COVINGTON, La. (WGNO) – When it’s time to hit the “pause” button on life, there’s a place in Covington, Louisiana where adults can feel like kids, and kids can try a slice of life without being leashed to electronics — plus, you can pick your own berries and vegetables. But get there soon — the season only lasts until mid-to-late July. Here are six lessons you can learn during this escape to the countryside:
1. Taste testing is important
Whether it’s blueberries or blackberries, the Prats advise all farm guests to eat while they pick. Farmer Danny Prats even jokes that when people ask for his favorite recipe, he says it’s the simplest one: “Pick berry, eat berry!”
Teach your kids the pleasure of eating fruit that has been raised with care, but no pesticides.
2. We all need to recharge
When you visit Ridemore Ranch and Berry Farm, there is no set agenda. “The kids decide what they want to do,” says Danny Prats.
We wanted his full attention, so we visited on an afternoon when the farm was closed to the public. During berry-picking season, it’s open on Tuesdays and Saturdays, from 8am to 6pm. Check the farm’s website for updates.
It’s the perfect place for parents to breathe the fresh country air while showing the little ones that food really doesn’t come from the grocery store. Oh, and kids get free popsicles!
3. You can take the man out of the farm, but you can’t take the farm out of the man
Danny Prats left the farm to work in the corporate world for more than three decades! However, he and his wife of more than 50 years, Linda, decided that coming home to the farm he grew up on was the best medicine for their hearts and souls.
This was originally a dairy farm, but now it’s a place where anyone can come to pick berries and vegetables, board a horse, or simply bask in the joys of country living.
4. Sharing is important
Kids love chasing the chickens.
Bird chatter fills the air while you’re picking your produce. Danny Prats says people often ask how he keeps the wild birds away from the berry trees. He tells them it’s an old secret, handed down through the generations: “I stuff the birds with blueberries and then they don’t eat any more!” he laughs.
5. Common sense will get you the best berries
Honey, horses and vegetables are all part of the fun at the farm, but the blueberries are the main attraction!
At $3 a pound, they are a bargain, but most folks aren’t motivated by the low price — they come for the enjoyment of picking the fruit of the vine. News with a Twist’s Travel Girl, Stephanie Oswald, and Photographer Deryl Andrews did plenty of taste testing, and they confirm that these berries are delicious.
Here’s a picking tip: Most people pick from belly to eye level, so if you want the bluest berries, look up toward the top branches… or bring the kids to help you fill a bucket with the low-hanging fruit.
6. Don’t be scared to try something new
Okay, so maybe you have 500 e-mails to read, the laundry needs to be done and there are dishes piled up in the sink. Or maybe you really should mow the lawn and go get the oil changed in the car. HOLD ON A MINUTE!
There are only two months of the year when the farm is open to the public. Treat yourself to an escape to the country.
What a deal: You only pay for the produce that you take home, and the value for your heart, soul and stomach is impossible to measure — or put a price tag on!