Your Local Guide to Meri Acres Farm’s Pick Your Own!

     Berry-picking season is now among us and Meri Acres Farm has all the good-pick-in’s of a great day if you’re willing to get your hands a little dirty for some of Neopia’s freshest and tastiest berries! As the grass gets greener, the bushes get bushier, the sky gets bluer, and the days become longer, the berries are nearing their ideal level of ripeness to be picked and taken home! Berries from Meri Acres Farm make great gifts, snacks, and pies. Will you be this season’s avid berry collector?

     To make the most out of your trip to the farm and to ensure you pick the best and the brightest of the bunch, follow these thoughtful guidelines and you’ll be leaving with full bellies and baskets every single time. No mushy, half-eaten, rotten finds for us! And no thank you to Piles of Dung!

     1. Don’t aim high and don’t aim low! Aim…in the middle?

     While it may be tempting to pick berries close to the ground as they are in reach, or to pick the berries on top that get the most sunlight, you should really be picking berries from the middle of the bush! The berries near the ground are reserved for any wandering Symols and other Petpets alike that may be looking for a midday snack. The berries up top are for the traveling Draiks looking for a rest stop from a long flight. The berries in the middle? Perfect for you! They are in reach and leave enough berries on the rest of the bush to share with other visiting creatures! Plus, the berries in the middle get the perfect balance of sun and rain to produce the juiciest Super Juicy Berries you will ever taste!

     2. Keep your Eyeballberries peeled!

     You may think that it’d be easy to spot a bright Red Chiaberry from miles away, but think again! The lush fields of Meri Acres Farm enable the greenery to grow quite densely into one another, purposefully doing so to keep the berries away from overexposure to natural elements such as harsh wind and piercing rain. So when you are picking berries, don’t be afraid to brush away branches, lift up the leaves, and even do a bit of digging to find the good ones. There may even be some Sparkly Variations hiding where you least expect them. Think of it like finding Buried Treasure!

     3. Go the distance!

     While you may want to play it safe and stick close to the farmhouse, choosing to only pick from the small, well-kept bushes in the front would be doing yourself an injustice! The berries near the front of the farm often have the least amount of berries left as these are the bushes that folks frequent first. This is where you will often find the Half-eaten Berries or the Rotten Berries. They have been tampered with way too much! Instead, go on and explore the land! Meri Acres Farm is acres of fun. Don’t be afraid to go deeper in the woods, get lost amongst the trees, and maybe take a dip in the pastel blue waters of the rushing river. You never know what you may find if you click your heels in the right direction.

     4. Lucky clover or just lucky you?

     Whether we like to admit it or not, berry-picking does require a bit of luck - and not just on March 17th. Did we mention that there are 12 Leaf Clovers? If you manage to pick one of these, you are guaranteed a very good day, my lucky friend! However, some days you may only come home with a Rotten Berry at best. Other times, you may feel as breezy as the Breenutberry you managed to snag! It all depends on the range of berries available on that day…and if the Turmaculus decides to have berries for dessert after his…post-nap snack. In the end, it just takes a bit of consistency, enthusiasm, and a willingness to try again! The next time you visit will be a new day. There will be new land to explore. And there will be a new batch of berries just waiting to be found.

     5. It BERRY MUCH depends on you…

     The best berries are the berries that reside in your heart…even if they are half-eaten. One’s trash can be another’s treasure and if you come to Meri Acres Farm in search of old boots, bits of barbed wire, or fluffs of wool, no one is going to judge you for that! Just remember that if you happen to pick something that makes you have second thoughts, the farmers would be happy to take them off your hands without a hassle. Just hand them right over and clickety-split…it will be as if they vanished into thin air. This is also a good time to mention getting to know the value of the berries that you pick. Some berries are considered to be worth more than others. And based on value and rarity, your pie may end up tasting drastically different! If you get what you pay for, same goes with you get what you settle for. The ultimate decision is yours.

     With these tips in mind, your next trip to Meri-Acres Farm to Pick Your Own will be unforgettable and incredibly delicious. To a Voidberry any long lines, make sure to go at dusk when the sun is low so you can enjoy the sunset as you browse without any distractions. Bring a strong woven basket to carry your good as well as some gloves so your hands won't hurt as you pick and collect! Farmers and other staff members will be onsite to answer any questions or advise on berry ripeness as you please. And as a parting gift to you, we offer free samples of our homemade pies made with the berries fresh from our farm. Grab a slice before you go! We hope you have an amazing visit and we would love to see you Loveberries again soon!