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Let your buckets and bowls overfloweth with bounty

Revel in the bounty at your local U-Pick berry farm. Photo credit: Jackie Fender

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Longer days with no school to entertain little ones leaves me trying to find creative ways to lure them from YouTube, Netflix and the Xbox. Flashy images that dance across the screen entertain the kids while the sun shines bright. When I was little we were shooed outside to fend for ourselves until the streetlights turned on. We cycled through town, drank water from hoses and pulled off to nearby blackberry bushes to fill our bellies, hands stained dark with sticky sweet juices. Reminiscing about this reminded me that U-Pick berry patches abound around these parts and the summertime bounty is prime for the picking. Maybe you're looking to entertain your little ones, or maybe you just want to indulge in freshly picked berries yourself. Whatever the case, here are a few U-Pick berry opportunities just waiting for you to come fill your bowls and buckets:

For the last two decades, family owned and operated Linbo Blueberry Farm in Puyallup has been open to the public for the u-pick seasons. Their next scheduled u-pick event is this weekend from Thursday, July 19, to Sunday, July 22, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The best way to stay up to date on other upcoming opportunities is to visit their website at linboblueberries.com and signing up for their newsletter or following them on Facebook. 1201 South Fruitland, Puyallup

Charlotte's Blueberry Park, located in Tacoma, boasts thousands of blueberry bushes prime for the picking from July to September. There's no fee to enjoy this bounty which will give you ample opportunity to indulge. You'll be racking your brain for creative ways to prepare your berry treasure. Fresh blueberries, blueberry pie, blueberry cobbler, blueberry bourbon smash. ... open one-half hour before sunrise until one-half hour after sunset. 7402 E. D St., Tacoma

For 25 years Carr's Organic Blueberry Farm has been all about blueberries and bees. They've got several varietals almost ready for the pickin' with late July, early August kicking off the season. Follow them on Facebook or call their blueberry hotline for details at 360.352.3622. 3844 Gull Harbor Rd. NE, Olympia

Picha's Farms boasts plump strawberries, blackberries and raspberries, though the u-pick season is only early in the summer months. They tend to do the picking for you. That said, you can depend on them to deliver freshly picked bounty daily, each morning to one of their two berry stands. They sell their berry booty by the cup, half flats or full flats from about 8:30 a.m. until mid afternoon between 2 and 4 p.m., but arriving early is the best way to ensure you get the best of the bounty. 6502 52nd St. E., Puyallup and 74th and Tyler St., Tacoma

Spooner Berry Farms are another that will do the hard work for ya! They pick all sorts of berries each season: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and Marionberries, oh my. It's nature's candy and they have loads of locations to choose from. If you're still looking for the u-pick experience, we are entering u-pick blueberry season with the end of July. Check out their vending locations online at spoonerberryfarms.com or follow them on Facebook. 3327 Yelm Hwy. SE, Olympia

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