Families can have a berry good time at Amber Oaks

Tim Boughton knows berries. He started his first raspberry bush at his next-door-neighbors property in Auburn when he was in elementary school as part of a 4-H project. At 12, he started working for his neighbors, tending the bushes. Then, after graduating high school, he leased the property that would eventually house 105 separate crops and a tremendous amount of U-Pick fun.Starting July 20, local families can visit Boughton and his wife, Rhonda, at Amber Oaks Berry Farm, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, to snag their share of the crops. For $1.75 per pound for most varieties of berries and $1.50 per pound for pie berries, families can take home as much as they'd like.Choices are almost limitless - options include several blackberry species, golden raspberries, blueberries, chestnuts, kiwi, nectarines, apricot, fresh herbs, melon and squash. There is, however, a $5 per individual or $10 per family minimum payment - for good reason, Boughton said."Sometimes, people would come and pick for hours and not have a single basket to show for it," he said among the bushes Tuesday carefully choosing the plump Rhonda blackberries that are best for baking. And yes, the species is named for his wife.While he could hire laborers to harvest his many crops and keep small, sticky fingers off his prized thornless plants, he said having locals come out and choose their own fruit is most of the fun. The lack of hired help keeps costs down for consumers (often averaging $1 per basket of fruit) and keeps wonder in new pickers' eyes."You can imagine when (kids) see this many berries that are sweet," Boughton said.Amber Oaks Berry FarmWhat: Seasonal U-Pick farm with year-round orders availableWhere: 2770 Shanley Road, AuburnWhen: Mondays, Wednesday and Saturdays starting July 20Cost: $5 per person, $10 per family minimum; fruit costs $1.50 to $1.75 per poundCall: 885-3420 "They come out with purple faces."At the farm Tuesday to illustrate was family friend Clayton Rhoades. The six-year-old demonstrated his picking ability with purple-stained hands, cheeks, lips, chin and nose. And he had definite plans for his bounty."I'm going to make a sour pie," he said, brushing off his dad's request that sugar be added to the fruit.Plants are still ripening - the mild weather has delayed berry season for another couple weeks - but by the end of July, the almost-too-sweet Chester berries will be ready for harvest. Boughton recommends picking dull, plump berries instead of shiny, harder ones, and to leave plenty of room in the car. "Most people come out expecting to pick a flat and leave with 60 pounds," he said. "I can't even help eating them as I go. They're so good."The Boughtons even offer help for those unfamiliar with using berries in baked goods - visitors leave with tips and recipes for pies, cobblers, ice cream, shakes, smoothies and even barbeque sauce. The only problem is choosing what to make before the berries turn - and the perfectly ripe berries go bad quickly.But does the family that survives on berries ever grow tired of the fruit?"Everybody loves it," Boughton said. "We eat berries constantly. It's just something you eat and enjoy while it lasts - and if you freeze or can or make jam out of the berries, you can have them through the winter, too."The Journal's Stephanie Swanburg can be reached at stephanies@goldcountrymedia.com.