A couple of weeks ago…. before lock down and the threat of Covid-19, some friends and I went berry picking.
We visited The Field Berry Farm just outside Johannesburg, ZA. The 40 min drive passed in a flash of back seat crochet and awesome girly music AND great company.
Upon arrival we were met with a parking lot with a lot fewer cars than I expected – just be warned it does get busier later during the day so arriving earlier is better than arriving later.
The entrance is very cute and welcoming. Once inside we just had to pay our entrance fee, this includes your very own picking bucket. I was a little taken aback by the fact that the buckets seemed wet (I wrongly assumed that it was re-used buckets – boy, was I wrong). All buckets are brand new and thoroughly cleaned before it gets handed to you.
Then it was off to the pickings…
The berries are planted in neat rows and shaded with netting to break the worst of the African sun. There are many empty plots that gives the impression that there is opportunity for growth – for our economy this is a very good sign. Unfortunately this is also a sign that there has been a drastic decline in eco-tourism (this can be seen in various fields of eco-tourism around the country).
My friends and I set our New Years Resolution to do more fun things – thou Lock down put quite a damper on this. Our Berry picking trip was the first on our list for 2020!!!
We spent hours walking up and down the rows of raspberries. Laughing and joking, experiencing and exploring. The Raspberries were beautifully plump, ripe, flavourful and just sinfully delicious. We tried not to do too much sampling while picking… but the temptation was too big, we just had to. Beware raspberries have thorns – we learned this the hard way.
If you have any worries about pesticides – so did I! I was pleasantly surprised to find that the farm is run organic. How do I know? BUGS!!!! Bugs don’t live on poisoned plants. I found bees, beetles, an little inch worms….
When we were satisfied that our buckets were full enough we had a girly photo session and then headed back to have out buckets weighed. The fresh berries are weighed and your bucket sealed. You pay per kilogram, so you more or less control how much you want to spend (a full bucket takes about 1 kilo). They have a small shop where you can buy frozen berries, jams, and various other berry inspired products. I bought a kilo of frozen mixed berries… for later.
Then it was time for some R & R… They have a very rustic sitting area, hay bales for seats, pallets for tables. The area is covered with tarps for cozy shade, as well as a more formal seating area with tables and chairs. The farm is definitely family friendly with a play area for the kids and a bike trail. There are various options for something to drink – from coffee to freshly made smoothies. They also have various vendors that provide a multitude of different meals to choose from – we were not disappointed.
The last thing that impressed me was that they RECYCLE!!!! Even thou it is very basic it is a start. I support any effort to reduce our carbon footprint. That is why I have kept my bucket, cleaned it and put it away for next time… Mark my words there will be a next time.
I am very proud to say that I took my berries and made my own jam – not much 2 and a half bottles! I did the same with my frozen mixed berries. Although half bottles did not last very long.
This is one experience I will be happy to repeat!
peaceful projects 