Fun Fall Activities

(Sauchuk Farm corn maze photo by Chris Bernstein)

Autumn has arrived! The days grow shorter and cooler, and many of us revel in the crispness of the air and the absence of humidity. Fall brings lots of opportunities to spend time outdoors. The South Shore offers all sorts of traditional fall activities – you just need to know where to find them.

Apple Picking – Quick, before it’s too late! Mounce Farm at 481 Union Street welcomes visitors to its orchard on Saturdays and Sundays from about 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. You can pick your own apples for $5.00 per bag, or buy them pre-picked. The orchards will only be open the last two weekends of September, and maybe the first weekend in October, so act fast. Or check out C.N. Smith Farm at 325 South Street, or Singleton Orchards at 160 Pine Street, both in East Bridgewater.

Pumpkin Picking – You can pick your own pumpkin, then bring it home and make a jack o’ lantern. Most pumpkin picking begins in October and is weekend-only. Check out the pumpkin patches at The Baker Farm, 101 Bakers Lane, Marshfield -- but call first: 781-834-4021. Or visit Cretinon’s Farmstand, 86 Landing Road, Kingston, the aforementioned C.N. Smith Farm and Singleton Orchards, or Beaver Brook Farm, 645 Summer Street, East Bridgewater. Also, at Sauchuk Farm at 234 Center Street in Plympton, you can take a hayride around an 8-acre field of corn to a giant pumpkin patch and find just the right one to grace your doorstep on Halloween. You’ll find a similar hay ride/pumpkin picking opportunity at Bog Hollow Farm, 80 Wapping Road (Route 106) in Kingston. There, from October 11-13, you can also get lost in “The Maze,” try the hay jump, visit the animals check out farm equipment like tractors, truck and excavators, and even pose in a fireman costume with an antique fire truck.

Corn Mazes – Sauchuk Farm, just off Route 58 in Plympton offers a giant corn maze. From the air, you can see its elaborate design, with three jack o’ lanterns, two spiders, and the name of the farm all carved into the cornfield. From the ground, it’s just a sea of corn and you’ll do you best to find your way through (don’t worry there are clues, plus two tall overlooks from which you can gauge your progress). The corn maze is open weekends through October 26. There you will also find hayrides, (see below), a cow train (where children can ride in “cows” created from barrels that are towed behind a tractor), a corn box (think sandbox, but with dried cow corn), and more.

Hay Rides – What fun to ride in the back of a tractor-drawn hay cart and observe the landscape of a local farm! Mass Audubon’s South Shore Sanctuaries, based in Marshfield, offers 1-hour hayrides for up to 30 people at their Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary. Call 781-837-9400 for more information. Hayrides are also available at Singleton Orchards in East Bridgewater.

Watch a Cranberry Harvest – Southeastern Massachusetts is home to a number of cranberry farms. In general, the farmers don’t mind if you stop to watch them harvest their crop – as long as you respect private property and stay out of the way of the equipment. Most cranberry bogs feature farm stands where you can buy freshly harvested berries, too (it’s not okay to help yourself directly from the bog). Check out these bogs, featured on the Cranberry Harvest Trail Guide. Many feature farm stores and offer tours by appointment: Flax Pond Cranberry Company, 1 Robbins Path, Carver; Bog Hollow Farm, Kingston (see above); and Cranberry Hill, 103 Haskell Road, Plymouth.

View the Fall Foliage – One of the best ways to see the rainbow of changing color in the fall foliage is to take a walk in the woods. Check out the trails along the Indian Head River, via Luddams Ford in Hanover, or the paths overlooking the North River at Nelson Memorial Forest in Marshfield. Take a stroll at World’s End in Hingham, or Willow Brook Farm in Pembroke. Really, anywhere you go where there are trees, you’re bound to find a spectacular view at this time of year.

By Kezia Bacon-Bernstein
September 2008

Kezia Bacon-Bernstein's articles appear courtesy of the North and South Rivers Watershed Association, a local non-profit organization devoted to the preservation, restoration, maintenance and conservation of the North and South Rivers and their watershed. For membership information and a copy of their latest newsletter, contact NSRWA at (781) 659-8168 or visit www.nsrwa.org. Visit http://keziabaconbernstein.blogspot.com for an archive of the last 12 years of Kezia’s articles.

Pick Your Own Fruit this Summer

I've discovered a great way to enjoy the outdoors, promote healthy eating in my family, and support local farmers, all at the same time -- patronizing a Pick Your Own Fruit farm.

Nearly every week this summer from mid-July on, I visited Tree-Berry Farm on Route 123 on the Norwell-Scituate line. Sometimes alone, sometimes with my 2-year-old son, I picked a few pounds of blueberries. It's fun, it's fast (an adult can easily pick a quart in 15 minutes), it's even safe for kids, since the farm is divided into sections, and each is fenced in. And it's relatively cheap. This summer a pound of blueberries there cost $2.60, while at the supermarket, the average price was $2.99 per pint!

Picked fresh, these fruits and vegetables taste better than what you'll find at the store. They also last longer, because when you bring them home, they haven't been sitting around on trucks or in refrigerators for days (or weeks) already.

Naturally, Pick Your Own food is only available when the fruit or vegetable is in season. But you can gather extra and freeze it, or make your own jam or jelly.

And you can feel good about supporting your local farmer. Maintaining agricultural land preserves open space and helps to stave off development. Often food grown at small farms like these is chemical free or organic. Or if pesticides are used, it's generally in far less volume than on conventional, non-local produce.

Below is a list of nearby farms offering Pick Your Own items this year. You can learn more about local farms, farm stands, farmers markets and other venues for purchasing locally-grown fruit and vegetables by visiting the website of the Southeastern Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership at
www.umassd.edu/semap/welcome.cfm.

o The Baker Farm, 101 Bakers Lane, Marshfield. Founded in 1700, this 93-acre farm run by Laurie Baker offers Pick Your Own strawberries, blueberries and pumpkins in season. Call ahead: (781) 834-4021.

o Tree-Berry Farm, 135 Cornet Stetson Road (Route 123), Scituate. Founded in 1974, this 9-acre farm run by Beverly Westerville offers Pick Your Own blueberries and choose-and-cut Christmas trees. In blueberry season (mid-July through August), they are open 7am to 1pm daily - just call ahead to be sure: (781) 545-7750. For trees, call in early November for dates and times or visit www.tree-berry-farm.com.

o The Blueberry Farm, 698 West Washington Street (Route 14), Hanson. Founded in 1947, this 5-acre farm run by Jack and Pat Concree offers Pick Your Own blueberries (in season) weekdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and weekends from 8-6. Call first as conditions vary: (781) 447-1584. They are members of the Mass Cultivated Blueberry Growers Association and have been growing for over 20 years.

o Lipinski's Farm, 19 Franklin Street, Hanson. Founded in 1932, this 50-acre farm run by Steve Lipinski offers Pick Your Own strawberries in mid-June. They also have farm stands in Brockton, Plympton, and Pembroke, offer hayrides (by appointment) and a corn maze in September and October. Call (781) 293-3440.

o C. N. Smith Farm, 325 South Street, East Bridgewater. Founded in 1925, this is a 90-acre, third generation family farm run by Chris Smith, Jr. The farm stand is open year round, and they offer Pick Your Own peas and strawberries in June, string beans and blueberries in July and August, corn in August, raspberries in August and September, and apples in the fall. Plus they have a petting zoo and seasonal events. Call (508) 378-2270 for hours, or visit www.cnsmithfarminc.com

o Beaver Brook Farm, 645 Summer Street, East Bridgewater. Founded in 1920, this is an 83-acre farm run by Brian & Katie Cavanagh that offers Pick Your Own pumpkins from late September into November. Call (508) 584-6528.

o Coyne Bog Blues, 34 N. Carver Road, West Wareham. Run by Linda Rinta, this farm, nestled in beautiful countryside amidst lush trees, offers Pick Your Own blueberries seven days a week mid-July through August. Call (508) 295-3254.

by Kezia Bacon-Bernstein, correspondent
August 2008

Kezia Bacon-Bernstein's articles appear courtesy of the North and South Rivers Watershed Association, a local non-profit organization devoted to the preservation, restoration, maintenance and conservation of the North and South Rivers and their watershed. For membership information and a copy of their latest newsletter, contact NSRWA at (781) 659-8168 or visit www.nsrwa.org.