Strawberry Picking at Sweet Berry Farm

1. Bring your camera.  The rows of strawberries make a pretty background, and kids look adorable bending over with a basket full of berries (or with juice dripping down their cheeks!). Also, save time to stop along the way to take bluebonnet pictures.  During much of strawberry season there are phenomenal roadside wildflowers leading out to the farm.

2.  Don’t go on a Wednesday.   The farm is closed every Wednesday.  I made that mistake one year and was not happy to have wasted all that gas and time!

3. Strollers are tricky in the strawberry patch. Wagons work well though. If you have a baby, I have found that a back carrier seems to work best (a front carrier left me with a juicy baby!).

4. It’s easy to overspend on strawberries.  The first time I went, I made the mistake of assuming that it would be cheaper to pick them myself than to buy strawberries at the grocery store.  In reality, it costs a little more to pick your own, but you will probably end up with fresher, juicier berries.  Be aware though that the cost adds up quickly when you fill your basket.

5. No need to bring extra containers for the berries.  The farm provides their own baskets and requires them to be used at check out.

6.  Pack a picnic lunch.  There is a lovely place to eat on the picnic tables over by the goat pen.  It has plenty of shade, and the goats provide entertainment.  Children have fun picking grass to feed the goats through the fence openings.  There are ice cream and strawberry popsicles for sale, but no other lunch items are sold by the farm in the Spring.  Don’t plan on eating a lot of strawberries while you pick, as the farm discourages it.

7. Make sure to walk along the back of the farm and visit the horses.

8. Bring cash or checks.  The farm does not accept credit cards.  I forgot cash one year and had to use the ATM at the farm, which of course, cost me extra in fees.

9. Weekday mornings are a great time to visit.   Weekends are popular, so if you visit then you may find bigger crowds and picked-over strawberry fields. In the mornings on weekdays (except Wednesday!) are usually the best time to visit.

10.  Wear play clothes.  There is lots of room to run and play for kids, but  it tends to be dusty (and sometimes muddy).  My kids have come home absolutely filthy the last two years.

Sweet Berry Farm is open March through mid-May for strawberry picking.

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday; 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. Sunday; Closed all Wednesdays.

Admission and parking are free. Strawberries are $2.75 per pound. The picking container is 50 cents.

See here for more information (and directions, as GPS sometimes has trouble navigating here).  For information on berry supply, click on the “Fresh News” Marble Falls link or visit Sweet Berry Farm’s Facebook page.

Sweet Berry Farm
1801 FM 1980
Marble Falls, Texas 78654

Katey writes about activities for families and children at Having Fun at Home. You may also enjoy posts Katey has written about exploring the Bee Cave Sculpture Park, Barton Creek Greenbelt, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Longview Park, Austin’s Superlative Landmarks, the Elisabet Ney Museum, and Oakwood Cemetery.  She has also written about taking kids to explore fun Austin stores like Callahan’s, The Natural Gardener, Nature’s Treasures, Zookeeper, and the Asian Supermarket.