Perfect Ripeness

The most exquisite experience on the farm at the moment is to pick a perfectly ripe apricot right off the tree. The craving for these delicate, aromatic, and sweet fruit is almost irresistible, just trying to write about it makes me want to walk out and get one.

Perfect ripeness is hard to describe, it is the fruit that calls out, the fruit that gives a little when touched and releases itself into one’s hand. I will scan a tree and look for the telling colors of rich orange and red, any hint of green close to the stem means the apricot can still ripen a few more days. Once I set my eyes on that perfectly colored fruit I will gently touch, squeeze, and tug all at the same time. When fully ripe, it will just drop into the palm of my hand. You ask me what I love about farming – it is this nourishing experience of being rewarded by the land we steward.

Come join us on the farm this Saturday to celebrate the Summer Solstice, and experience for yourself the reward of picking and enjoying a fruit directly from the plants and trees growing in our fields and orchards.

Saturday, June 21st – Solstice Celebration and Community U-picks

12:00 pm – 5:00pm: Community U-picking – strawberries, raspberries, and apricots

5:00 pm – Dark: Celebration and Potluck

Parking: Please follow the signs.

Parking for the Strawberry and Raspberry U-picks is at our 1275 Green Valley Rd Entrance (click for directions)

Parking for the Apricot U-picking, Celebration and Potluck is at our 172 Litchfield Lane Entrance (click for directions)

Overflow parking area at 1275 Green Valley Road. Parking at 1275 Green Valley Road means you will have to walk a ways – about a quarter mile, including a short distance up a fairly steep hill – to get to the main area of events. Save gas and carpool!!

Remember to bring jackets and sweaters as it gets cool later in the day, and a flashlight for navigating back to your car if you stay until after dark.

Potluck Details

Everyone please bring something to share – an entree, a salad, a dessert – whatever you like! We never organize it more than that and always seem to have a nice variety.

How much to bring? If in doubt, bring more, as we always seem to eat it all up! 😉 In all my years at Solstice Celebrations I have not seen folks going home with lots of left-overs!

Please bring a serving utensil to go with your dish!

Put your name on your dish and serving utensil with some masking tape or something, in case they get separated, and so we know who they belong to if they get inadvertently left behind.

Please provide an ingredient list for your dish on a piece of paper or 3×5 card so folks with food allergies or special diets will know what they can and cannot eat.

Where to put your pot-luck items when you arrive? We will have several tables for placing your pot-luck items on out near the fire circle. If you have something that needs to be refrigerated, you can pop it into our walk-in cooler to the right of the breezeway in our “upper barn” (Litchfield Ln Entrance). If it just needs to stay cool (not in the heat of your car), you can also put it on a table inside the breezeway/classroom area until pot-luck time. If you arrive closer to pot-luck time, simply bring it to the table area. We have extremely limited facilities for re-heating anything, so please don’t plan on that if you can help it.

Beverages – There will be water and lemonade, but feel free to bring additional beverages for your own consumption or to share.

We encourage you all to bring your own picnic plates, cups, bowls, silverware etc. in order to minimize unrecyclable garbage. We will have a washing station, where you can rinse them when you are through eating.