PYO Strawberry, Penray Garden, Otaki
Pick Your Own (PYO) fruit is one of the most enjoyable experiences in New Zealand. There are a lot of fruits in New Zealand available for picking in different seasons. This website offers good information about where to pick your own fruit in New Zealand and in which season: http://www.pickyourown.org/newzealand.htm
My mother visits me in Wellington and will be staying with me for more than a month, so I am not lonely in Wellington! I brought her to pick strawberry today at Penray Garden. Penray Garden is located in Otaki which takes slightly more than an hour drive from Welington. I was tired of driving but it was worthwhile!
It is very windy today. We are excited to see a lot of strawberries!
Strawberry trees are very short, so we need to bend our knee down to pick strawberries. Strawberries are red and beautiful, as well as sweet and delicious! Chinese describe a person as ‘strawberry’ when he/she is unstable and can’t withstand a setback, because strawberry is soft and easily crushed. But I think some people are not as weak as shown in their appearance, because they might have a tough heart, so do not judge a book by its cover.
After half an hour, more people are coming to pick strawberry. Most of the big and delicious strawberries are gone. The supply of strawberries is quite limited. We are lucky because we arrived early so we have picked the best!
Lemon picking is also available today, but they are not so nice because they seem a bit too mature.
Overall we had a great day. Strawberry picking is a fun experience. If you are interested in PYO at Penray Garden, please make sure that you have checked the latest update on their Facebook. They often post PYO fruit availability on Facebook and they might close down PYO in a short notice. I recommend arriving at the place before 10 am because the best fruit will always be picked first! 🙂
2 Comments
Hi Cy,
In January you can pick -and eat- The most delicious strawberries at Wee Red Barn just North of Masterton. It is a long drive so maybe ring first to see if the pick your own is on. It costs $4 a person to pick but unlike Penrays they don’t mind if you eat some while you pick. My 2 year old daughter enjoyed this a lot! The berries are waist high and up on shelves, so you and your mother do not have to bend down at all! They were huge and delicious strawberries. We took home 5kg at $8 per kg – but they were all eaten very quickly. Enjoy
Thanks so much for the recommendation!! Sounds really good and we will try one day 🙂