Blueberries And Beets At Larriland

Blueberries from Larriland

Our Larriland Farm season started a month earlier this year when we actually got there for blueberries.

Out in the fields

Often, we arrive in peach season.  But we got a canning book on Saturday, so we went out Sunday afternoon to pick some things to preserve.  First, we went to the blueberry fields.  Remember our lesson: Walk to the far part of the field.  We slogged a long time on plants that other people had been picking all week.

I had to laugh when we finally go to the far end and found plans with more than three or four ripe berries.  At th far end, you could just stand and pull handfuls.  By the end, we had 10 pounds of fruit.  I canned some.  I hope those will become a base for drinks and ice cream sauce.  We'll freeze the rest and make sorbet over time.

Larriland is spectacular.  If you haven't been, you need to plan on blueberries now, tomatoes, peaches, and blackberries in the summer heat, then apples and pumpkins in the fall.  The fruit just tastes better.  I have been popping handfuls of blueberries, and they're absolutely perfect.

Honey sticks!

And that's not even taking in the beets.  Beets are the easiest pick-your-own field.  Just pull them out of the ground.  We got 20 pounds in minutes, and I roasted them all.  I turned some into pickles.  I need plans for the rest.

Larriland is a great activity with kids.  It's a project for a serious picker who wants to cook or can.  Don't miss their expanded barn where they sell already-picked produce and some other treats.  We always get dried fruit candy for the ride home.  We also bought McCutcheon's sodas -- black cherry and sarsaparilla -- and some of the honey sticks.

The vegetables are still a deal, but beets were more than we paid last fall.  It was 99 cents a pound if you buy 20 pounds.  That was 79 cents last fall.  Remember the beet rule: Bring a knife to slice the stems.  Keep the greens that you'll saute with garlic and dress with a little oil and vinegar.

If you want to try Larriland, remember that you can get food for a picnic out there.  Harvest Fried Chicken is just north of U.S. 70.  Town Grille in Lisbon sells barbecue almost between U.S. 70 and the farm.

If you want to try to can, I recommend buying a canning pot from Amazon.  Ball sells jars all over the place, including Kendall Hardware in Clarksville.  But the price of the big pots makes that a deal.