WHAT’S FRESH : BUYING OPPORTUNITIES : Picnic Perennial : Sweet corn, baby corn, bicolor corn--growers are up to their ears in all kinds of corn right now.

It is hard to imagine a Fourth of July picnic that doesn’t include corn. But what a disappointment when that corn turns out to be dry, chewy and slightly bitter. Fortunately, just in the nick of time, locally grown sweet corn is showing up at a market near you.

“It’s just starting and it will last through to the end of October,” said James Barker, manager of the Underwood Produce stand in Somis.

In order to keep a continuous supply of fresh corn during harvest season, Barker said, crops are planted in 2 1/2-acre blocks. After an initial planting, successive crops generally follow in weekly increments.

“It takes about 90 days from planting the seed before it’s ready to harvest,” Barker said.

Barker offered this tip to corn consumers:

“Look for a nice fresh cut on the end of the stalk--not dried out or discolored.”

“A lot of the stuff you’ll see in supermarkets are two to three days old because the corn sits in a cooler before being trucked to the store. That’s why farmers’ stands are around--fresh to the buyer the day it’s cut,” Barker said.

Underwood Farms offers a different hybrid of sweet corn than other growers in Ventura County.

“The cob has white and yellow kernels on it. This type is generally called calico or triple-sweet bicolor,” Barker said.

And his favorite way of eating it?

“I eat it raw. That’s how sweet it is. You can cut the kernels off the cob and throw them into a salad.”

Barker said that rising water rates and competition from other counties is making corn in Ventura County an increasingly difficult crop to grow.

“With corn production, costs are high and the return is low. It’s not a high yielding crop like, say, strawberries. Your return per acre just isn’t as high as other crops.”

Compounding the problem, corn growers in the Coachella Valley and the Bakersfield area get a jump on the market due to their warmer temperatures.

The Underwood Produce stand is at 5696 Los Angeles Ave., Somis. The going price for a dozen ears of sweet corn is around $3.50.

The Central Market roadside stand, California 101 at Central Avenue in Camarillo, is also offering sweet corn. But you may want to sample their Asian baby corn.

“It’s picked early and the cobs are only about three inches,” said Robbie Nichols, a worker at the stand.

“We give out samples and they always end up buying some--kids love it too,” she said. “Just eat them raw, serve with dips or drop them in a salad.”

A dollar will bring home five of them.

Love green beans but hate all the work removing the strings? Try Blue Lake green beans at Central Market. Not real long, tender and no strings attached.

Tierra Rejada Ranch, 3370 Moorpark Road, Moorpark, is offering you-pick-’em blackberries. “I like them with ice cream. Make a great pie, too,” said ranch manager Rick Brecunier. The berries will be around for just another week, he said. They are selling for $1.25 a pound.

Friends Ranch, 15150 Maricopa Highway in Ojai, has some “tasty” ruby grapefruit, Valencia oranges and “real nice” avocados, said Nancy Yant, a packing house employee.

Yant has this friendly tip for any allergy sufferers:

“To start, you need honey made from the area you live in. Take equal amounts of honey, cider vinegar and hot water. Mix it together and drink it twice a day. My doctor gave us the idea, so my husband tried it. It worked. Then he stopped and his allergies came back.” Friends Ranch also has a produce stand at 469 E. Ojai Ave., Ojai.