Produce season is finally here again! Blueberry picking is expected to begin this weekend or soon after at all of Harvard’s orchards. The stands that sell veggies are already putting out early veggies, including greens, zucchini, and peas. Corn, tomatoes, peaches, and apples will come along later in the season, but by then some of our early crops will have already disappeared, so now is the time to start enjoying the fruits (and vegetables) of our local farmers’ labors.
Carlson Orchards, 115 Oak Hill Road, 978-456-3916
Pick-your-own cherries is in progress, but the crop is small this year, so best to check Facebook each day to see if the orchard is open for cherry picking. Pick-your-own blueberries will start soon after July 4; check Facebook for the opening date. Already-picked cherries are available in the store, along with strawberries and vegetables from Brookdale Fruit Farm in Hollis, New Hampshire. Store is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily; pick-your-own is open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Doe Orchards, 327 Ayer Road, 978-772-4139
Pick-your-own blueberries will open Saturday, July 5. The stand will also be selling sunflowers later in July, followed soon after by peaches (only available at the stand this year), and pick-your-own early apples. Stand and pick-your-own are open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m, Tuesday through Saturday, weather permitting.
Old Frog Pond Farm, 38 Eldridge Road
Blueberries are ripening; pick-your-own organic blueberries will open soon. At the stand on the porch at the side of the house: organic mulberries, mesclun greens, garlic scapes, honey, herbal teas, and calendula oil.
Westward Orchards, 178 Massachusetts Avenue, 978-456-8363
Blueberries are expected to open for pick-your-own on July 6 if the berries ripen in time. Available in the store: Westward’s strawberries, sour cherries, Bibb and romaine lettuce, kale, zucchini, broccoli, sugar snap peas, and mixed herbs. Store will be closed all day Friday, July 4, and Saturday, July 5; otherwise, it is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; pick-your-own, when it starts, will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
All produce listed is Harvard grown unless otherwise noted.
—Compiled by Joan Eliyesil
