Summer Goodness: Strawberries Picking at Stoneheaven Farms

Compared to winter, summer in Canada is pretty short; therefore, it's very precious. We've been so busy these days, but we were still able to make a short trip to a local farm to firstly enjoy the summer day-out, and secondly do some strawberries picking for fun. We had a very nice trip at Stonehaven Farms. The farm was pretty large, and there were like just fewer than 20 people around. We really love it! No crowd, no mess!

(stonehavenfarms.com)

Stonehaven Farms is located just at the border of Guelph and Milton. [Milton is a town in Southern Ontario, Canada, and part of the Halton Region in the Greater Toronto Area]. It's not either too close or too far from Toronto, around 1 hour driving.

The first impression on the farm was that, it was very quite and clean. The workers there were very nice and supportive. We could completely run away from the noisy city in a couple of hours. We were there at the end of the strawberry season, so most of the strawberries left on the vein were small. However, that was also the good thing about them because small strawberries are usually sweet. To me, I think they are sweet in both shape and taste, look at these pictures, you'll agree with me :)

(Shiny and beautiful sweeties)

When we just arrived, we decided to pick two baskets only [~$7.5/basket]. Since it was at the end of the season, we didn't hope to pick a lot. Another reason was that strawberries couldn't last so long. They can be stored around 2 or 3 days in the fridge only. Longer than that, they are getting mushy. 

(Not many things in the world can look prettier than these little sweeties)

One more thing, those strawberries were very clean. You absolutely can eat them on the spot without worrying much about dirt or pesticides. Remember? They're sweet too :P. However, to support the farm, I wouldn't recommend eating a lot. 

After picking enough for two full baskets of strawberries, we changed our minds. It was pretty quick to fill in those two baskets as well. We wanted to stay there a bit longer, so we got one more basket. That extra basket was set as a gift for our neighbor. 

Oh, it will be amiss if I don't capture a close-up of strawberry plants. Even though I was from a farmers' family, I've never seen a real strawberry plant at a farm before. Our farms couldn't grow strawberries. Therefore, it was very exciting to observe the plant from root to top. I also took one leaf  (the one fell on the ground) home for souvenir.  I love to collect and dry leaves :). 

Aside from strawberries, the farm is also growing corn, and their crops are just around the corner as well. Too bad, they don't handle Pick-Your-Own corn. If they do, I'll return soon in the autumn. 

As talking to the people there, we know that they will hold pumpkin picking in the upcoming fall as well. If you plan special decorations for some Halloween, you can drop by for some pumpkins. You will be a great trip as us. Enjoy the summer!