strawberry Jam and Ice Cream. The main parts of the farm are grass covered, between the rows is the area that gets messy.
Monday evening --- The picking today was better than I thought it would be. Tomorrow should be good too and the fields will be drier. Keep an eye on the weather, we have a 40% chance of rain in the afternoon. We will be here rain or shine. Hope to see you soon.
Sunday 5/7 ---- Today was nice and easy. A little warm but that can be expected for this time of year.
Tomorrow and Tuesday will be ok picking. There will be plenty of berries for everyone it just takes a little longer to pick a box full. As you walk down the row, look to either side a few rows over so you can see the pockets of berries hiding under the leaves. Rubber boots would be great because the areas most unpicked are in the wettest spots. Everyone wanting to avoid mud today was easily able to do so.
The crowds have diminished somewhat so expect a comfortable relaxing time when coming out this week and next. When no one is around the farm hands normally let kids bounce a little longer, you almost have the paint a pot and sandart activities to yourself, and you also get the attention of all the goats. It is a grat time to enjoy the farm. Hope to see you soon.
Saturday evening 9:30pm --- What a great set of folks that came out today - ya'll are the best. It turned out to be a pretty good day after all. so far, no rain here today and none on the radar heading this way. I think we are safe tonight. Tomorrow we have a small chance of rain in late afternoon. Strawberry picking will be good. Everyone today seemed like they got plenty. The field on the LEFT side of the road continues to be drier and easier picking,.
Tomorrow will be the last day for Pony Rides this Spring. They will return in the Fall but for now, they have some other jobs to go do. The Sand Art, Paint a pot, Berry Bounce and Barrel Train will continue to run daily. Lacy made a fresh batch of Strawberry Ice Cream to satisfy your cravings.
The Sunflower plants are growing nicely. We hope to be able to have Cut Your Own Sunflowers at the end of this month through June. Stay Tuned!. .
Friday evening 9:45pm ----- It looks like I spoke a little too soon about the farm being dry. Almost an inch of rain just fell in the last 35 minutes. Tomorrow, the main side Strawberry aisles are sure to have mud. The LEFT side of the road is better drained, the aisles will be slick but not muddy. Now is definitely the time to break out the boots or old shoes. I'm sorry but we do not have places to wash shoes off, please bring a bag to put them in for the way home.
The walking areas of the farm are grass covered and should be easily passable. I'm not sure the Pony Rides or Barrel Train will be running tomorrow but the Bounce, Paint a Pot and Sand Art will be fun and the Ice Cream will be delicious. The Farm will be open and waiting for you.
Friday afternoon 5/5 --- Still picking some wonderful Strawberries! Those plants continue to produce. While not as many as before, everyone is still getting nice berries. Tomorrow will be very good picking. The LEFT side of the road will be open all day as well as the right. I think the berries are more plentiful on the LEFT side but the right (main farm) side still has plenty to choose from.
The fields are almost completely dry. There is still a few stubborn spots for the kids to find if not careful. Hope to see you soon.
Thursday 5/4 ---- Tomorrow will be decent Strawberry picking. In the AM we will pick on both sides of the road. The picking on the LEFT side is a little bit better than the right but not substantial. All the activities, goats, and ice cream is on the right side so either pick Left and come right or just park, pick and do activities on the left side. Almost everyone comes through Marble Falls but I am sure someone will come the backroads, if so, think backwards. Currently the fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn wet spots. Saturday should be decent picking too, it is too early to tell about Sunday. It is taking folks a little longer to fill their box, we can see the supply diminishing.
Tony and I put the bucks (the fancy name for male goats, these are not just plain ole billies:)) in their own pen today because we want to give the does (once again, not just plain ole nannies) a little break and target our kidding a little better. In what we call the Bridge Pen where kids do the feeding, we have some Myotonic Fainting Goats. Earlier this Spring one of them had twin boys. The grandaddy was easy to catch, just scare him and he will lock up and he can't move for 10 seconds or so. I was telling Tony that we might end up selling those little bucklings and I'm not sure they will "Faint" so catching them might be tough. Well, we gingerly meandered in their general vicinity and 'BOO!' ................... they both locked up and fell over! We were laughing so hard we almost didn't grab them before they came out of it. I hate doing that but it is so funny. Now I'm not sure we want to sell them. Don't go and try to scare the goats when you come out, you have to do it just right, anyway I think we just took the best fainters out. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday 5/3 ----- Tomorrow will be good Strawberry picking. In the AM we will pick on both sides of the road. The picking on the LEFT side might be a little bit better than the right but not much. Currently the fields are mostly dry with a few stubborn wet spots. Friday and most of Saturday should be good picking too, it is too early to tell about Sunday. Overall I think production is about to dwindle rapidly, next week we should see a decline in the harvest so now is the time to come and get some berries. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 5/1 - Berry picking was great today. Everyone left with big red juicy Strawberries. The Ice Cream and popsicles were especially popular today and all the children were having a blast.
Tomorrow, closed Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday should be equally as good. Don't wait too much longer to get your berries because I think production will slow down soon.
Sunday evening 4/30 ---- It was a wonderful day! The boxes of Strawberries I saw coming in at closing today were just as nice as the ones at opening. The plants continue to produce and berry size is even getting bigger. I expect this week to be wonderful picking and probably this coming weekend too. The fields are drying up nicely although there are still plenty of stubborn wet spots for the kids to find. Staying mud free is as easy as getting muddy.
We have been steadily picking berries for the kitchen to freeze for later use in our products. Lacy said we have brought in just about 5,000 pounds of berries.. For awhile earlier in the season, she was using the berries just about as fast as we brought them in.
Saturday evening 4/29 --- The wind today went a long way in drying out the farm. Tomorrow the berry picking will be very good and folks should be able to avoid any mud. The left side of the road is dryer but the right side has a little bigger berries. There are lots of berries in either patch. Tomorrows high should be in the upper 80s with plenty of sunshine. It will be a great day to come out to the farm - open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays..
Saturday morning 4/29 ----- This time we had rain. The storms yesterday afternoon rolled through with some power, almost 1/2 inch of rain fell. But with the wind last night and some wind today the Farm will dry out quickly. Pick your Strawberries on the LEFT side of the road today to stay away from the mud. That field is more granite gravel and while a little slippery is not muddy. The sun has come out to reveal a cloudless beautiful sunrise and with high temps in the 70's today it will be a wonderful day to be at the farm.
Lots of big luscious red Strawberries are available for todays harvest. There might be a few nicks from some sporadic hail to watch for but all in all it will be excellent picking. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday morning 4/27 ---- Those storms last night completely missed the Farm, which will make the Strawberry picking excellent the next few days. We are very happy with the size and quality of the berries coming out of the field. Now is a great time to pick berries! Hope to see you soon
Monday afternoon 4/24 ----- Ok, here is the scoop for the upcoming week. We have a 30% chance of rain Tuesday, which means a 70% it is not. If coming on Tuesday, we have lots of berries but you might have to dodge a shower. The Farm is closed all Wednesdays. Thursday and Friday will be excellent picking with beautiful weather in the forecast. I suspect the picking this coming Saturday will also be amazing with a high in the 70's! It is a little too early to tell about Sunday. The Strawberry plants are loving this cooler weather but with the days getting longer they will soon decide to quit flowering. We have picked berries all the way through May in the past - this might be another one of those years.
The Ranunculus are finished for the year. Before long we will dig up the corms and store them for next years planting. We will then cultivate the field and get it ready to plant the Candy Corn Maze in July.
Raelynn, Lacy and Edder have planted about 3 acres of Sunflowers. The plants are coming up now and they hope to be cutting your own Sunflowers in June.
Sunday morning 4/23 ------ It did not rain on the Farm last night, it seems the storms went all around us. We still have a chance of rain today but so far, the radar is clear. Open today, rain or shine, 1 to 5. There is plenty of Strawberries to pick today and the fields are mostly dry with some stubborn muddy spots for the kids to find. A breezy north wind has a forecast high of 60 today! Hope to see you soon!
Saturday afternoon 4/22 ----- What a beautiful day full of beautiful people picking beautiful Strawberries and Flowers. For tomorrow: Sunday, the Farm is open rain or shine and 1 to 5 on Sundays, there will be Berries to pick in both fields. Here is the thing though, we have a good chance of rain tonight and tomorrow. We will update here in the morning to let you know how it is looking
Friday evening 4/21 ---- Pretty much ditto yesterdays post. The only change is the fields are a little drier. There are still muddy spots but you should be able to avoid mud and the kids will be able to find mud. The picking will be outstanding,. The Strawberries are sure to be ripe so folks should plan to eat or put up within a day or two. It is going to be a fantastic Saturday, I hope you can make it out!
Thursday night 4/20 ----- Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry picking. The field on the LEFT side of the road is better drained than the main farm so that is where folks should pick. Turn LEFT by the white house, where it says "Field Trips". The Strawberry aisles are sure to be slick but not super muddy. The field is mostly granite gravel so some mud will only stick to the bottoms of shoes. Even so, Old shoes are recommended. Pick your berries there and then go over to the main field for the children's activities and Ice Cream. The main farm will also have a great supply of berries but the aisles between the rows will be muddy. The main part of the farm outside the fields is grass covered and should be easily passable.
The Ranunculus are all but finished. That field will be open through the weekend and there will be blooms, just not many. Raelynn has lowered them to 2 blooms for the price of 1 (75 cents) here on the last days.
1.15 inches of rain here. At 9:30 pm it looks like most of it has gone by, I don't see any more on the radar around us. We did have a little pea size hail, I don't think it was enough to damage the plants much. That was a nice rain, the ground sure needed it. Tomorrows forecast is for afternoon sun and a wind. That will go a long way in drying up the fields for the weekend. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday night 4/18 --- The Farm is closed on Wednesdays, please don't come out tomorrow. Thursday will be excellent Strawberry picking. In addition to the main farm, we are going to pick in the field on the LEFT side of the road. No one has picked there this week so the picking will be fantastic. So, if coming for Strawberries Thursday, and possibly Friday, pick your berries on the LEFT side of the road. Just turn in at the white house where it says Field Trips. Hope to see you soon!
Monday mid morning 4/17 ---- Last weekend was wonderful and it looks like this week will be too! So far, the weather forecast looks great with highs in the 80's and just small chances of rain. The Strawberry plants are still producing. but maybe not quite as much as two weeks ago. There are still plenty of berries for everyone. The plants are getting larger so a little more rummaging through the leaves is in order to get those berries. Todays crowd has been very light, I suspect tomorrow will be too, closed Wednesday so Thursday morning should be the next excellent picking day.
The Ranunculus are almost finished. Raelynn thinks this week will finish them off. We sure have enjoyed them and are making plans for next years crop.
Saturday evening 4/15 ---- It was a glorious day full of glorious people picking glorious berries, glorious flowers and eating glorious Shakes, Ice Cream, Popsicles and even freshly made specialty cake donuts.
Tomorrow (Sunday) should be another ........... glorious day:) Open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays. A high of 78 degrees tomorrow will be amazing! There is still a few stubborn muddy spots in the fields for the kids to find, but overall the fields are nice and dry.
You only hear it here ........... when driving to the farm, pick your strawberries on the LEFT side of the road (turn in by the little white house - it is labeled Field Trips but you can go on in there). The berries in that field are not just glorious, they are insane! Then drive to the main farm which is a little farther down on the right for activities, flowers and all the cold goodies. That field is only open today. We will keep it closed most of the coming week so take advantage of it.
Saturday morning 9am 4/15 ---- It is a glorious morning and the picking will be equally glorious. The fields look great, the crop looks great, everyone is smiling - is it possible to get better than this? I don't think so.
Thursday evening 4/13 --- The Strawberry and Flower picking will be excellent tomorrow and Saturday for sure. I suspect Sunday will be too but check here Saturday night to make sure. Other than a few stubborn spots, the fields have dried out nicely. With a forecast high of 80 tomorrow and 89 Saturday, it should be a wonderful weekend.
The Strawberry plants continue to put on a show. The far end of the rows and fields have the greatest supply of berries. Don't look down until you get there or you will stop way short of the good stuff. The plants are enjoying this cooler weather which I think we prolong production into at least mid May or beyond.
The Ranunculus flowers are beautiful. The field is loaded with blooms just ready to cut. Raelynn is the flower expert and she says that we probably have only two more good weekends before supply starts to dwindle.
This is crazy, I am only going to mention it here............... cake donuts......................... "What?!" you say. We have lost our blooming minds but ......... Saturday Raelynn is going to make some fresh Cake Donuts to sell in the Sweet Shack where Lacy will be making fresh Strawberry Lemonade and unbelievably good, Strawberry Shakes. Supplies of the cake donuts will sure to be limited but please stop by and let us know if you like them.
Tuesday evening 4/11 --- Remember, the Farm is closed on Wednesdays - please don't come out to the farm on Wednesday. That is the day we do maintenance like stuff that is better done without customers around.
Thursday will be excellent flower and berry picking. The fields have dried out considerably. I don't know how we went from muddy on Sunday to dry today. It is like the sun came out and just sucked up the moisture. There are still some muddy spots for the kids to get into but staying mud free will not be a problem at all.
Monday evening 4/10 -----That rain last week was the little rain that is acting like a big one. Only this afternoon did the sun come out to give us some drying. - still not enough though. The farm was pretty dry so I am surprised it is taking so long to dissipate. Now I am thing we need another rain gauge to check the accuracy of the current one.
Tomorrow will be very good Strawberry and flower picking. Expect some mud between the rows so a set of picking shoes will be in order. I would expect the field to be in decent condition by Thursday.
The temperatures should stay in the 80's this week which the Strawberry plants will love. They are still blooming, which should set in these temperatures, which means berries in a month. I am expecting us to be harvesting ripe berries through mid May.
The field of Ranunculus is putting on a show! I think those flowers are beautiful. Now is a great time to cut your own bouquet. Raelynn says they might last another week or so or until the temperatures start climbing into the 90's.
Sunday evening 4/9 ---- Happy Easter! We need to have a talk ............. I am sorry the aisles between the Strawberries are muddy but ............. please don't walk on top of the Strawberry plants like a lot of people I saw today do. There is no way to walk on top of the plants without stepping on berries. I had to just take a deep breath and come into the office this afternoon so I wouldn't see. I can understand though, especially if someone is not accustomed to outdoor life or accidently wore the wrong shoes (like the flip flops with white socks I saw) . All is good, we are happy to have everyone out.
The sun did come out late afternoon and the farm is drying up a bit but I would still expect mud tomorrow. The Strawberry and Flower picking should be great. Just wear those rubber boots or old shoes and you will find the good ones. Berry supply should increase each day this week and by Thursday the picking will be excellent again. I see a ton of green ones coming, this weekend should be glorious. Hope to see you soon!
Saturday evening 4/8 ---- It was a good day! The Farm will be open tomorrow (Easter Sunday) from 1 to 5. The Strawberry and Flower picking will be excellent but it is still going to be a bit muddy getting to them.. All the grassy areas are easily passable and some of the Strawberry and Flower aisles are not bad. I saw a lot of folks changing into clean shoes for the way home today. When walking up to the welcome barn, the Strawberry field in the back left corner has dry rows. To get to the dry spot, walk between the berries and the flowers to enter the field from the back where there is more sand.
Ripe berries are sure to be available. Those fully ripe berries are not going to have much shelf life after you pick them. I think it best to deal with them within a day or so. For a longer shelf life: refrigerate them as soon as possible and don't wash them until ready to eat. Any fruit begins to decay as soon as it comes off the plant,. The closer to 32 it gets after picking the greater the delay in ripening (decaying).
Friday evening 4/7 ---- 4 tenths of rain today brings our two day total to .83 which is not a whole lot of rain but the way it fell makes it seem like more. It has been a heavy drizzle for the last two days with cloudy skies and 50 degree temperatures meaning little to no drying out. The grass covered green belts will be mud free this weekend but not the aisles between the Strawberries and Flowers. There will be standing water between the rows and I guarantee those big ole huge berries you want are right in the muddy spot. Now is the time to use those designer rubber boots you have in the closet or your favorite old shoes that you refuse to throw away. We do not have a place to wash off shoes so a clean pair might be in order for the drive back, plus a bag to put the old shoes in.
Expect excellent Strawberry and Flower picking tomorrow and most likely Sunday too. The Pony rides will be going as well as the Barrel Train, Sand Art, Paint a Pot and probably the Berry Bounce (if the canvas dries off). Ice Cream, Popsicles, and fresh Strawberry Lemonade will be available and a limited supply of those amazingly delicious Strawberry Smoothies. It is going to be a great weekend but muddy.
Not only did this rain give the plants/grounds a nice drink, it kept pickers away which means a larger supply for the weekend. Between the two days we were able to pick, cut and get about 1400 pounds of berries in our freezers for use in our products. That is not enough to get us through to next year but we are certainly getting closer to the goal of 2500 pounds.
Friday morning 4/7 8:50am ---- yep, it is raining. It started then stopped then started and on and on. The Farm will be open today, the Berries should be freshly washed, the aisles between the Strawberry rows will be a little muddy. Previously our forecast had the showers moving out by noon but now it seems like it might be all day. Tomorrow looks clear at the moment.
Thursday evening 4/6 ----- We ended up getting four tenths of rain today. Not enough to make things miserable but enough to make the aisles between the rows pretty slick and a little muddy. We still have a good chance of rain for tomorrow. I will be sure to update this page in the morning concerning tomorrow. The Farm is open rain or shine and the berries are sure to be clean.
Concerning Saturday and Sunday: We for sure will have lots of freshly washed berries to pick Saturday, the picking should be excellent. Currently we have no chance of rain but I am sure there will be some mud to contend with. Please bring a second pair of shoes for the way home - we do not have wash stations to clean shoes. My suspicion is that we will have Berries on Sunday afternoon (1 to 5 on Sundays) but we need to wait a bit more to make a better determination. Happy Easter everyone, Hope to see you soon.
Thursday morning 10:30am -- Now raining off and on, but strawberries the strawberry picking is great :) Come prepared for the rain. Open till 5:30 today regardless of the weather!
Thursday morning 7:30am --- At the moment, it is nice and dry here on the farm. The band of rain seems to be staying just to the East of us so far. It could change quickly but I don't see anything heading our way currently. It is chilly though! A light wind and 52 degrees requires a jacket for me. Bundle up and come on out to see us, the Farm is open rain or shine.
Wednesday afternoon 4/5 ---- We just had a few drops from that line of rain that passed through this morning. Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry and Flower picking. Friday should be great too but we have a pretty good chance of rain, we give an update tomorrow evening. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/2 ---- And yet another great day! It is such a pleasure to work at the farm because the patrons are some of the best people ever, your smiles are contagious and we certainly appreciate your good attitudes.
There will be ripe berries to pick tomorrow and beautiful flowers too. The supply will get better each day this week. Good Friday before Easter is historically a big day. At the moment we have a 60% chance of rain for that day. We will just have to wait two days or so before we can make a better Berry and weather prediction for Friday and the days after.. It is going to be a wonderful Easter week. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 4/2/23 ---- Yesterday was a great start to April! and today should follow in it's footsteps. Lots of berries and flowers to pick. We do have a 40% chance of rain before 2pm so keep an eye on the sky. The farm is super dry, a little shower wouldn't hurt. Hope to see you soon!
Friday evening 3/31/23 --- And March has just about marched out of here. 'Thanks' to all you folks that made it a fantastic month. And now let's make April fantastic too! For sure we will start the month with excellent Strawberry and Flower picking! The Strawberry fields have turned red with ripe berries and the flower field has turned red/yellow/white/orange/ purple with beautiful blooms ready to pick.
The farm kitchen has been busy this week making fresh batches of Ice Cream/Popsicles and even 95 jars of Strawberry Jam. The Sweet Shack will be serving Fresh Strawberry Lemonade this weekend as long as it lasts.
The weather forecast for this weekend looks good, the farm looks good - all we need is you to make it look even better.
Tuesday evening 3/28 ---- The Berries are making a rebound from a busy weekend. The farm is closed tomorrow (Wednesday) which will make Thursday and Friday pretty good picking. Saturday morning will be good picking too. We won't be able to predict Sundays picking until we see how Saturday turns out. With the warm temperatures coming up a couple hundred pounds of berries will ripen overnight. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 3/26 --- Good Job!! Good job you pickers that came out yesterday and today! Y'a'll cleaned up the fields pretty good. Don't fret though, there is waaay more green berries about to ripen and Ranunculus about to bloom. Tomorrow, the picking of both will be marginal at best, Tuesday much better, closed Wednesday, and very good Thursday. We just can't say enough about how great the folks that come out here are. 'Thanks for being awesome! Hope to see you soon ....... or again soon :)
Saturday evening 3/26 ----- An absolute beautiful day full of beautiful people picking beautiful Strawberries and Flowers! "Thank You" to all you amazing folks that came out and enjoyed the Farm with us, you are the best!
The fields still have ripe Strawberries in them for tomorrows picking! Yay. At the end of the day today a man came in with three loaded boxes of ripe Strawberries. He said he just moved the leaves around and found gobs of berries people had just walked by. If coming tomorrow, it is probably best to arrive earlier than later, just to make sure you get good picking (open at 1 on Sundays). All next week should be good picking (closed Wednesdays) .
Ranunculus: Raelynn said there is still a lot of Flowers to pick but folks might want to cut them before picking Strawberries to make sure there is a good selection to choose from. The plants will bloom more and more through most of April. They don't like it when it gets in the 90"s on a regular basis so lets shoot for a cool Spring.
Lacy said she will be making Strawberry lemonade tomorrow but not Strawberry shakes. Her shakes are delicious, we will be sure to update here when she is going to make again because they are worth a drive out.
Friday late afternoon 3/25 --- Tomorrow will be excellent picking and my feeling is Sunday (1 to 5) will be too! The fields have turned red with ripe Strawberries. Important: Do not start picking on the first row you come to, everyone else did that. Always go to the far end of the row or the far end of the field and pick back. You will be happy you did! Don't look down before you get to the far end or you will never make it to the good stuff. Every day the flower field has more and more blooms. They are beautiful!!
Shhhh ....... this is only for the Fresh News readers. Lacy is going to open the Sweet Shack in the morning to sell fresh Strawberry Lemonade and my favorite, Strawberry Smoothies. Those smoothies are perhaps the best thing I ever tasted. Supplies will be limited on opening day so come early.
Friday morning 10am --- No rain here, No mud, beautiful skies, loads and loads of ripe berries and beautiful flowers. Its going to be an awesome day and looks like tomorrow too! Wow, I don't think it can get better than this!
Thursday evening 3/23/23 ----- Everyone that came out today left with all the Strawberries they wanted and maybe even a few more. Of course they would start producing abundantly the week after Spring Break :). It is all good though because we are just thrilled to be back in the Berries again. Friday will be excellent picking and I am pretty confident that we will have loads of berries all the way through Saturday. We are giving out as many boxes as folks want now - remember, they hold about $22 worth level full. It is extremely hard to pick only half a box..
These Ranunculus flowers are beautiful! They make a fantastic bouquet and at only 75 cents each it won't break the budget. Their season is just getting started and we hope to pick them all the way through April. Every week they will have more and more blooms.
We have a decent chance of rain in the morning but "less than a tenth of an inch except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms". A tenth of an inch will just wet the soil down. If it rains we will post here.
Wednesday morning 3/22 --- Closed Wednesdays, please don't come out to the farm today. We have to have one day where we can mow, clean port o potties, weedeat and do stuff we need to do without customers around.
Tomorrow will be excellent Strawberry picking! Finally we are getting back into some ripe berries. I am guessing we will have plenty of berries all the way through Saturday morning and maybe all the way through Sunday as well. Be sure to look here every day before coming out.
The Ranunculus are coming on. That is the flower we are picking now as Tulips are finished. We might have some to pull tomorrow - we will see when you get here. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 3/20 Happy Spring! YaY, Nothing like celebrating with a day colder than the last three weeks of winter :) A little chilly it was today, tomorrow should be a bit warmer.
As promised, tomorrow morning will be very good Strawberry picking, we will just have to wait to see how long they go. Then closed Wednesday so Thursday morning should be good picking too.
The Tulip selection is getting smaller and smaller. Ranunculus are just getting started. Another update will be posted Wednesday concerning Thursday picking. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 3/19 ---- It turned out to be a gorgeous day! Wow!
The Strawberry fields are very close to turning red. The ripe Berry forecast for Monday is just so-so picking. Tuesday will be excellent picking, closed Wednesday, which will make Thursday excellent picking as well. My feeling is we will have loads of ripe berries for Friday and the weekend but we need to get a little closer to make an accurate forecast. The aisles between the rows are mostly dry. Get ready, we are finally about to have a lot of ripe berries to pick.
The Ranunculus flower field was a big hit today. I really do like this flower and at 75 cents each, they are affordable. The plants will continue to grow and the bloom will become more profuse in the coming weeks.
All the activities will be going this week except Pony rides which will return Saturday. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday morning 3/19 --- Whew, that was close. 32.7 this morning! Not much ripening is taking place in these temperatures. Today will not be a good Strawberry picking day. Tons and tons of green ones that are not quite ripe. Give them a couple of days and the fields are going to turn red!
We will be picking the last of the Tulips and the start of the Ranunculus today along with children's activities. It is a bit cool here but the skies are clear and the sun is starting to shine..
The Farm is open 1 to 5 on Sundays. If you do come out we will be waiting for you with a smile.
Friday evening 3/17 ---- only here at the end of the day did it warm up. IF you have a choice of weekends: Next Saturday will be much better picking than tomorrow. There are loads and loads of berries almost ripe. Tomorrows Strawberry picking will be marginal at best. A bunch of berries ripen overnight but with a low of 40 tonight, I am not confident that many will turn.
Some very nice Tulips were pulled today but the overall amount available is dwindling. We think that they are almost finished for the season. therefore there is no admission fee. Don't worry though, Monday we will start cutting Ranunculus which in my opinion, are more beautiful than Tulips.
One thing for exactly sure about this weekend: the goats will be hungry, ponies ready to walk, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train and Berry Bounce ready for children, and the Ice Cream and Popsicles will be amazing.
Friday morning 3/17 --- Yep, its muddy ........ and its cold. I just came out of the fields and now I am 2 inches taller than when I went in :) I did not sink to my ankles but this mud here sticks to the bottom of your shoes and accumulates. The bottoms of my boots are flat without tread, how can the mud stick to them so well? I think the wind is supposed to blow today which will go a long way in drying out the fields.
Strawberries: a TON of almooooost ripe berries, not a whole lot of ripe ones today. I think tomorrow will be better picking., By the end of next week I think we will be back to swimming in ripe berries - I can't wait!
Tulips: they are in the last three days. Raelynn has decided to waive the admission fee for the last three days. The fields are not as full and vibrant as they once were but there are still a good number of nice Tulips to find.
Thursday night 3/16 --- That was a pretty strong little storm! About a quarter of an inch of rain - enough to create some mud between the rows tomorrow but not enough to create big problems. Bring extra shoes for the ride back home. The rain was sure to wash off the berries! We should have berries to pick tomorrow - while we are not swimming in berries yet (I think that will start late next week) we definitely have more than earlier this week. Strong winds accompanied the rain so I am not sure what the Tulips look like - I suspect they are ok but only daylight will tell. This is the last weekend for Tulips, it has been a pretty good Tulip year for a change. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday 3/15/23 ----- Here is the scoop for tomorrow (Thursday): 60% chance of rain in the morning, 70% afternoon/evening. We will have some Strawberries to pick! The are ripening fast! Maybe not super ripe but very close. The Tulip season is in it's final days, come now before they are played out. The Farm is open rain or shine, just come prepared for some mud if we do get rain. We will update here when/if it does rain. Hope to see you soon!
Monday evening 3/13/23 --- Lots of Tulips, plenty of fun activities for the kiddos (including Pony rides) and ......... no Strawberries. There are no ripe Strawberries to pick tomorrow. We are soooo sorry but 145,000 plants do not have any ripe berries on them at the moment. Tons of green ones that need a little time to ripen, The problem is that the berries are getting picked before they get fully ripe. Normally Thursday mornings are the best picking because we close Wednesdays. I am not sure this Thursday will be the case just because we are picking so close. At the moment we have a high chance of rain Thursday morning which would make Friday better picking but muddy depending on how much falls.
The children I saw today did not seem to be deterred from having fun by the lack of Strawberries - it was the parents that are most disappointed. The Berry Bounce is a great way to extract some energy while Sand Art and Paint a Pot appeal to the creative side. Kids seem to enjoy the Pony rides and small ones under 5 yrs are infatuated with the Barrel train, which is by far the most boring thing ever.
Don't give up on those Strawberries - it will not be long until the fields turn red with ripe berries. Their typical season start is just around the corner.
Sunday afternoon 3/12 --- Pretty much Ditto yesterdays post. I think Thursday morning will be the next best time to pick Strawberries if we can get them a little rest Monday and Tuesday. Its going to be a great week, we hope to see you soon
Saturday afternoon 3/11 ----- You are the best! We are humbled by a big attendance of wonderful customers! God is really putting on a show with this amazing weather. A little crazy though with 90 degree high today and 70 degree high tomorrow :),
Tons of Tulips, Tons of fun ....... No Strawberries. The fields are picked out of ripe berries. Tons of green ones but it is going to take a few days for them to ripen. Don't worry though, we are only in the early stages of the Strawberry season. Typically, the first three weeks of April are the peak of the season.
If you are thinking about coming out tomorrow, 1 to 5 on Sundays, expect a gorgeous field of Tulips, plenty of fun activities for the kiddos and no strawberries to pick.
Spring Break week, shoot for Thursday, Friday or Saturday morning. Hope to see you all soon!
Friday evening 3/10 --- Fields are mostly dry, just a few stubborn low spots that don't want to dry out. Tons of gorgeous Tulips, lots of wonderful Ice Cream, delicious popsicles, Fun activities like Sand Art, Paint a pot, the Berry Bounce jumping pillows, Pony Rides and ............ not so many Strawberries. The sun came out Friday afternoon and brought a passel of folks with it. We will have some berries in the morning, try to come before 10, but the afternoon might be a little iffy. Tomorrow has a 89 degree high forecast which will turn those berries almost ripe,, ripe fast. One thing about it, we will be here to greet you with a smile. Come out and enjoy a beautiful day at the farm, if you don't find enough berries just bring your box back in about two weeks when we are sure to have a bunch more. Hope to see you soon!
Friday morning 3/10/23 --- Nope, no rain fell on the farm last night so the fields are good shape for pickers. There are still a few stubborn spots that refuse to dry up but they are easily avoided for anyone that is not a 5 year old kid :). We do have overcast skies right now and a heavy fog/mist which is forecast to burn off by 9am. The High today should be around 65 which is perfect for Tulips. Tulips look fantastic, the Fields are full of color and waiting for pickers. Strawberries: The plants have loads and loads of green berries that are almost ripe. Todays picking will be decent and tomorrows picking before 10am should be good. Tomorrow afternoons availability depends on picking pressure. We are harvesting about 80,000 plants. That might seem a lot but the season lasts almost two months so each plant might only have one or two ripe berries every couple of days. The peak of the season is normally the first two weeks of April and then we have a gradual slow down until mid May. Everything depends on the weather. It is looking good for Spring Break, keep an eye here for updates. Hope to see you soon!
Wednesday evening 3/8/23 ---- The Tulip fields are gorgeous. They really are putting on a show and we are loving it. The aisles are mostly dry and passable (a little water down on the very far end).
Strawberries - there will be some to pick tomorrow morning, They are not quite as ripe as I would like to see them. so I will label the picking as marginal. Tons of green berries are coming, we just need some time to ripen them up.
The farm grounds look great for tomorrows crowd. There are a few stubborn wet/muddy spots so keep an eye on the kids :We do have a 60% chance of rain tomorrow afternoon/evening so be sure to check here Friday morning for an update on field conditions.
The Berry Bounce, SandArt, Paint a Pot, and Barrel Train have been good activities for the kiddos. The Barrel Train is super boring but little little children seem to be enamored with it. I don't recommend it for anyone over 5. Pony rides are available on Saturdays and Sundays.. Hope to see you soon!
Monday morning March 6, 2023 ---- The Tulips are going great! They are beautiful and there is sooo many. I saw some very nice bouquets go out over the weekend. A few observations: If the bulb comes up when you pull the plant, it's ok we will just cut it off at the counter. We charge $2 if you want to keep the bulb only because in the past we have had folks just dig up the bulbs and ditch the flower. I don't know why because chances are that the bulb will not flower again for two reasons: they need 10 to 14 weeks of chill in the winter and the leaves might not have had enough time to put energy back into the bulb for next years growth. Regarding the flowers:, Tulips like it cold, move them to a cooler spot if they begin to droop when you get home. It helps to trim the ends of the stems and put them in cold water when placing in a vase.. If it doesn't get too hot, we hope to have Tulips through March 19. .
The Strawberry plants need a little breather:) The fields are picked pretty clean right now but don't worry , more berries are on the way! These moderate temperatures and warm nights will certainly help ripen some up. Thursday morning will be the best time to pick this week for sure.
While most of the fields are dry, there is still some muddy spots to get into.
Saturday evening March 4 --- It was a beautiful fantastic day here on the Farm, wow. "Thanks" to the city of Austin for coming out today, we enjoyed having you. Maybe the entire city didn't come out but a good many did.
Regarding Sunday: The Farm is open 1pm to 5pm on Sundays. Loads of Tulips to pick tomorrow but not so many Strawberries. The Strawberry fields were picked pretty heavy today so they will need some days to replenish themselves. The aisles between the rows are drying but are still muddy - just less muddy than today. Pick in an old pair of shoes and change into a clean pair to drive home. Sorry, we don't have a place to wash off shoes/feet. The Ice Cream is fantastic, the Ponies are here to ride, activities for the children too. Come on out and have some fun but remember, there will not be many Strawberries to pick.
The Tulips should last for two to three more weeks and the Strawberry harvest should go through mid May. Hope to see you soon
Friday afternoon March 3 --- Hey hey, today has been busier than I thought it would be. I understand why since it has been a beautiful afternoon of full sunshine.
A few things to consider if coming to the farm tomorrow (Saturday):
The aisles between the Strawberry and Tulip rows are still muddy. They have dried out considerably but still need a little more time. Bring an extra pair of shoes for the trip home.
The Tulip field has exploded with color. There are lots to choose from.
There will be a good supply of Strawberries to pick in the morning but I'm not sure how far through the day they will go. We are going to limit families to one box to start with, fill it up and come back for another one.
The Strawberry Ice Cream is amazing!
Concerning Sunday - the fields will definitely be drier, there will still be lots of Tulips but the Strawberry supply could be limited depending on Saturdays crowd. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening 7:15pm March 2 ---- Whew, that was close, no bad weather today for the Farm.! We had 6 tenths out of this storm this evening, 4 tenths this morning so an inch for the day -- just right! Tomorrow will be a two pair of shoes day - one to pick in and one to drive home in. The aisles between the rows are sure to be very slippery in the morning, hopefully dried out somewhat in the afternoon. There will still be some muddy spots on Saturday but the majority of the farm should be dry.
It should be a fantastic weekend with lots of Strawberries to pick and a field full of Tulips! That's right, the Tulip field has exploded with color. Yehaw! I hope you are excited as we are! Come see us.
Thursday noon March 2 ---- No more rain so far today. but the aisles between Strawberry rows are very slippery. We need to talk about Shoes :) Please bring with you a towel, another pair of shoes and a plastic bag. This way you can change your shoes before getting in the car for the trip home. We don't have a feet washing station. You would think that we would but it doesn't take very many kids playing in the water to make a huge mess so we don't - sorry.
The Tulip field has exploded - all of the sudden we have a very good supply of Tulips to pull They too are wet between the rows but the flowers are wonderful.
Still a good chance of rain here tonight - we'll keep you posted.
Thursday morning March 2 ---- .45 inches this morning. We didn't expect that little storm. Currently the skies have cleared and a breeze is kicking up. I don't think we are out of the woods yet though because the forecast calls for a chance of rain all day. The Strawberry fields are passable but expect some mud this morning. The Farm is open rain or shine. We will be here with a smile on our face.
Wednesday March 1, 2023 ---- These warm temperatures are doing a great job ripening up some berries. There is a good chance of rain in the forecast for tomorrow. If you do come out, come in the morning and there should be plenty of ripe Strawberries to pick, Friday even more and Saturday morning should be good picking.
Tulips! Friday is the start of the Tulip Season! It looks like it will be a great season, weather permitting. While there is no entrance fee to the general farm, there is a $5 entrance fee to the Tulip patch.
We will update here again tomorrow evening or Friday morning concerning rain received or rain that " just split and went right around us". Hope to see you soon
Sunday evening February 26, 2023 -----You guys are the best!!! What a great group of customers we have. The picking was difficult today but folks just took it in stride and seemed to enjoy the day anyway. Thank You!
More Strawberries are on their way. I recommend giving them a couple of days to ripen up a fresh batch. Thursday should be the next best day. The crop looks good overall and we are super excited about it. Lets hope that we can keep any nasty weather away.
Tulips will be ready for sure by Saturday, perhaps even Friday or Thursday if Raelynn gives the go ahead. Maybe you remember, last year was a 100% wipe out, the year already looks 100% better. They wont like these upper 80 degree days coming up, good thing a small cool down is coming toward the end of the week.
Saturday evening February 25, 2023 --- It was a fantastic day! Super big Thanks to all the pickers that showed up and harvested a ton of Strawberries! Tomorrow, the farm opens at !pm on Sundays, there will still be berries to pick but the selection wont be near as good as it was today. Try to arrive closer to 1pm if possible, Berry supply will greatly diminish the farther we go into the afternoon. My mom answered the phone this morning and if she told you there would be a great supply of berries tomorrow - it is my fault. She asked me if I was sure and I said "oh yes there will be lots tomorrow, Don't you worry". Well, that was before the city of Austin decided to show up. By next weekend the fields should be replenished and we should even start picking Tulips as well. Hope to see you soon!
Friday February 24, 2023 ---- Pretty much ditto last Mondays post with the addition of "Oh my Goodness, look at all the berries!". There is nothing like opening with fields full of berries. You will have only one problem this weekend - stopping. When the fields are loaded like this it is very hard to stop picking so just pace yourself, get those big ones hiding under the leaves and definitely look for solid red berries. We don't mind if you take out four boxes for the kids, just know that chances are, you will have four full boxes when you come back and each box level full is running about $22.00
We are super excited about what looks like will be a fantastic Tulip season! We see a pretty good stand of leaves popping out, now we just need some blooms.
The fields look great - no mud. The grass is getting green and the goats are hungry. Hope to see you soon!
Monday February 20, 2023 - Wowzers! We pulled the covers off after that last freeze, and the berries have gone to town! Plants and berries are in excellent health for this time of year. We are anticipating very good picking on our first day Saturday February 25th! As far as we can remember (but we could be wrong) we believe that this is the earliest we have opened the gates for berry picking! A 1st after 24 years of growing the fruit. Tulips are not far behind, keep checking in for an update on those!
Tuesday February 14, 2023 --- Happy Valentines!
Tulips ---- yep, we are doing Tulips again this year. What do you do when you have a complete crop failure out of 150,000 bulbs? You plant 330,000. The 2022 season was a bust so this year is going to be awesome! We are already seeing lots and lots of growth and hope to start picking some flowers in a couple of weeks. Colorblends Tulips have been a huge help to us, be sure to check them out on the internet for your Tulip needs.
Strawberries - coming fast! Mild temperatures and early varieties have combined to give us some berries that are almost ready for harvest. The Farm is going to open up Saturday February 25 for the 2023 season. The plants and crop look good so far, it is going to be a great season for sure! Hope to see you soon!
Saturday January 7, 2023 --- Happy New Year everyone! The calendar says January, the temperatures say March. Wow, what a weather pattern we are in. After the Christmas freeze event that had temperatures down in the low teens we are now in a mild pattern of Highs in the low 70s and lows in the 40s. As you would expect this has 'told' the Strawberry plants to get going. This is a pretty dicey situation because I would expect that winter is certainly not over and cold weather will be heading our way late January. We will just have to roll with the flow.
on the farm: goats are having babies, we are pulling runners off Strawberry plants, getting ready to protect Ranunculus and should be planting 160,000 Tulip bulbs this week.
Sunday evening December 18 ----- Well, that was fun! We just had a splash of winter berries that were big and tasted good . A heavy frost the past two mornings and cold weather coming this week will surely put the plants to sleep for a while and burn off any remaining berries. Currently, 17 is the forecast low for Thursday night. I don't think the plants have sufficiently hardened off for low teen temperatures. If we can, I think we will try to comer up a good many plants with frost blankets. The covers only give us about a max of 8 degrees protection which is good because we want the plant temperature to stay above 20. Remember, the plants can handle freezing weather but the blooms can not. Therefore we will start covering blooms in late January.
Ha Ha, my daughter and I had a little miscommunication ("no way" you say, "I can't believe it"). Somehow we ended up with a lot of extra Ranunculus corms.. So...... we built some more beds and planted another 8000. 33,000 Ranunculus corms are now planted in the ground and ready to grow.
We are all very excited and hopeful about 2023. The Ranunculus field looks great, the Strawberry plants are in good shape without deer damage! (so far), Tulip bulbs are coming, and everyone is healthy, God is Good! We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.
Saturday morning December 17 --- Did you know Santa Clause likes to garden? Yep, its because he likes to Hoe, Hoe, Hoe.
There are berries in the field to pick today but the picking is just going to be marginal. The grounds are in good shape, the goats are sure to be hungry and the kids love to jump on the berry bounce. I do think tomorrow will end the season as cold weather appears to be headed our way next week. These winter berries were fun but it is time for the plants to get a little rest. Merry Christmas!!
Thursday morning December 15 ---- Hey hey, the Farm is open for picking ! The Berries are very nice and the picking is pretty good. The grounds are in pretty good shape and the goats are sure to be hungry. Come on out!
If we don't get all the berries picked this weekend we might be open next Monday and Tuesday as well (we will update here).
Tony, Edder, Raelynn, Lacy and I have been busy planting 25000 Ranunculus corms. If all goes according to plan, we will have some beautiful Springs blooms to harvest in March, 2023. But they won't be the first blooms of next year because we are going to give Tulips another go in 2023. The 2022 Tulip crop was a complete failure so lets hope 2023 turns out a little better, sure can't be any worse :)
Sunday evening December 11 ----- Another great day! It was overcast and cool today. The Strawberries were/are outstanding. The fields are still loaded so we will be open for picking again this Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The varieties we are picking are some of the ones grown in Florida which are also producing berries you might find in the stores right now. When I explained this to a friend of mine his comment was "Well they taste a heck of a lot better than you find in the store!~. We have the luxury of letting them get fully ripe before picking them so yes, they do taste better. Remember, the Redder the Better!!!!
Sunday morning December 11 ---- Just right! A little rain fell on the farm last night but not enough to cause any problems. I don't see any puddles. There might be a few slick spots out in the field but shouldn't be anything to worry about. Maybe some old shoes would be in order. The Berries are sure to be big and freshly washed! Hope to see you soon.
Saturday December 10 ---- Wow! Whoa! Are you kidding me! Super Nice! Oh man! Just a few of the comments I heard today regarding these incredibly rare winter Strawberries we are picking right now. They are big, easy to pick and taste very goo. The Farm will be open tomorrow and next Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday for picking. Strawberry Jam makes a wonderful Christmas present! Pic and make some or just buy some we already made for you. Open !!am to 5pm on Sunday.
The fields look great at the moment but there is a chance of rain tonight. If it does rain, we will try to get a post up tomorrow morning.
Friday December 9th -- The strawberry picking will be great today! The strawberry plants are growing rapidly with this warm weather and have developed quite the leaf canopy --- just move those pesky leaves around to find the sweet fruit underneath. I recommend being a little selective about the berries that you pick there is so many good berries it's a great chance to get the best ones you want! The fields are 97% dried out... finally we wont sink to China getting out in the field! We are starting our 'close down' process and are limiting our activities to Berry Bounce and Sand Art. My daughter and I plan to make chocolate covered strawberries to give to her classmates at a Christmas Party! MMMMmmmm! I hope they all make it there....... we love strawberries at our house! We are so glad to have winter berries because our spring berries have long run out.
Monday December 5th ----- Wow! The Strawberry plants just keep on giving! We thought last weekend would be it but we were WRONG. Ha! The absence of freezing weather has kept the early varieties producing nice luscious red bundles of Joy that taste amazingly well. The Farm will be open for some very good picking this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We are new to winter berries so we will just have to take it week by week. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday 11/29 -- Strawberries look to be replenishing after a hard picking over last weekend. Finally we are getting some nice weather again to ripen up those berries in the field now. The best picking will be on Friday, Saturday with good picking, Sunday... we'll see how Friday and Saturday go!! The rows in-between the fields are drying out nicely as well! We are very excited to offer this unique opportunity at this time of year.
Sunday 11/27 -- IMPORTANT Picking Update: Believe it or not... We pulled over 600lbs. of berries in the rain and cold on Friday and Saturday! Picking will be harder today, all the good berries will be in the hardest to reach spots (i.e. super muddy, and farthest from the barn). We strongly recommend old shoes or rainboots to navigate the strawberry field. It looks like this week's weather will be wonderful for strawberry ripening. Which should make next weekend good picking. That's right! We will be open for one last weekend December 2-4 Friday and Saturday 9-5 and Sunday 11-5. Can you believe it?!? Strawberries in December! What a gift!
Saturday 11/26 -- The sun is shining! Open 9-5 today! We did get a considerable amount of rain last night, in between the strawberry rows will be very muddy and slick. There is still a good amount of berries in the field today! I would guess it will take about 20 minutes to fill a box. Mazes are open but muddy this morning, with less mud this afternoon/tomorrow. See you soon!
Saturday 11/19 -- We are open today 9-5! Rain or shine! Come out to pick strawberries (picking will be good today, we have more in the field than I originally estimated!) and do fun fall activities.
Strawberries will be "in season" until next weekend (November 25-27) At that time we will have a lot of strawberries to pick! Remember: we are a u-pick farm so come on out to get as much or as little as you'd like!
Thursday 11/17 -- We'll be open this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday regardless of what the weatherman says!
We will have activities and strawberry picking.
Strawberry picking will be best on Friday with slim picking on Saturday and Sunday.
The candy corn maze got mowed down to make room for spring flowers, but we still have the Texas Maze and the Barnyard Maze going strong. Lots of new baby goats and they sooooooo cute!
Sunday 11/13 -- Open today 11-5! All of our activities are open... except..
We had a light freeze last night that wiped out the flower field. All strawberries that have developed past the bloom stage should be fine. So we are still looking at a good crop of berries for the next 2 weeks, but probably not much after that. The mazes didn't take too much damage and are still holding up well. We have a few new baby goats on the farm! All in all the farm is good, can't wait to have y'all out to have some fun!
Saturday 11/12 -- We are open today (9-5) and tomorrow (11-5). It is cold, layer up when visiting today. All activities will be open! The grounds look good! I was able to successfully walk around the farm without getting mud on the bottom of my boots. Areas where the mud will be: Flower Fields.
Mazes are still (mostly) upright and in decent condition with little to no mud in them.
Come by and get your fall flowers before they are gone! See y'all soon!
Friday 11/11 -- We're open today 9-5 ... rain or shine! So far... no rain...and it looks like the chances are decreasing as the day goes on. There are ripe berries in the field, but it will take some time to pick 2 pounds. Come on out for fall activities! See you soon!
Monday 11/7 --- What a great season! Not the biggest but definitely not the worst. We are super happy to get whatever comes our way, Thank You Lord.
The Farm is going to transition to a Thanksgiving theme now, staying open on Friday, Saturday and Sundays.. Nothing has frozen, the Flowers are still growing well and before long we will have Strawberries to pick. Yep, Strawberries to pick in about a week or so. The weather has been unusually warm so those plants we planted back in September have decided to fruit. I don't think there will be much to pick this weekend but the following (18, 19 and 20) we should have some ripe fruit and I think there will be a lot of berries to pick the Friday, Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving. The weather will dictate how long the picking goes. Hope to see you soon!
Friday 11/4 ----- No rain here, just a lot of wind today. Thats fine because everything is a-ok for tomorrow. Historically the first weekend of November is super relaxed and not busy at all. We are excited about a good easy weekend. The Flowers are still going strong and the Mazes .are still doing good (although there are a ton of new paths).
The Strawberry plants that we planted back in September are becoming established. IF we don't have any freezing weather - expect some berries to pick in late November! Wouldn't that be something? Who knows what this crazy weather is going to do so we will just have to wait and see.
Friday morning 10;40am ---- And just like that the rain ahs stopped and the sun is trying to peak out. Everything is open and ready to go. The grounds have soaked up the rain well. There might be a few muddy spots today between the rows of flowers. Other than those spots the rain did nothing but make everything better for the weekend! Hope to see you soon.
Friday morning 7:35 am ---- Hey hey, a nice little shower just passed through. I wonder if the cracks in the ground will close? According to the radar we have another little line coming and then we will be done by mid morning. The Farm is open rain or shine. Paint a Pumpkin, Stuff a Scarecrow and Sandart are under a barn. The Berry Bounce will be good to go not long after the rain stops. We have one patch of flowers on gravel/sand, be sure to pick on the house side to avoid the chance of mud. Hayrides will be dry and the grounds are mostly grass covered. The Mazes shouldn't be muddy but will be slippery for a couple of hours, I'll try to get an update up by mid morning. Nothing like a good shower to freshen everything up! Yeah!
Tuesday morning 9am --- That wind storm you had last night - we had too! A cold front blew through last night, we had a little rain and a lot of wind, strong wind! The Farm grounds are easily passable, no mud at all. Just the right amount of rain fell to settle the dust and freshen us up. The Mazes are going to require a little cleanup before we open them back up. We should have the Candy Corn and Barnyard Mazes opened up by mid morning. "Texas" might take us the rest of the day so I would say it will be closed until Thursday morning. The pathways are all fine they just have occasionally stalks of grass leaning through the pathways. I would say the ten foot tall stalks about thumb size diameter held up pretty well considering the wind gusts.
Cooler! It is cooler! Could it actually be Fall? Loving these temperatures - hope to see you soon.
Monday morning 10/24 9am ---- Well...... it was forecast to rain ........... maybe later today? So far we have not had any rain and there is none on the radar remotely close to us. The grounds are sure are thirsty, a little shower would be nice but as my granddaughter says "we get what we get and we won't throw a fit!".
This past weekend was awesome. We truly have the best customers in the world. Folks seemed to be having a good time even when it was way too warm, windy and a bit dusty at times. I have not heard of any of our farmhands being yelled at or disrespected this year. When you lose faith in humanity, come hang out at the Farm a bit.
Speaking of temperatures ....... if the forecast holds true ......... we might see highs in the high 60s/low 70s!!!! Wow, that will be great because I was thinking we might have to change the name of the season to "Harvest of Summer supposed to be Fall Fun". This is going to be a good couple of weeks, hope to see you soon!
Tuesday 10/18 9:40 am --- What a great day it is going to be! Finally it is beginning to feel like Fall (at least for the next few days).. A little chilly this morning with a forecast high of 70 and sunshine today. We hardly had any rain yesterday so the grounds are easily passable with no mud. Hope to see you soon!.
Monday morning 9:30am 10/17 ---- So far just a drizzle of rain here. There is nothing on the radar heading this way at the moment but keep an eye out if you were thinking about coming today. A little more rain sure would be nice but we are super happy with anything we get. I'll try to update again tonight or first thing in the morning concerning field conditions.
Occasionally, throughout the season we like to go in and tidy up the Mazes by cutting any grass hanging out into the pathways with hedgers. We just finished the Barnyard and Candy Corn Mazes. I like that job because it is good ole fashioned work and a good way to burn calories after eating too many Strawberry Popsicles. The Mazes look amazingly well considering they haven't had a drink of water in over a month.
The Season seems to be going great, hope to see you soon..
Thursday evening 10/13 ----- That bloomin pig!!!!! I figured I should check out the Barnyard Maze to see how it was looking in there. The object of that Maze is to find our 4 "lost" Farm animals, a cow, chick, sheep and pig. That pig alludes me every time I go looking for it! I did find it and tried to figure out how I made it so hard so I could use the technique in Texas - I did nothing new, it shouldn't be that hard :). After the Barnyard, I went through the Candy Corn to check it. I am happy to report that both Mazes look very good considering the hot dry weather pattern we have been. I am very pleased! The very back of the Candy Corn Maze has a strip of sandy soil that does not hold water - the grass is dried and withered in that section. Luckily it is in a non important area.
Has anyone ever been to Megargel? That is a town in Texas and I want to know how the towns folk pronounce it.
The Texas Maze looks good as well. It is odd, one set of pedestrians will find all the towns in under 45 minutes whereas half the pedestrians can't get them all. It is still hot in the afternoons, do the Maze in the morning while it is still cool.
I often drive a Hayride tractor and it never ceases to amaze me that I see new little tidbits Granny has put out on the route. I think I mentioned that a bunch of Gnomes had moved in over by the Trick or Treat Scarecrows area. Well, she also added a dressing area to the Beauty pageant that has a large mirror. Every time I see the tractor in that mirror, I look around for another tractor! If you get on my Hayride, you better be ready for a quiz when you get off:). There is a Super Hero scene and I like to ask the kids which hero's were on the hill. Most of the time they miss one and I say "He is faster than a speeding bullet, he leaps tall buildings and can stop a locomotive". Yeah, evidently that is the OLD Superman because none of the young kids know that description. You just dated yourself if you knew who I was talking about, Ha Ha.
Until we get a cold front in here, I suggest mornings.. Afternoons are ok if folks are dressed accordingly. We sell water but you can bring your own. Make sure you stay hydrated, especially if you are not accustomed to the outdoors. The season is going great, everything on the Farm seems to be working well. All we are missing is you!
Sunday evening 10/9 ----- It was a good weekend! The Farm is open tomorrow for Columbus / Indigenous peoples day . Attendance is down a bit which is not all bad, because folks have been able to do everything they want without much of a line at any event. While in some years tomorrow is a big day - I wouldn't worry about crowds.
A few observations from the weekend: 1. The Farm has two fields of Flowers, the field on the house side of the road has been picked less therefore has a greater abundance of flowers to choose from. 2. The Texas Maze is getting warm in the afternoons. Until these temperatures start to come down - do the Texas Maze in the mornings. Save the other activities for the afternoons when you can catch a breeze. 3. There are cashiers all over the Farm, feel free to walk around and see what activities you like and then purchase a ticket. 4. Take your time. Don't be in a hurry, relax and enjoy the Farm.
A nice little wet cold front sure would be nice to lower the temperatures and give this dry land a drink. About a month ago we had a inch and a half of rain which greened up the farm in an amazing way. That rain has pretty much gone now. I am surprised at how well the Mazes look considering the lack of rain. One thing for sure, we do as my granddaughter says "We'll get what we get and we won't throw a fit!". But my natural farmer inner being can't help but grumble a little :). Hope to see you soon!
Monday October 3 --- Ahhh, it was a great weekend. It was good to see some folks having a good time again. The mornings have been cool and enjoyable. Afternoons are still a tad warm but not too bad if there is a breeze. We have highs in the low 80s forecast for this coming weekend! Wow, that is going to be soooo nice.
The Farm continues to run on all cylinders. We have been running the water truck a lot to keep the dust down in the parking lot. It is getting dry here and the grass is starting to show it. But there is always a good side so NO mud! Hope to see you soon!
Friday September 30 --- These cooler temperatures are wonderful! The afternoons are still a little warm but the mornings are delightful. Things are going great here on the Farm. This is one of those years where all the events and activities seem to be running smoothly. ....... so far. We have up to 8 tractors pulling hayrides and two pulling barrel trains. Since all of our tractors are pretty old, (ranging from 1948 to 2013) those two areas are the first to have issues - but not so far this year. The Flower fields are incredibly beautiful, the Mazes look great and tall. Attendance has been down the last two weeks so it is a good time to come out and enjoy a relaxed farm outing.
79,000 Strawberry plants have been put in the ground. They are already starting to grow and even a few blooms have popped out! Another 47,000 should be delivered soon. We will try to get them in the field as soon as possible after they arrive as well. The goal is to have everything planted by the end of the third week in October in order to get them established before any cold weather heads our way. Hope to see you soon!
Tuesday September 20 --- It's fun in the mornings, way too hot in the afternoons. The afternoons lately have been crazy hot, don't come in the afternoon. Instead, come in the mornings when it is still bearable and fun.
The Mazes are in as good of shape as they have ever been. We are super proud of them. It is turning off hot and dry again so they, and the rest of the farm, are looking a little parched.
Zinnias love it hot. The Flower fields are loaded with big beautiful blooms to cut.
Just about everything on the farm is working and looking great. We just need a little cooler weather to be able to enjoy it all.
Side note: 75,000 of the Strawberry plants should arrive later today. They certainly are not going to like the heat either
Monday September 12 ---- The Farm is in amazing shape! Maybe the best I have seen in a long while.
The flower fields are just gorgeous. They are loaded with blooms of all colors and sizes. Edder has done a great job of irrigating and growing the plants. Not often can you walk through a field with flowers up to your waist in every direction.
Not often are all the Mazes in his good of shape. In years past a storm or high winds have blown a portion down - not this year.! We are happy with the uniformity and growth of the grass which ranges from 7 to 10 feet tall. How hard are they this year? Well, we will find out this weekend when we get some pedestrians.
Granny and crew have been busy adding scarecrows to the themed hayride. The other day I was out there and it looks like a bunch of gnomes have moved to town! Every year it seems like Scarecrow village gets bigger and bigger.
I guess what I am trying to say is God has blessed us immensely and the Farm is really showing it. We are so proud to be able to be a part of offering families a good old fashioned wholesome event. I wish is wasn't so costly to do everything but hopefully, we have it set up where folks can do what their budget allows while still enjoying the day.
Monday September 5 ---- Getting closer! the Harvest of Fall Fun is coming fast, opening September 17 for all the fun sooooo...... we have some work to do!
The Farm looks spectacular. All the rains we have had for the last two weeks have turned it green and lush. The Mazes are doing very well. What are we working on? Lacy is making Ice Cream, popsicles and working on group bookings. Raelynn is doing HR (trying to hire some folks) , signage, booking birthday parties and some advertising. Granny and her crew are busy working on the Scarecrow Island Hayride. Edder is installing irrigation on all the Strawberry beds we just made. Tony, George and I are removing sprinklers from the Mazes, mowing, painting and building fences. I love to work so this is an exciting time for us. Hope to see you soon!!!
Wednesday 8/3/22 ---- Its been awhile! Well! Let me catch you up: I am sure you have noticed that it has been hot and dry, if you haven't noticed - let me tell you, it has been HOT and DRY. I guess you would be right in saying "What do you expect? It's summer". Yes, but it feels extra hot and dry.
Mazes: all planted and pathways are cut. We are very blessed with strong water wells. We water through the night and are just barely able to keep them growing. My son in law has done a great job fertilizing and keeping the army worms away. There are a few week spots but overall we expect them to be tall and full, assuming we don't get a nasty rain event with strong winds that will lay a lot of the cane down. There is the Barnyard Maze (maybe the easiest of them all) where the object is to find our lost barnyard animals (signs) and come back out. The Candy Corn Maze which is significantly bigger this year. The object is to find the giant Candy Corn and ring the bell before coming back out. We will see but this could be a little more difficult than in years past. The School Group Maze,, reserved for school field trips and of course the Texas Maze. The theme this year for the Texas Maze is "uniquely" Texas. Folks will be looking for 14 uniquely named towns in Texas: Fabens, Coyanosa, Shafter, Mobettie, Flomot, Fluvanna, Knickerbocker, Blewit, Falfurrias, Nordeim, Heidenheimer, Yantis, Votaw and Megargel. I am sure you know exactly where all those towns are ---- if not, get the map out. The object now is to keep the pathways mowed and the grass watered.
Zinnias: only my stubborn head would transplant small plants in this kind of heat! But we are. Only a few more plants to go and we should have 40,000 in the ground. We are making a few changes to the flower patch this year, we will be growing them on both sides of the road. We need to rotate some of our tired Strawberry ground so we are going to move the Strawberries where last years group maze was, the group maze where the Barnyard Maze was, the Barnyard Maze where some of the Zinnias were, and some of the Zinnias where some of the Strawberries were. I love annual farming just for this reason! We can move things around.
My beloved mother, "Granny", is amazing! She has started her crew out on the Scarecrow Island Hayride and the village is coming together nicely. If you haven't been,, our Hayride is definitely one of a kind all because Granny and her keen sense of creativity has produced almost 400 friendly scarecrows in a myriad of 'scenes'. It's just good ole country fun.
Among every thing else they do, the daughters, Raelynn and Lacy have the kitchen cranked up making homemade popsicles, Ice Cream and Jam.
So all in all, the Farm looks great for this time of the year. We are super excited about the upcoming Fall season that will start September 17 or maybe a little sooner if the weather cooperates.
Monday 6/27 - - The sunflower field is now closed, as is the rest of the farm. We do this every year in preparation for our annual Harvest of Fall Fun! We will have mazes, pumpkins, hayrides, and wayy more to make all of your fall dreams come true. It will be here before we know it, and we can't wait to have people back to have some good old fashioned farm fun!
Monday 6/20 -- It sure is amazing how quick the sunflowers go! This will be our last full week of sunflower picking. The LAST DAY for sunflower picking will be Sunday June 26th. We are now doing our 'clear the field' sale for $1.00 per sunflower. There are still plenty of sunflowers in our field, we can't wait for you to come get them! :)
Monday 6/13 -- My computer is finally working again! The sunflowers look fantastic! There are only about 2 weeks left of sunflower season, so come out fast. We are at 95% bloom right now so it is a great time to come out and get those photos and sunflowers!
Saturday 6/4 -- We did have a rain shower this morning, but the flowers are better off for it. We do have some mud in the field but I don't anticipate it lasting long. We will be open normal hours this weekend, and we can't wait to have you out!
Friday 6/3 -- The sunflowers are looking much better today! This weekend will be a great time to come for pictures and lots of variety. The forecast is showing hot hot hot, so I would come out sooner rather than later in the season because we predict that the blooms won't last very long in that heat. Follow us on facebook for live video and photo updates so you can determine the best time to come for you :) Can't wait to have y'all out!
Monday May 30 ----- We do have sunflowers in the field, but I would wait until later in the week to visit for photographs. The plants are not producing as uniformly as they have in the past and we are a bit in limbo between varieties. There is probably around 5000 blooms ready to pick for tomorrow scattered through the field but, at the moment, we just don't have that stunning display of blooms that photographs well. It looks like that will come toward the weekend, we will post again Thursday morning to let you know.
Thursday Morning May 26 -- This is the most beautiful time of the year in my opinion. It is VERY hard to be unhappy while looking at a field of sunflowers!! :) Right now we are about 25% in bloom. With more on the way everyday! We are so thankful that we have ANY in bloom right now, this has been a very challenging growing season for us with the quick turn over of land, inconsistent weather patterns, and EXTENSIVE deer damage. The deer don't usually touch our sunflowers, but with no rainfall, they had nothing else to eat. This season is also a bit tricky for us because a highway cuts right through our property. With the Texas heat and spacing issues, we've decided to only open one side of the farm: the "house side". That means that we will only have sunflower picking and goat feeding going on at this time. No other farm activities will be open. We can't wait to have you out to pick some lovely sunflowers!
Monday May 23 -- We have been busy busy busy, closing one season and getting ready to open for the next. Sunflowers will be in bloom this weekend! This is the beginning of the season. We should be open for about 3-4 weeks of sunflower blooms! We will not have any other of our normal farm activities... just goat feeding and flower picking going on right now. See y'all soon!
Thursday morning 5/12 ---- It's a hot one, yes it is. The Strawberry crop is finished, there are no berries to be picked. The Farm will be open through this Sunday with Farm Activities and fresh Ice Cream.
It was a late start and an early finish to the Strawberry season, we are glad we had some berries in between. Concerning Strawberries: now is the time to evaluate varieties and order plants for this Fall planting, mow the plants, lift and discard the mulch and drip and someday we will get some rain to cultivate the fields. Come August the entire process starts again with the building of the beds and a renewed sense of hope for the 2023 crop.
The Spring Bloom field is being worked on at the moment. The field is mostly Ranunculus which are a perennial plant. They produce a corm that needs to be pulled up and stored in a dry place until planting again this Fall. That is a dirty tough job. There is no easy way to do it other than just getting in there and getting sticky, sweaty and dirty. I am glad to say that we have finished pulling the plants, the plastic mulch and the drip line. All that is left is to rip and cultivate that field. In July we will plant it to a Sorgum Sudan hybrid grass that will turn into the Candy Corn Maze this Fall.
There are always plenty of things to do on the farm but right now we don't feel the pressure of getting anything done quickly (hence me hiding out in the air conditioned office - ha ha).
Sunday evening 5/8 --- Happy Mothers Day! We hope it has been a wonderful day for all of you mothers.. Whew! it was plenty hot for Mothers Day this year. We were very thankful for that wind that we were wishing would go away three weeks ago. 104 yesterday and 103 today here at the farm Since this is the year of "I don't remember it ever ....", I will go ahead and say "I don't ever remember it being this hot, this early.". The hot and dry has put a halt to Strawberry production. There is nothing in 8 acres of Strawberries to pick, their season is done. Now comes the job of removing the plants and cultivating the fields, which won't happen until we get a little rain to soften the soil.
The Farm will stay open this week for those folks that haven't got the memo yet. The Farm Activities will still be going, the Ice Cream is sure to be delicious this week.
Next up is Sunflowers, which love this kind of weather. We expect them to really turn on the jets and do some growing this week. An added bonus to the Sunflowers will be a ton of volunteer Zinnia's. Zinnias normally do not come back true to their parents lineage so it will be very interesting to see what kind of flowers we get.
Thursday evening 5/5 ----- Unbelievable! My dear old late preacher father used to say "Those rain clouds always split right before Marble Falls just like Moses parted the Red Sea" . Well, I have been hearing his voice in my head all day because he is exactly right concerning todays events. I watched the rain on the radar go North, East, West and South of us today and only by a few miles! In the afternoon there was a good line of showers heading our way and we just happened to be in the only break in that line. I am going to be upset if it starts raining on our next event - Sunflowers. Well, maybe not ....... we will take the rain when we can get it and as my grandaughter says "we get what we get and we won't throw a fit".
Thursday morning 5/5 ----- Is it going to rain? It looks promising but we'll believe it when we see it. Some years it seems we have a target on us for storms but not this year (which is not all bad).
Ripe Strawberries are getting very hard to find, I believe they are just about finished for this year. We had a late start to the season and it looks like we will have an early end. In early April we had a string of mid 90's and even a 101 degree day which Strawberry plants do not like. That warm weather told the plants to stop blooming which translates to the lack of berries right now. We were happy to get the berries we got but now is the time to start planning for the next cycle.
The Farm will temporarily close at the end of Sunday May 15. Until then, the Farm Activities will still be going, the Ice Cream is sure to be delicious, and not many Strawberries will be in the fields to pick.
Sunflowers! the next crop will be cut your own Sunflowers starting in the first part of June. We'll let you know as we get closer when they are coming.
Tuesday Evening 5/3 --- Aaaannndd just like that we are back to hot weather. I think this year is a true Texas weather year, it has sure kept us on our toes!! Berry picking for Thursday will fair slightly better than the last few days. Berry supply is dwindling, but berries are still out there! Smaller than earlier in the season (which is normal) and scattered. Where you could pick a box on half a row 2 weeks ago, now it will take 2 or 3 rows to get you a box of berries. Wear your step tracker and make it a fun way to get those steps in! If you don't pick a whole lot of berries you can also get your berries in frozen form! Ice Cream and Popsicles are sure to be a treat on these warmer days. Weekend Picking Forecast: Same as Thursday, but the earlier in the day you come, the better supply of berries we will have. See y'all soon!
Monday Morning 5/2 - - Hey y'all! Lacy here. I'm taking over the Fresh News for a couple of days. Berry picking at this time of year is a patience game.... the berries are out there.... you just have to spend the time to look for them. Gently move those leaves around to find the fruit that is in the shade. I think the average right now is about 30 minutes a box. We've still got lots of activities for the kids and you'll be sure to enjoy the day in the great outdoors! Can't wait to have you out to the farm soon!
Saturday evening 4/30 ----- It was a good day, everyone seemed happy and understood they needed to look a little harder for Strawberries. They looked - and they found! I saw some very nice boxes of berries come out of the fields today ......... and some that didn't look so good. It looks like tomorrow will be just about the same. There are ripe berries out in the field but they are scattered so it takes more of hunt to find a full box. The Farm opens at 1pm on Sundays (tomorrow). all the activities will be running and the Ice Cream will be delicious. The season is winding down fast so better come get them while you can.
Friday evening 4/29 ---- Where was this fantastic weather a month ago? Seems like we went from a winter to mild Summer and now back to Spring. I am loving this weather for sure.
Tomorrow: It will be like today = everyone found berries but not without a little hunt. An early arrival is best for sure. Strawberry availability will probably be limited by mid to late afternoon. There is about nine miles worth of Strawberry rows here at the farm. The later in the day folks arrive - the more walking is required to find those berries. Remember: always start picking at the FAR end of the row and work back. The last 75 feet of the row normally have the most berries. If you are in a spot with few berries, move around and as you walk look to the two or three rows to the right and left to see the berries hidden under the leaves.
Farm activities will be going strong and Ice Cream is always delicious. On the weekends Lacy adds fresh Strawberry smoothies and Lemonade to the mix --- they are 'wow'! Hope to see you soon as this Spring season is winding down fast.
Thursday afternoon 4/28 --- Yesterday and this morning was fantastic working weather - cloudy with a touch of cool. Seems like the last week or so have finally been Spring like weather after the summer like weather in the first of April. That warm weather a month ago is the reason the Strawberry production is slowing down now. The Strawberry plants do not like temperatures above 90 which we had in early April Since it is about 30 days from bloom to ripe fruit, that heat up caused the plants to stop blooming hence the lack of green fruit coming now.
Everyone today found berries, everyone tomorrow will find berries but it will increasingly take longer to find that boxful. Start out with one box per family, grab another after you fill that one up. All the activities are going great and the Ice Cream is delicious. Come see us.
Tuesday afternoon 4/26 ---- Remember: the Farm is closed on Wednesdays. --- 2 tenths of an inch out of yesterdays rain. A little less than we would like but much much better than nothing. The berries did get some washing and the farm is a little fresher today. That moisture is pretty much gone now, so there is no mud to deal with.
While the berries are much cleaner, I'm not too happy with the amount of berries I see available for picking. And not many green berries coming so It looks like we are going to see a slow down in production soon. Thursdays picking will only be decent. The berries are medium to small and an early arrival is better than later. We are going to go down to giving out one box per family to start with (multiple boxes are no problem if you are bringing back your old ones), fill that box back and hurry back for another. This is not to limit the amount anyone picks, it is only to limit the amount of unusable boxes we find hidden around the farm. Just think of it as a good way to teach the kids (or adults) to share and work together to fill a box. I believe everyone that comes out will find a boxful of berries - later in the day it might take longer to find that boxful. Same for Friday. We will update before Saturday.
The Flowers are finished now. We enjoyed them very much and look forward to expanding the field and making a few changes to planting. That's what we love about annual crops - every year we can do things to try to make them better. Soon we will begin working to take out that field and get it ready for the Fall Candy Corn Maze.
Sunday evening 4/24 ---- I believe I underestimated how many berries folks were going to pick this weekend - Tomorrow we have a 90% chance of rain (which means that there is a 10% of no rain) --- Tuesday we will be drying out if it does rain ---- Wednesday the Farm is closed soooooo Thursday should be great picking again!! I am most excited about the possibility of getting the plants and berries washed off. There will be berries for the folks that do come out tomorrow or Tuesday, just not as big a selection as Thursday.
Saturday evening 4/23 --- Another good day in the books! Folks picked a LOT of Strawberries today, some of the best ones we have seen this year. The only frowny face I saw today was on the little boy who got upset when his dad took his box of Strawberries away so he could carry it to the car. It is so good to see folks enjoying themselves. Tomorrow will be another good picking day (Open 1pm to 5pm), maybe a few less available than today but still good. Looks like rain chances are pretty high on Monday (we'll believe it when we see it) , a good washing sure would be nice for the Farm. After tomorrow, next Thursday should be amazing picking, especially if the plants and berries get that rain on Monday. Remember 1pm to 5pm on Sundays, Hope to see you soon..
Friday evening 4/22 ----- It was a busy day today and you can't even tell out in the Strawberry fields. The next few days will be wonderful picking regardless of the time folks arrive.
I will say today was windy and tomorrow is forecast to be the same. As a farmer we like to put the plants in the ground with the proper spacing to allow lots of air flow to prevent diseases ------- needless to say, with this wind, we have had zero disease pressure this year! I am sure every year I say "well, I've never seen it this ______".. This year it is "I have never seen a Spring this dry and windy".
Friday morning 4/22 ---- These Strawberries are putting on a show. All of the sudden it seems they decided to put on one last show. It looks like the picking will be spectacular through the next week, no matter what time of day you come, and then a slow down starting in May. This might be the last best time for "Jam Picking". We are trying to load up ourselves for our freezers. Lacy uses over 2500 pounds in her Ice Cream, Smoothies, Lemonade, Popsicles and Jam - yikes!
The Flower field is just about finished. Raelynn is eeking out a few more flowers while trying to get every last one. She said this will probably be the last weekend for flower picking.
It is still dry!!! but a couple of cloudy cooler days sure have been nice. It looks like we have a pretty good chance next Monday and we will take it!
Thursday morning 4/21 ----LOTS of Strawberries! Maybe the best picking of the season now. It should be great Strawberry picking all the way through the weekend. The flower field is just about done. but the Ice Cream is still delicious. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/17 --- Happy Easter everyone! It was a good day on the farm today. Not too busy and not too slow. We missed a rain shower by just that much. I watched it on the radar scoot just to our South. Oh well we will get some rain eventually. Good thing we have strong water wells.
Tomorrow will be great Strawberry picking as we are going into the School group field where noone has been for a few days. There are still lots of flowers in the field too. This should be a great week to come out to the Farm and guess what - NO mud!
Saturday evening 4/16 ---- And another good day! The Farm will be open tomorrow, Easter Sunday. 1pm to 5pm. We will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus in the morning and then opening the farm in the afternoon. There are Strawberries and Flowers to pick, Farm Activity fun to have, Ice Cream, Smoothies and Popsicles to eat. It will be a good afternoon we hope to see you soon.
This morning was cloudy and boy was it nice. This afternoon the clouds broke, the Sun came out and it got a little toasty for me.
Friday evening 4/15 ---- Wow, what a GOOD Friday (Happy Easter everyone). The Reason was awesome, the Strawberries were awesome, the Flowers were awesome, the Weather was awesome, the Smoothies/Ice Cream were awesome and best of all - the customers were/are awesome. I saw two little boys holding hands coming out of the field today and thought, "what a great picture (as a tear began to well up in my eye) that is what the Farm is all about". Just then the youngest yanked his hand away from his brother, gave him the what for and poof, that tear was replaced with a big ole laugh.
Tomorrow (Saturday) will be almost as good! We might not have quite the supply of Berries so come in the morning to make sure you get plenty. Hope to see you soon!
Thursday evening 4/14 --- Lookin good! Tomorrow morning will be good Strawberry picking, just depends on customer flow but hopefully the picking will stay good most of the day. Be sure to check here tomorrow night concerning Strawberry availability for Saturday.. There is lots of flowers to pick, they should last all weekend. The Farm activities will be lots of fun all weekend, and the Ice Cream is sure to be great. Happy Easter everyone, hope to see you soon.
Tuesday evening 4/12 ---- The same as yesterdays post with additions: No! we did not get any of that rain on the radar! Oh well, maybe next time. Strawberries: Thursday we are going into the school group field for some amaaaazing picking! Wow! This will take all the pressure off of the main fields so Friday will be good picking in the morning, customer flow will determine how long it takes to go from good picking to a bit of a hunt picking. A little too early to tell about Saturday and Sunday.
Monday evening 4/11 ------ I was pleasantly surprised with the berries that came out today. They weren't the best but for sure not the worst. This morning was cloudy with pleasant temperatures which finally felt like a Spring day. There is a chance of rain tomorrow afternoon, only 30% but we will take anything right now. A shower sure would be a God send for the Farm but if it doesn't rain, oh well, we will just continue to irrigate. Good thing about being so dry - we haven't had to mow very much.
Next few days:
Ranunculus flowers - lots of beautiful blooms to choose from. Should be great picking through Friday and I suspect through the entire weekend. They sure are nice.
Farm Fun Activities - going great! The Pony rides join the fun on Friday, Saturday and Sunday too.
Ice Cream - simply delicious, Lacy is making more as we speak and there should be plenty of fresh Ice Cream and Popsicles all weekend. Fresh Strawberry Smoothies and Lemonade join the menu on Saturday.
Strawberries ----- better not give more than a couple days outlook on them. Tomorrow: slim picking in the morning but then in the afternoon after the school kids leave, about 1:15 pm, we are going to pick in their field which will be awesome picking. If we don't clean out that School field tomorrow, we are going to let you die hard Thursday pickers in there between 8:30 - 9:30am before the school kids arrive. So, if you really want some good picking - come tomorrow afternoon or Thursday morning before 9:30.. This should take a little pressure off the main fields so I expect there to be decent picking in them Thursday if you don't make it early. Friday, Good Friday, is historically a big day - come early for berries (before 11am). We will just have to wait and see how the picking goes before we guess at Saturday and Sunday. Hope to see you soon!
Sunday evening 4/10 ----- We have the best customers in the world!! There weren't many Berries to pick today but everyone seemed to take it in stride and have a good time.
For Monday: I think we will have a lot of fun with the children activities, Pick some gorgeous flowers, eat some delicious ice cream and ................. scratch out a few Strawberries. If you are solely after Strawberries, - don't come tomorrow. The Activities and Flowers will be doing very well but not the Strawberries. We will once again be giving out one box per family tomorrow. Berries will continue to ripen with every passing day but I think it will be Thursday before the fields have recovered.
Saturday evening 4/9 ------ Whew! What a day. A lot of fine folks braved the wind and came out to the farm today. I don't understand but I would see a dozen or so boxes of so so berries and then out of the blue someone would bring in a box of nice big red ones! When asked where they picked they would just say "a little here and a little there".
For Sunday - the Farm opens at 1pm on Sundays - I think we will have a lot of fun with the children activities, Pick some gorgeous flowers, eat some delicious ice cream and ................. scratch out a few Strawberries. If you are solely after Strawberries, - don't come tomorrow. The Activities and Flowers will be doing very well but not the Strawberries. We willl once again be giving out one box per family tomorrow.
Friday evening 4/8 ---- Well, tomorrow and Sunday will be a great time to pick beautiful flowers, eat delicious ice cream, sip amazing strawberry smoothies, have fun with the activities but NOT picking Strawberries. T
Flowers: the field of Ranunculus looks very good. Lots of colors and lots of blooms to choose from. At only 50 cents per bloom who can resist?
The Spring activities are a lot of fun for the children. Paint a pot (paint a white pot, fill it with soil and plant a seed to take home), Sand Art (make a necklace with colored sand), Sweet Barrel Express (a tractor pulled train of barrels the kids ride in. This has to be the most boring ride ever but when my grandaughter was 1 to 4 we couldn't keep her off), Pony rides, and the Berry Bounce (just a giant jumping air filled pillow the kids can jump on). On the weekends the Sweet Shack is open with fresh made Strawberry Smoothies, Strawberry lemonade and some light snacks.
Strawberries: ugh! tomorrow we will be handing out one box per family. Fill that box and hurry back for another. This is not to limit the amount of berries anyone picks, it is to prevent folks from soiling 5 boxes, combining them into one and leaving the other 4 stuffed under benches, on picnic tables, in trash cans, in the fields and any other place they can be hidden. Once the box is stained, we do not reuse it. A plethora of things are going on with the plants. It is super dry here and the plants are just covered with dirt from the blowing dust. There is also a lot of berries in the fields that are damaged from the wind and the upper 90s and even 101 on last Tuesday and the list goes on. Sooooo, we need a little rain and the temperatures to moderate a little bit to get our plants back in a groove. For now it will take some effort to find your berries, just get down there in amongst the leaves sort through those berries and find the good ones. If you accidently pick a berry not up to your standards, just throw it on the ground and go in for another. We see strong green berries on the way, lets hope the weather cooperates to bring them safely to maturity.
Wednesday evening 4/6 --- Tomorrow we will be staying in the main fields for Strawberry picking, which should be decent. There are lots of flowers to pick. That field is just gorgeous.
Monday afternoon 4/4 ------ Those berries coming out of the school group field are amazing! We are going to pick there as much as we can the next few days to let our main fields recover from a busy weekend. We have to pick around the school groups, so tomorrow (Tuesday) we are going to pick in that field from 8:30 - 10am, 2pm to 5:30pm. From 10am to 2pm folks will pick in the main field where there is berries, just not like the school group field yet. The Farm is closed Wednesday. Thursday we might possibly do this again - it just depends on how many get picked tomorrow. If you are wanting to pick a lot for jam, - tomorrow is the day to come. The Berries are super nice and super abundant. I picked 6 boxes (30 pounds) in 30 minutes this morning from that field. This is a special thing, it is only going to happen when the school group field is crazy loaded and the main fields are not.
Sunday evening 4/3 ---- The fields are picked pretty close. Tomorrow (Monday) morning will be slim pickings BUT in the afternoon we are going to let folks pick in the School Group Field which has some wonderful berries in it. So if coming tomorrow - definitely come after 1pm. We might do that Tuesday as well. Thursday the main fields should be back in the berries so we will plan on picking in them..
The Spring blooms are doing great! The flowers are just beautiful and folks are really getting a lot of enjoyment picking them.
Saturday evening 4/22/22 ---- Beautiful berries went out this morning and then ....... they got harder to find. There are almost ripe berries in the field now that will ripen overnight for tomorrows picking (open at 1pm) but still, the picking wont be great. We are going to start the day giving one box (holds 5 pounds) per family. Fill up the box and run back for another one if needed. Don't worry, with a little diligence you'll find those berries! With this weather the berries will ripen fast - next Tuesday should be good picking and by Thursday we will be swimmin in berries again!
The Spring Blooms pick your own flowers are off to a great start! The flowers are beautiful, be sure to stop and check them out. At only 50 cents per bloom, who can resist?
4/1 ---- No Foolin - the Strawberries are looking much much better and there is a decent amount to pick this weekend. We for sure will have plenty through mid day tomorrow - just depends on the crowd how tomorrow afternoon looks. I suspect there will be plenty of berries for Saturday and Sunday it will just take longer and longer to find them as the days go on. There are nine miles of Strawberry row to pick, finding that spot where no one else has been is sometimes tricky. I will say: ALWAYS go to the FAR end of the row and pick back, everyone else started up front and never made it to the good stuff..
The incredibly delicious fresh homemade Strawberry smoothies have returned!!!!!! The 'Sweet Shack' is now open on Saturday and Sundays with Smoothies, Strawberry Lemonade, Ice Cream, Popsicles and ......... pickles (what?!) Everything but the pickles are made right here on the farm and boy are they good. Look for the Sweet Shack (Pumpkin grille in the Fall) down by the Picnic Tables.
3/30/22 ---- Closed Wednesdays, (today). This is the day we do stuff like pumping port o potties, mowing, weedating, misc stuff that is best to do without folks around. Speaking of Port o Potties - we try to have the cleanest ones in the country - hint: the farthest ones away from the front are the least used.
What a wonderful rain we had this morning! Only two tenths but we will take it for sure. The Farm feels so much better and fresher, The Berries were desperately needing a wash and if you were here last weekend in the blowing dust you'll agree that the ground did too. It is windy again today so I don't expect any mud by tomorrow. Other than the occasional wet spot, the fields should be in great shape.
Strawberries: tomorrow and Friday should be pretty good picking. I am not super proud of these berries because they are on the small side. I know the small ones taste as good as the big ones but I still like to pick those big ole juicy red ones (I see some strong blooms now so maybe in a month we will have those big ones). We still have some frost cover damaged berries out there as well so keep that in mind..
Tulips: I don't think we will have Tulips this year. That's farming, sometimes you just have a crop loss, nothing you can do but grin, bear it and move on. We DO have some gorgeous Spring Flowers to pick on the farm side. They are just now getting started and should continue to bloom through April.
3/26/22 ---It was a great day on the farm! A bit windy and dry. Strawberry supply started out pretty good but by mid day they were getting harder to find. It was a real hunt by closing. Tomorrow (Sunday) - the farm opens at 1pm - it is going to be another warm day and the wind is supposed to continue to blow - some berries will ripen overnight but the picking is not going to be that good. With this kind of warm weather, berry supply will increase rapidly. Monday will be ok picking, Tuesday - decent picking, Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning - great picking.
3/22 ----- Looks like those storms formed just to our East yesterday and went away from the farm. We hope you folks that were in the path are ok.
Did it rain here at the farm? We saw some water fall from the sky but ... where did it go? The ground was so dry that it was soaked up immediately. Just a little 20 minute shower here at the farm and boy were we glad to see it! These last two months have been super dry so any rainfall at all is much appreciated.
The Strawberries are ripening nicely. We have enough berries now that we can gladly tell folks to come on out, there is a lot to pick. The berries ripening right now have some cosmetic damage from forming under whipping frost covers but the main thing is there is lots to pick! Closed Wednesday but after that the rest of the week should be great picking!
Those crazy Tulips! Two or three varieties are blooming but 95% of the field is yet to emerge. I know, what?????!!!!!!! Believe me, the bulbs are a big investment and no one is more anxious than us - actually, as an old farmer I know how these things go but the daughter in charge of flowers is losing sleep. There are sooooo many factors that could play into this delayed growth, we really don't know which one or ones are causing the issue. For now all we can say is, stay tuned.
3/21 - Wow this rain is a sight for sore eyes! (And I mean sore with all the dust that has been blowing around) The farm is open today rain or shine 8:30-5:30! We'll have berry picking, paint-a-pot, sand art, and the berry bounce (depending on the weather). The Barrel Train will be closed today. There is no mud, currently everything is being soaked up by our super dry ground. See y'all soon!
Saturday evening March 19 --- This was an outstanding weather day! The best day of the entire week turned out to be the slowest in attendance, ha. Looks like their will be Strawberries to pick tomorrow.. They are not jumping in the box yet and some have a little damage from the frost covers but they are to fun to pick. The Farm opens at 1pm on all Spring Sundays - Hope to see you soon!.
Saturday March 19 --- This is what I wrote last year at this time "A beautiful but windy day today. These last two weeks have been super windy. Last week we were all leaning to the North, after yesterday and today, we are all leaning to the South.
It was good to see kids having fun again! If only we could harvest some of the energy spent out here... The activities went over well and it seemed like everyone was enjoying their selves. We will stay open with activities only until the Strawberries get here and then things will be back to normal." Sound familiar?
We are going to start picking some Strawberries! These first berries don't look too hot because they have some damage from all the frost cover use. When the covers are deployed and whipping in they wind they tend to rub the immature berries causing some cosmetic damage. It is going to be a hunt for berries today and tomorrow but by next week production should be picking up a good bit.
Thursday 3/17 ---- Still not ready. These days with sunshine and highs in the mid 80's make us think we should have berries but we have to remember that just a week ago it was down to 24 degrees. The plants don't respond overnight, it takes them a week or so to get things moving. We still think it will be a week from now before we have berries and Tulips but even that date is not for sure. We will continue to update as we get closer.
Reckon we are through with freezing weather? Normally the last thing to break bud are Pecan and Mesquite trees and right now they look pretty dormant. We watch the forecast for several towns around and north of us, currently Llano shows a low of 34 tomorrow night - that is getting way too close! We will check it again tomorrow morning to decide whether or not to cover up the plants. It is a big job to cover 8 acres of Strawberry plants so I would prefer we didn't.
The Farm is open with Farm Activities: Berry Bounce, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train, Pony rides (this week all week), goats to feed, Ice Cream, Popsicles and lots of room to run.
Tuesday 3/15 ---- Not yet, arghhhh. The Strawberries and Tulips are behind schedule! We believe it will be Thursday the 24th before we get rolling on either of those crops. Before then we might pick a few here and there but they will be very hit and miss. Until then, the Farm is open with Farm Activities: Berry Bounce, Sand Art, Paint a Pot, Barrel Train, Pony rides (this week all week), goats to feed, Ice Cream, Popsicles and lots of room to run.
What happened? Didn't you open in the first of March last year? February two years ago? Why are they late? Wellllll, let me tell you - it's the weather.
For Strawberries: I believe it was the researchers at North Carolina State that determined we would be picking Strawberries around 450 Growing Degree Days (GDDs) after planting. GDD units are derived by taking the high temperature plus the low temperature divided by 2. The base temperature for Strawberry growth is 50, so we subtract 50 form this number to obtain GDDs for that day. If the average temperature is less than 50, no GDDs are counted. Example: a 85 degree high plus a 59 degree low = 144 divided by 2 = 72 minus 50 = 22 units for that day. a 55 degree high plus a 30 degree low divided by 2 would be less than the 50 base so no units counted. While we had an unusually warm Fall we had a cold January/February. This combination led to a delayed crop. Do we keep track of the GDDs here at our Farm - no but understanding this principle gives us an idea of what is going on.
Tulips: We don't know much about Tulips! The bulbs are very sensitive to temperature requiring the necessary chilling units before growth. We purchase pre chilled bulbs that should have most of their cold requirement met so we don't think the temperatures had too much to do with their lateness. We can say that it has been incredibly dry. This is the one year we decided not to put in a irrigation system when planting and that might have been a mistake. Week after week we had a chance of rain and it just never materialized. I always say that you can't trust a rain forecast but yet I continue to make the mistake of letting it keep me from irrigating. Well we now have sprinklers on the field and it seems to be bring the plants on. Hopefully before long we will be picking tulips.
Monday 3/7 - - - We will be opening March 14th for farm activities only. And I'll tell you one thing you can count on.... Not being able to count on this Texas Weather! With the high highs, and then back down to low lows all our plants are confused! They put energy into growing when the weather is warm, just for the weather to tell them to stop growing when it gets cold. All the drastic fluctuations and lack of rain have put us into a late opening this year. Strawberries are lookin' to be around 2 weeks away (with the 2 weeks having perfect growing conditions) and tulips? they could take another week or two to come up. Thanks for being patient with us, we can't see into the future and don't know what the weather will bring. We will keep you updated as much as we can. We will see y'all when Spring decides to get here to central Texas.
Monday 2/28 - - - The cold spell last week put us behind schedule...again. Tulips are sprouting in about 1/3 of the field so we anticipate 1-2 more weeks of waiting until we can open for tulip picking. We did not get as much growth from the strawberries as we would have liked last week, but we are still on track for mid-march opening. (maybe latter part of spring break?) If the forecast holds true this week, the opening date will be coming up FAST! Keep following our page for crop updates! We're Sweet Berry Farm: the sweetest place in the Hill Country!
Tulip Plants 2/28/2022
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Strawberry Plant 2/28/2022
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Monday 2/21 ---- Not open yet. It looks like we are heading for a early March opening.
Well! what do you think about this weather? The temperatures today and tomorrow are supposed to be in the mid 80s, then a high of mid 40s on Wednesday. I guess that is not too unusual for Central Texas. Currently we have the Strawberry plants covered with frost covers. Being covered on these hot days is certainly not ideal but by the time we get them off it would be time to cover them back up for Wednesday night. It is crucial that we protect the Strawberry blooms from freezing the rest of this season soooo the plants will have to suffer through the heat spell. Hopefully we will be able to pull the covers off next week.
The Tulips do not like it hot either! Shoots are beginning to emerge from the soil so we are thinking two weeks? three weeks until they really get going?
The kitchen crew has been very busy making jam, popsicles and now Ice Cream. Nothing is held over from last year so all the products are fresh. That makes for a lot of work but we think it also makes a better product.
Thursday 2/17/2022 --- We hope you had wonderful Holiday season. Are you ready for Spring now? Believe it or not, it is coming fast.
Last year we were picking Tulips at this time - not this year. A great challenge to farming in Central Texas is the wildly inconsistent weather. Tulip shoots are beginning to emerge in parts of the field which we think will mean flowers to harvest the first week of March. But then again, in all depends on temperatures the next two weeks.
The beginning of Strawberry harvest also varies wildly from year to year. We have started as early as February 15 and as late as April 2nd. This year it looks like we are on schedule for beginning harvest around March 15. From now until then we need to constantly watch the weather forecast in order to protect the plants from freezes.
Overall, we feel good about the way the farm looks for this time of year. Hopefully we are on track to have a great Spring Season, we hope you can join us!
Well! what do you think about this weather? The temperatures today and tomorrow are supposed to be in the mid 80s, then a high of mid 40s on Wednesday. I guess that is not too unusual for Central Texas. Currently we have the Strawberry plants covered with frost covers. Being covered on these hot days is certainly not ideal but by the time we get them off it would be time to cover them back up for Wednesday night. It is crucial that we protect the Strawberry blooms from freezing the rest of this season soooo the plants will have to suffer through the heat spell. Hopefully we will be able to pull the covers off next week.
The Tulips do not like it hot either! Shoots are beginning to emerge from the soil so we are thinking two weeks? three weeks until they really get going?
The kitchen crew has been very busy making jam, popsicles and now Ice Cream. Nothing is held over from last year so all the products are fresh. That makes for a lot of work but we think it also makes a better product.
Thursday 2/17/2022 --- We hope you had wonderful Holiday season. Are you ready for Spring now? Believe it or not, it is coming fast.
Last year we were picking Tulips at this time - not this year. A great challenge to farming in Central Texas is the wildly inconsistent weather. Tulip shoots are beginning to emerge in parts of the field which we think will mean flowers to harvest the first week of March. But then again, in all depends on temperatures the next two weeks.
The beginning of Strawberry harvest also varies wildly from year to year. We have started as early as February 15 and as late as April 2nd. This year it looks like we are on schedule for beginning harvest around March 15. From now until then we need to constantly watch the weather forecast in order to protect the plants from freezes.
Overall, we feel good about the way the farm looks for this time of year. Hopefully we are on track to have a great Spring Season, we hope you can join us!