U-Pick Strawberries Branford Farm Stand By Carly Meyers
Meet the Garrett family, commercial farmers, and owners of the Branford Farm Stand. The Garrett’s bustling u-pick strawberry field has captivated the community since the beginning of 2022, though the Garrets offer the community much more than fresh fruits and vegetables.
Nearly 30 years ago, the Garrett family purchased property to farm commercially. Joseph Garrett’s father and uncle began the family farm on the now 800-acre commercial farm that grows bell peppers, squash and eggplant among an assortment of other vegetables. Joseph and his brother Daniel Garrett now run the farm from the previous generation. In January 2019, the Garretts had the opportunity to purchase 80 acres of an old tobacco farm that sat across the street from their farm. The original plan was to use the property to grow more commercial vegetables, but a different idea began to grow instead. On the property sat old tobacco barns and the original homestead built in the early 1940s, which was practically condemned and overtaken by the land. The Garretts and the Leos family, who help manage the farm, hatched an idea to transform the building into a farm stand with the twist of adding a Mexican restaurant inside, and the Branford Farm Stand opened in April 2021.
As previous generations of the Garrett family had owned u-picks and fruit stands in the past in Homestead and in Georgia, Joseph decided to continue the tradition and grow five acres of strawberries next to the Branford Farm Stand. Opening January 1, 2022, the family has offered u-pick strawberries every weekend since and has been flooded with the community’s support. “Previous generations of my husband’s family have owned farm stands and u-picks, so it’s really special to us to carry on that tradition, as well as providing the community with a memorable experience,” Katie Garrett, Joseph’s wife, said. The weekend u-picks have been very popular, and the Garretts may grow more strawberries next year due to the popularity. Visitors can pick as many or as little berries as they choose, and you only pay for what you pick at $3.25 a pound. All the supplies are provided, as well as carts for those venturing to pick multiple bags of berries or to push small children through the fields. Spring 2022 | 75
