Feelin’ Peachy
July Farm News
The time has come…peach season is in full swing! Peaches are by far, my favorite fruit. Taking a bit out of the perfect one and having the juice run down your arm just screams summer to me. Peaches are such a versatile fruit. What other fruit can you- freeze, can, blend into a smoothie, juice, churn ice cream with, or eat fresh? I’m sure there are some that come close, but nothing compares to a juicy, sweet, peach.
We have roughly 200 acres of peaches planted at our orchard. We grow a total of 10 varieties, both yellow, and white-fleshed. We also lease a neighboring orchard, Butler or B&G Orchard, and harvest 8 varieties from their trees. Peach season usually starts with the variety “Rich May,” and ends with “Victoria.” Peach season lasts approximately 3 months. The first varieties to come off the trees are cling peaches, then comes semi-cling, and lastly, freestone, or cling-free. What does each of those mean? Cling peaches mean the peach sticks to the seed or pit. We recommend these peaches for eating or quick baking tasks. Semi-cling means the peach comes off the seed/pit more easily, but not completely. These are best for eating, and if you are craving a pie, they would work for that, in a pinch. Lastly, freestone, or cling-free, means the peach completely falls off the seed. These are great for everything. Using a freestone, or cling-free peach for canning, freezing, or baking, makes your life so much easier when processing the fruit. Keep in mind that weather can change these qualities a bit…but as a rule that’s what should happen.
Once the peaches are harvested, we haul some to the market to sell fresh, and some to our peach packing facility- “Loring Hill Packing Shed” where they are commercially packed. The peaches that go to Loring Hill are washed, cooled, sorted, bagged, and boxed for wholesale orders. Wholesale orders include independent bulk customers, other farm markets, and even grocery stores.
Peaches are such a versatile fruit that can be used in lots of dishes. They are also just as good sliced up if you want something simple. To see what varieties we will have in next, join our e-newsletter for updates. You can also check out our Pinterest page for lots of delicious peach recipes.
