McKenzie's, Pink House openings signal summer's coming

McKenzie's workers don snowshoes to removed mulch from strawberry patches earlier this spring. (Courtesy photo/McKenzies Farm)

MILTON - Two mainstays of a Milton summer open this week.

McKenzie's Farm opens today with fresh greenhouse-grown cucumbers, lettuce, kale, swiss chard and beets.

The farm also expects to have cherry tomatoes in a couple of weeks, according to owner Brett McKenzie.

McKenzie said while the winter wasn't particularly cold or snowy, the damp spring provided some challenges, especially with regard to the farm's strawberry crop.

"It was so damp we had to use snowshoes to uncover the strawberries or else we would have destroyed the ground around them," he said. "And in that mud it's easy to lose a shoe!"

Interestingly, covering the crop before winter with mulch, or straw, is how the delectable fruit got its name.

The farm, which usually opens over the Mother's Day weekend, is opening earlier for the first time.

"Every year is a brand new beginning, so we thought we'd do this as sort of a soft opening," McKenzie added.

The farm is located on Northeast Pond Road in Milton. Hours are 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.

For more info go to www.mckenziesfarm.com.

Meanwhile, The Pink House opens its doors on Friday.

The White Mountain Highway ice cream shop and snack bar has added $2 Taco Tuesdays to its list of food offerings.

For more info go to their Facebook Page.