At the Görtz fruit farm in Baarlo, they couldn’t believe their eyes on Saturday morning. Dozens of day trippers came to help pick the mirabelle plums.
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“We made a call a few days ago,” says Susanne Görtz. “But we didn’t expect that many people.”
Need
The call resulted in a fun outing for neighbors, tourists and day trippers. But it is also necessary that the little yellow plum is harvested as soon as possible. “Our mirabelle plums end up as puree or jam in luxury hotels and cruise ships. This year there are almost no sales due to the corona crisis. The fruit is now ripe and must be picked within a few days,” says Görtz.
Flan
For two euros a kilo, people can pick as much as they want. “I now have thirteen kilos. The harvest is not yet in. I’m going for another bucket,” says one of the pickers. “The plan is to put them on alcohol and then make a flan,” he says. There is an estimated 20,000 kilos of fruit in the orchard.
Rare
Fruit farm Görtz is one of the few mirabelle growers in the country. Most growers are located in France and Germany. “It is a real local product,” says Susanne. “Many people used to have a fruit tree with mirabelle plums in the garden.
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