Last Call for Collards!

We've had a great collard season.  There's still enough out there for your Christmas dinners and/or to stock up your freezer.  Last chance to get your collards - we'll be open until 5 pm on Christmas Eve, then we'll shut down for the season.  Bulk deal - buy 10 heads of collards, get 5 free!  Pro tip - for best selection, pick the back half (closest to the blackberries) of the front patch & there's plenty more in the back patch too.

Thank you so much for helping us to have a wonderful year.  We hope you've had a fantastic year too!  We look forward to seeing you in April when the strawberries are ripe :-)

 

Details:

Address: 14489 Bethel Church Lane Smithfield, VA 23430

Collards: $1/head OR Buy 10 heads, get 5 Free, on the Honor System

Hours: 7AM - 5 PM daily *closing for the season at 5 PM on Dec. 24

 

Frost came, so the collards are ready!

 All collards are clean and grit free because they were grown on black plastic.

The collards are $1/plant - simply cut off the entire plant at the base.

Last Call for Blackberries

If you're interested in coming to pick some blackberries, please come out and pick sometime between now and Saturday at 7 pm, at which time we'll be closing the patch for the season.  I just walked out to the patch and there are plenty of berries on the vines.  As always, the sooner you come, the easier the picking :-)

We just planted a field of pumpkins that'll be ready in October, and our pick your own collards will be available in November & December.  

Picked Out of Blackberries

The patch is currently picked out of blackberries.  We'd recommend waiting several days prior to coming out to pick.  It'd probably be best to wait until at least early next week. 

Have a fantastic weekend!

Blackberries!

We're back in town after a week in Switzerland celebrating our 10 year anniversary.  Jake spent Sunday afternoon cleaning up the patch - mowing and weed eating.  There are tons of red berries on the bushes as well as many black ones.  If you're interested in picking this early variety, come on out :-)  

This variety will be ripe soon!

Thank you to all of you who have come out to pick blackberries in the first few days of the season.  The patch is currently picked out.  We'd hate for you to drive all the way out here and show up to an empty patch, so in an effort to save you the hassle, we're closing the patch until Wednesday.  There aren't many that are super close to being ripe, so it'll be several days before the patch recovers.

Blackberry Patch Opening Wednesday!

Thank you so much for a wonderful strawberry season!  Strawberry season has now come to an end and we're gearing up for blackberry season.

Our U-pick blackberry patch will be opening on Wednesday, June 12 at 7 am.  

Open: 7 am to 7 pm, 7 days a week, (season opening 6/12/19)

Where: 14489 Bethel Church Lane, Smithfield

Cost: $10/rectangle basket. Each rectangle basket holds 2 quarts. We provide the containers. This is all on the honor system, simply place your money in the black box near where you picked up your container.  

We have 5 different varieties of blackberries, which vary in size and when the berries are coming ripe.  The first of the berries are ripening, but they aren't all ripe yet.  As for picking conditions, they will likely vary greater during blackberry season than strawberry season.  We have less overall blackberries than strawberries, so it's more difficult to predict conditions from day to day.  During the season though, the patch should recover from a heavy picking every few days, so if you come one day and it's picked clean try back in a few days.  

Some people have asked us about taste testing while picking.  We certainly don't mind if you try a berry or two while you're filling up your bucket, but we'd appreciate it if you could keep it within reason :-)

Strawberry Patch Updates

The picking conditions have improved significantly in the strawberry patch.  The green berries I mentioned a week or two ago are ripening up and the patch is coming back.  The current density of ripe berries is similar to that of the first few days of the season that we were open.  I know it's hot as the dickins, but if you're interested in another opportunity to pick some berries, now is the time.  The heat really brings out the sweetness in the berries.  We've been enjoying frozen berries in smoothies & daquiris.  Tonight, Jake mowed the row middles of the front patch to make for easier picking, and he'll be mowing the back patch soon. 

Memorial Day Weekend

Hello!

Hope all is well with you & your family :-)

Status of the strawberry patch: Berries are coming back!  It's much, much easier picking than last week, but not as easy as it was in April. The berries have a bit more size on them than last week, and really sweet.  

Picked Out

Quick strawberry update - there aren't hardly any ripe strawberries in the patch.  There are still blooms & green berries, so we're optimistic the patch will bounce back, but for now, we're picked out. 

Strawberry Picking Update

Current strawberry patch conditions:  There are plenty of berries in the front patch and the back patch.  I just picked 2 baskets of berries - one in the front, and one in the back.  I had a better experience when I was picking in the back, because the back patch is cleaner with fewer overripe berries.  The front patch has more berries, but has more overripe berries as well, so you have to pay attention more.  With last week's heat, the berries are sweeter now than they've been all season.  That rain that we got Sunday dried up, so there's no need to worry about mud in the patch.  

How long will we be open?  Great question.  We estimate there's over 1,000 lbs. of ripe berries currently in the patch.  In addition, there are at least 5 green berries per plant...and there's over 10,000 plants...so with over 50,000 more berries yet to come, we should have strawberries throughout the latter part of May.  That being said, patch conditions can change radically from day to day due to weather/being picked.

U-Pick at 14489 Bethel Church Lane, Smithfield. Open 7 am to 7 pm, 7 days a week, $10/basket on the honor system, we provide the containers for free.

Pint for a Pint

Buy a pint of beer at Wharf Hill Brewing Co., get a free pint of strawberries from Browder Fresh Pickins! For every pint you buy, you’ll get a pint basket from Wharf Hill to take to Browder’s Fresh Pickins and pick a pint of delicious, fresh strawberries.

This week only, April 29-May 5.  First come, first served - 70 free pints available. 

The patch is bursting with big, sweet, delicious berries, and it won't take long to fill your basket. 

Shout out to the Wharf Hill Chuggers Running Club who ran from Wharf Hill out to our strawberry patch to pick berries on Sunday.  

Stawberry Patch is open for 2019!

As of Sunday, April 14th at 7am we will be open for strawberry picking.  The patch is a little muddy seeing as we got 0.9 inches on Saturday, but there are zillions of large, sweet 'Sweet Charlie' strawberries.  And with the sandy land we have, it will be dry as a bone in no time.  Yes it's early, but it was a mild winter and the berries knew it and decided to come early.  Having frost blankets on them for several weeks helped speed up the ripening too.  This has got the be the best crop I've ever grown.  Come see for yourself. 

We will be open from 7am to 7pm, 7 days per weeks from now on rain or shine.  Tons of berries.  Amanda and Jake take great prides in keeping a clean strawberry patch.  This means the row middles have been mowed, there isn't tall grass or weeds in your way, and this makes for a more pleasant picking experience.  We are open practically all the time so you can come and bring the family when it's convenient to you. 

Price is $10/basket.  We supply the basket for free.  (It holds 4 or 5 lbs.)  U-pick only at the farm.  There will be pre-picked berries sold by the lb. at the Smithfield Farmer's Market in downtown Smithfield on Saturday mornings. 

I hope you enjoy yourself and get all the delicious berries you want.

Some ideas you can make are:
strawberries and whipped cream
homemade strawberry ice cream
smoothies
daiquiris
strawberry popsicles
chocolate covered strawberries
strawberries on top of Belgian waffles
fruit salad
strawberry jam

Strawberries are blooming like crazy!

 

The strawberries sure enjoyed the warm weather yesterday!  This morning, we had to cover them with the frost blankets in preparation for another frost tonight.  Check out all the berries already forming on this plant - we are definitely looking forward to the next few weeks!

We'll be opening our pick your own patch in mid to late April:

WHAT: U-Pick Strawberries

WHERE: 14489 Bethel Church Lane, Smithfield, VA 23430

WHEN: 7am-7pm, 7 days a week (starting in a few weeks), rain or shine

COST: $10/basket, on the honor system (we provide the containers for free)

We will post on this webpage when we open up for the season. 

E-mail us if you have any questions: browdersfreshpickins@gmail.com 

Getting Geared Up for Strawberry Season

We're getting all geared up for strawberry season!

The 11,500 strawberry plants that we planted in the fall are really growing!  That's nearly double the number of plants we had last year.  They should be ready to pick in April and May.  This year, we planted nearly all 'Sweet Charlie' strawberries, just like last year, which are famous for being super sweet!  We also planted several hundred 'Ruby June' and 'Chandler's to try and extend the picking season. Be on the look out for opening day of the patch.

WHAT: U-Pick Strawberries

WHERE: 14489 Bethel Church Lane, Smithfield, VA 23430

WHEN: 7am-7pm, 7 days a week, (starting in April - May), rain or shine

COST: $10/basket, on the honor system (we provide the containers for free)