Buy local: farm stand spotlight

Lewin Farms in Wading River started like just about every other farm on the East End: growing potatoes. But over time, they have added more vegetables and fruits, using every bit of their 1,000-acre property to supply the local consumer.

Starting in the early 1920s, Lewin Farms has emerged into a you-pick powerhouse offering their produce either to be purchased in store or to be picked fresh right from their fields and orchard.

Though the Lewins only have one farm stand, their farm fields extend north, south, and east where u-pick stations are set up when the produce is ripe for picking.

Today, the farm is run by the brother-sister tandem of Howard and Pam Lewin along with Howard’s sons, Eric and Brian. They and only 16 other workers maintain the farm throughout the season.

Lewin Farms just opened its doors for the season last weekend, selling produce from out of town, as they wait for their own crops to come in.

“Not much is in season right now,” said Pam Lewin. “The weather hasn’t really been cooperative.”

Strawberries are about a week or two away, Lewin said. When they are ripe, the farm will open its strawberry fields, located just east of Hulse Landing Road, to the public.

Raspberries should be ready to pick by mid-June. Blueberries and blackberries will be ready by the first of July.

You-pick brings a lot of customers in because “you get to pick exactly what you want” — instead of limiting customers to a small selection in a store.

Lewin Farms doesn’t charge an entrance fee to pick and produce is priced by the pound. Strawberries will be $2 per pound this year.

The pick-your-own philosophy brings tons of customers in but money is still lost here and there by those who eat some of their produce on the field.

“It’s expected,” said Ms. Lewin. “People want to try before they buy. We don’t really monitor it. It’s part of the whole pick-your-own experience.”

Fun fact: Lewin Farms was the first farm in Long Island to do pick-your-own. They started with strawberries “sold at 10 cents a quart.”

Pick your own is not open everyday and Pam Lewin says customers should call ahead before heading out to the farm.

Check out their website www.Lewinfarm.com or give them a call at 631-929-4327.

In season now on local farm stands:

Asparagus
Spinach
Lettuce
Leeks
Rhubarb
Arugula
Dill
Parsley
Cilantro

RiverheadLOCAL photos by Michael Hejmej
Click thumbnails to enlarge images
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