Panek's Pickin' Patch

Panek's Pickin' Patch at Albion started small and grew, and the farm writes about the growing rather than the selling.

What You Can Pick

• Strawberries - June
• Raspberries - summer
• Blueberries - summer

Good to Know

In the farm's own words: "We started small scale and over the years have grown and expanded to Raspberries and Blueberries and markets and CSAs. From figuring out what frost protection is to learning how to start an irrigation pump in the middle of the night (when the temperatures are dropping below 32) by myself to having a patch overgrown with weeds to having a picture perfect (well almost weed free) patch, and experimenting with different varieties to see what tastes best (remember bigger isn't always better) we have traveled the rows and gained so much along the way."

The farm keeps a What's In Season page and a blog, though the blog is candid about its own frequency: "I always start the season with the best of intentions. I tell myself I will write one every two weeks or so. That works fine for the first couple months then goes by the wayside as weeding and picking take over."

Pro tip: "remember bigger isn't always better" is the farm telling you something real about strawberry varieties. Ask which row is planted to flavour rather than size, and pick that one.