Let’s go berry picking – Public orchards today

Much more than just apples

What grows in an orchard?

Apples! You can hear the answer echoing in the car that is taking the family to an orchard. This answer is right, but there are other types of fruit that can be picked there, and many varieties in each type. In one Côte-du-Sud municipality alone, Cap-Saint-Ignace, you’ll find 35 varieties of apples, six varieties of pears, as many varieties of plums and four varieties of cherries.

Each of the fruits grown in public orchards or on private land has its own qualities and can be eaten fresh or processed in different ways.

An activity for the entire family

Once you get to an orchard, you quickly realize that there’s more to do there than just pick fruit. The air is cool, the sun is warm, and everything invites both young and old to relax and have fun. There’s something for everyone. Picking is the most popular activity, but depending on the orchard, visitors will find picnic and play areas, small farms with animals to pet, wagon rides and other activities.

Today, orchards are a popular tourist destination from midsummer to late fall, as the different varieties of fruit ripen one after the other.

That’s my favourite hobby –  Enjoy this video with a transcript

All our senses are awakened the minute we set foot in an orchard. We hear the shouts of people who arrived before us. Our senses of sight, touch and taste are fully engaged. The fruit waiting to be picked gives off a sweet aroma. Orchard owners know how to tantalize our sense of smell when they transform their harvest into delicious dishes and desserts.

Children love to spend the day at an orchard. Charlize:

In an orchard, I smell pies, cakes, doughnuts and soup.
There are lots of apple trees. I’m happy. I bite into an apple.
Yum, it’s delicious!

Family enjoying a snack in an orchard, 2019

Cooking at home with fruit you’ve picked yourself adds an extra dimension to recipes. When done as a family, it provides an opportunity to pass on family recipes to the next generation. Parents and children will remember these special moments.

Keeping up with the times: organic and environmental

Amidst the joyful cries and the sound of visitors biting into ripe crunchy fruit, there are a number of concerns that need to be addressed when it comes to orchards; primarily, respect for the environment and organic farming. Both producers and consumers are changing the way they do things. This, among others, has revived the popularity of orchards and pick-your-own operations. From the 1950s through to the mid-1970s, visiting orchards was no longer very popular.

A movement towards healthier, less polluting food first emerged among small groups and then spread to the general public in the 1980s. It is reflected in local purchasing, the use of public markets, less packaging and the Slow Food movement. Fruit growers have decided to go organic.