U-Pick Strawberries

Branford Farm Stand

Meet the Garrett family, commercial farmers, and owners of the Branford Farm Stand. The Garrett’s bustling u-pick strawberry eld has captivated the community since the beginning of 2022, though the Garrets o er 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 di erent 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 ve acres of strawberries next to the Branford Farm Stand. Opening January 1, 2022, the family has o ered u-pick strawberries every weekend since and has been ooded 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 elds.

By Carly Meyers

Denver Jernigan • Live Oak, Florida (386) 590-7358 | denverjerniganphoto@gmail.com | www.denverjernigan.com

At the farm stand, most of the produce is grown by the Garrett family. Expect to see bell peppers, squash, zucchini, watermelons, tomatoes, okra, onions, eld peas and many other seasonal o erings. If you’re looking for something sweeter, try a strawberry milkshake made with their homemade ice cream that you can also purchase by the cup or pint. Though the strawberries are expected to last until sometime in April, the Garretts plan to freeze enough strawberries to o er their crowd-favorite milkshakes even when the u-pick is not in season.

The Branford Farm Stand also takes their Mexican food very seriously. Serving authentic food, the stand even makes their corn tortillas fresh daily from a tortilla machine they had shipped in from Mexico. Though the menu started small, they now o er a full menu including items such as tacos, tamales, taco salads, street corn, churros and Katie’s go-to, the steak bowl.

“My favorite part of the u-pick is seeing all the families and people that come out to pick strawberries, of all ages,” Katie said. “We see so many people, and they’re all out there picking and having so much fun.” Katie continued, “People absolutely love strawberries, they pick them in bulk to make jams and jellies, desserts, freeze them and give them as gifts to their neighbors and church groups. We really love seeing how much joy strawberry picking brings to the community.”

“I know they’re our strawberries, but they’re the best I’ve ever had,” Katie said. “A lot of people have never had freshly picked strawberries – they’re completely di erent than what you buy in the store. The berries you buy in the store have gone through multiple changes of hands and have been in a cooler for quite some time, so they lose a lot of the sweetness. Whereas when you pick them right out of the eld, they’re super sweet and not like anything you buy from the grocery store. We could never express how grateful we are for our community’s support,” Katie expressed. “If you haven’t had the chance to visit us yet, stop by and enjoy the whole experience that we o er. The Farm Stand is a unique attraction in our area, and we plan to continue to expand that experience in the future.”

To stay up to date on the u-pick schedule, follow the Branford Farm Stand on Facebook. They are located at 27687 US 129 Branford FL, 32008 and can be reached at

386-339-9443. ■