Peaches and Blackberries at Larriland Farm

Summer is falling off the trees at Larriland Farm -- peaches that smell delicious in the orchard and taste even better if you pair them with blackberries.

Take my advice: You only want blackberries that pull off with two fingers. If you need any pressure, leave the berry on the bush. Last weekend, the blackberry bushes and the peach trees were so heavy with fruit that you didn't need to take anything but the perfect fruit.

Mrs. HowChow turned out a peach and blackberry pie on Sunday night. I made a savory peach gazpacho on Monday from Mark Bittman's new book. We cut down from our 2008 purchases because I carried the box through the rows. (Last year, we got a wagon, and there was nothing to stop us as we went from tree to tree. We had 40 pounds of peaches in 20 minutes.) They're nothing like supermarket fruit. They ripen -- all in a few days -- into sugary orbs that burst with juice. Don't worry, we left weeks of fruit -- green peaches and red blackberries -- for you to pick for yourself.

Larriland is a real treasure off I-70 just west of Rte 32 in Woodbine. Right now, you can pick beets, potatoes and the end of the blueberries. Soon, you'll have tomatoes. Then comes fall with apples and the best pumpkin fields where you can harvest your own jack-o-lantern. The new barn store carries more already-picked vegetables than they had in previous years. I got beautiful baby eggplants and squash that we grilled up with some burgers (along with the dried fruit candies).

Larriland Farm

2415 Woodbine Road
Woodbine, MD 21797
410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although there are some fields across the road.