A FARM IS A STUDY in timing. Sometimes we have nothing but dirt—messy dirt, dusty dirt, and dirty old dirt. A bumper crop of dirt.

Nobody ever asks, How much for a pint of dirt? Do you have good dirt for making pies? Can we come pick your dirt?

Then, all of sudden, we have a whole mess of strawberries. Handsome berries as big as train cars with Botox perma-smiles.

And that’s when we sound the Horn of Plenty. We send out a Fresh Crop Alert. Within a few hours, there is a crop mob in the berry patch.

Gentle and kind Ithacans play bumper cars. They tussle over the ripest specimens. They covet their neighbors’ berry boxes.

Some late arrivals, alas, leave empty-handed. The field can get picked pretty clean—but new berries ripen through the day and the field recharges.

Same deal with raspberries. We got berries as big as turtles. We sound the horn. Pickers come out of the woodwork.

Some families pick a snack. Others stock up for jams, jellies, pies, and smoothies. Some pick in the morning, some in the evening.

It’s a tricky timing game, life on a small farm. Patience and persistence are your most valuable virtues. One sneaky tip is to come out on the rainy days. We’ll keep you notified with this weekly newsletter and our daily Facebook updates.

Soon the farm stand will be open with a bounty of new crops. Nobody will leave empty-handed. We’ll even have—gasp!—a phone. Til then, strawberries and raspberries are on the scene. Thanks for picking at The ‘Creek.