The variety of reasons to visit
U-pick farms of the Finger Lakes Region in
New York is as bountiful as the number of crops harvested in the area. Whether you have kids who need to get a grasp on where food really comes from (while having more fruit-stained finger fun than they could ever imagine) or you just want to soak up some rays while gathering the goods for a year’s worth of pies, the 9,000-square-mile, 14-county Finger Lakes region awaits.
Don’t worry, you won’t have to randomly drive down country roads hoping to happen upon something ripe. Download the ever-so-handy “Farm Connections in the Finger Lakes” guide at
www.fingerlakes-u-pick.com to find out when the organic strawberries will be ripe at Cobblestone Valley Farms in Preble, the snap peas will be sweet and good to eat at Bradley Farms in Elmira, and Long Point Orchard’s apples will be hanging heavy on the trees in Aurora. Altogether, there are more than 150 U-pick farms in the area.
The guide will also steer you right on the how-tos of picking fruits and vegetables. You’ll learn that you shouldn’t force blueberries off the stem — they’ll drop into your hand when they’re good and ready. And asparagus? Keep the thickness of pencils in mind when gathering your goods.
Tie the produce-picking fun in with a weekend of hand-churned ice cream, music and more at various events throughout the region. If you have grapes on the brain, consider the Finger Lakes Wine Festival, July 17-19 in Watkins Glen. Check out the Finger Lakes festival calendar at
www.fingerlakes.org.