Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I had a great one. After all the fun on Saturday, I had more ahead for Sunday.
Any guesses what this is a photo of?
But before I tell you…I must share breakfast. I know this is a typical TCL breakfast, but note the tray. Hubby made breakfast in bed for me! Aww…
Now…on to the photo…it was a picture of a strawberry farm!
I went strawberry picking with the Charlotte Food Bloggers, guys! Here’s Julie with her beautifully decorated strawberry basket.
We hit up the Miller’s Farm just at the border of North and South Carolina at 3685 S.C. 51, Fort Mill, S.C. 29715.
The farm is just across from this popular flea market. I’ve passed this farm hundreds of times and never noticed it before…not sure why.
The farm is beautiful. It’s not a large farm (at least not the part you can pick from), but it’s well-sized.
Bloggers taking pictures of bloggers…who are…yes…taking pictures of aforementioned bloggers. Always a classic shot.
We dug right into the strawberry plants, filling up our baskets.
Hey Katie!
I was loving all the sunlight and fresh air.
Have you ever been strawberry picking? I used to go all the time with my family growing up.
Here’s how it works…you can go for the berries that are out and about…
…but sometimes the trick is to dig into the middle of the plants and find the berries hiding out of plain sight.
Look for the berries that are ripened, but not overly ripe. Check the berries for free from bruises, marks, nibbles, etc. Basically, just look for berries you’d like to eat.
It turns out the best weekend for picking was last weekend, so we were getting the tail end of the strawberries. I filled up half a large box before calling it a day. And yes, I brought coconut water for some hydration on this hot day.
I headed back with the rest of our group towards the main building.
They had a few animals out and about.
Clearly, I’m more of a city girl than a country girl as I don’t know how to appropriately ride this tractor. This is one of the biggest tires I’ve seen in person. I actually inside it!
Today’s photography tip of the day thanks to Taylor – get thee a diffuser. He didn’t say it like that, but that’s my take away. Anywho, direct sunlight is actually not best for photography. Overcast lighting is actually much better. But, since you can’t control clouds, you can diffuse sunlight yourself using a handy-dandy diffuser. They’re sold in different sizes at most photography stores or at online photography shops.
My stash.
And more on this gorgeous creation next time! 😉
Do you ever do pick-your-own fruits or veggies? What do you usually like to get?
love the 2nd to last photo. so happy it’s berry season!
Any tips for making strawberries last? Mine seem to go bad so quickly.
Hmm…good question! I believe you’re not supposed to rinse them until you’re ready to eat. I think if you do, it makes them mold faster. I like to store mine in the crisper drawer to help them last longer. I also don’t put them in 100% closed containers – I like to let mine breathe. I’ll often put them in the crisper in those little paper cartons you can purchase them in at farmer’s markets.
One great trick is to just freeze the berries. You would rinse them, cut off the green tops / hull them, place them on a baking sheet, let them dry, place baking sheet and berries in the freezer. Once they were frozen, you could move them to a bag/tupperware/etc. Then, you can use them for smoothies or even and individual breakfast berry crisp, which works well with frozen berries! Recipe here: https://thechiclife.com/2010/06/individual-breakfast-berry-crisp.html
Hope that helps! 🙂
AWESOME photos, Diana! I had so much fun with you all! 🙂
Thanks Julie! Me too! 🙂
Strawberries are my favorite fruit! Strawberry picking is so much fun! Looks like a good time!
Love your pictures!! Can’t wait for the next field trip!
YUM!! Strawberries are my favorite fruit. So delicious. I can’t wait till they’re in season up here. I really want to go pickin this year!
Aw, that’s so sweet that you got breakfast in bed!
I too went lots with my family growing up. I haven’t been in ages though. I can’t believe there are already strawberries out where you are! Here it’ll be another month or two probably.
Nice! That’s definitely something to look forward to! 🙂
You could sell some of these photos. Yum! The last time I went strawberry picking I was 16 and vacationing for the summer in Toronto. Good times!
Aww, really? You’re too sweet! I’ve thought about selling prints before…or making a calendar/cards, etc. Maybe one day? 🙂
looks soo good! great pics too!
Thank you Amy! 🙂
what an amazing day!
I am so jealous! You looked like you had a blast and your short cake looks stunning!
can’t wait to see what you cooked up there!
🙂
Ahh.. it looks like you all had a fun day of strawberry picking! I haven’t been in quite some time but it’s always a blast. I need to go this spring/summer.
And what beautiful photos. I love the sepia toned ones!
Yes, do it! 🙂 Thanks for the sweet comment Brittany!
How fun (and yummy)! Love the photo of you in the wheel, very cute. I wish we had something like this in my area, I would totally go. It looks like you have a lot of strawberries to enjoy for awhile too! 🙂
Have you tried googling for it? Maybe there is somewhere near you after all? 🙂
Beautiful berries, and it looks like you had such a fun time picking them! I don’t know any bloggers in my area so I pick solo. My brother grows strawberries so I always pick lots of them, but it’s much more fun to do it with friends. 🙂
Hey there! Congrats on your post on Foodgawker! I am dying to get one of my food pics posted out there!!! I am actually in Charlotte as well and have a blog, so hope to meet you at the next meeting!
Melissa