by Joan Eliyesil  ·   Friday, August 26, 2022

Fall raspberries are here, and pick-your-own has begun at Carlson and Old Frog Pond orchards. Raspberries are fragile and quick to spoil, so picking your own is the best way to ensure careful handling and a longer shelf life. According to pickyourown.org, the best time to pick is a cool, cloudy day, or right after a rain, when ripening speeds up and fair-weather pickers are home waiting for a sunny day. Red raspberries are ready to pick when they are a deep crimson color, and that window lasts only about three days. Anything lighter isn’t ripe yet, and those that are approaching purple are overripe, with the sugar past its peak. A ripe raspberry will almost fall off when you tug gently on it; if it resists, it’s not ready for picking. Containers should be soft and shallow to avoid crushing the tender fruit, and harvested berries should go straight into the refrigerator, unwashed, where they will last about a week. They can also be frozen; rinse with cold water and drain, then freeze the berries on sheet pans or in unsealed freezer bags. Once frozen, raspberries will keep for months in an airtight container.

Carlson Orchards, 115 Oak Hill Road, 978-456-3916

Pick-your-own peaches, raspberries, blueberries, and Ginger Gold apples. Check the Facebook page for daily updates. In the store, yellow peaches, nectarines, cherries, blueberries, red and black raspberries, along with produce from Idylwilde Farms in Acton, including tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, zucchini, summer squash, green beans, and cantaloupe. Massachusetts-grown corn from the Connecticut River Valley is also available. Store is open daily 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pick-your-own hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.

Doe Orchards, 327 Ayer Road, 978-772-4139

Pick-your-own yellow peaches, and Gravenstein and Ginger Gold apples. At the stand, all of those items plus white peaches, cherry tomatoes, sunflowers, and Doe’s blueberry and peach jams. Open Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Old Frog Pond Farm, 38 Eldridge Road

Pick-your-own raspberries. At the self-service farmstand on the porch: certified organic fruit and vegetables, including raspberries, tomatoes (cherry, heirloom, and slicers), summer squash, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, carrots, celery, peppers, potatoes, Swiss chard, green beans, kale, lettuce, fennel, and basil. Eggs from Maplebrook Farmstead in Sterling are also available.

Stand is open 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. during the week, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends. Pick-your-own is open Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Westward Orchards, 178 Massachusetts Avenue, 978-456-8363

In the store: Honeycrisp, Ginger Gold, and Jersey Mac apples, Red Bartlett pears, yellow and white peaches, mixed variety plums, strawberries, honeydew, cantaloupe, watermelon, white tiger melon, snow leopard melon, corn, tomatoes (cherry, heirloom, and slicers), kale, lettuce, collard greens, green beans, peas, cucumbers, summer squash, zucchini, peppers, eggplant, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, beets, potatoes, and mixed herbs.

Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; pick-your-own hours 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.

Willard Farm, 218 Still River Road, 978-456-8291

At the self-service farmstand: Lots of tomatoes, including Big Beef and Pink Girl, some Carolina Gold and Chef’s Choice (yellow tomatoes), ugly tomatoes, and paste tomatoes. Limited amounts of corn, summer squash, zucchini, and cucumbers over the next week due to the drought. Stand is open daily.

  All produce listed is Harvard-grown unless otherwise noted.

The General Store, 3rd Floor 1 Still River Road Harvard, MA