Long, hot summer days usually leave us craving for something refreshing.

    When afternoon thunderstorms can’t do the trick, locals often look to something else. And oftentimes that something can be found at local peach stands. In generations past, you could drive down local highways and find the popular produce stands after a short drive in either direction. There was even a large store — an open-flow style standalone canopy with a few wooden beams and a tin roof — next to the old Village Fair Mall.

     Today, those stands are harder to find. Most of the old canopies are boarded up, covered with weeds and falling down.

    But the few that remain are doing well, including the Mathis Peaches and Produce in north Clarke County.

    For more than 30 years, the Mathis family has been producing peaches in Clarke County on the family’s 40 acres. And for the past 11 years, their store off Highway 45 South has been making their customers happy with the selection of their peaches and other fresh produce.

    “Peaches, tomatoes, watermelons and shelled peas and butter beans are the biggest sellers,” said Lisa Smith who, along with her brother, Randy Mathis, runs the business on Highway 45 South and Highway 19 North. 

    The extreme cold snaps this past winter and the lack of rain hasn’t stopped their peaches from growing strong. Smith said they sell more than 75 bushels of peaches a day and they can’t keep up with the demand for shelled peas and butter beans. The peas and butter beans come from Georgia, but are shelled at the Highway 45 South location.

    Along with peaches, tomatoes and watermelons, they also have a huge selection of other fruits and vegetables. And, they even sell their homemade canned goods in a wide variety of flavors.

    Aside from finding fresh produce, browsing the store is almost like stepping back in time. True enough, the new store is enclosed and is outfitted with central heat and air, but the family tradition of local produce remains.

    The old straw baskets hold everything from okra to squash and the prices are marked with magic marker on paper signs.

    Not everyone has a green thumb or the acreage to grow a garden or fruit orchard, but after a short drive to Mathis Peaches and Produce — you can enjoy the refreshing tastes of summer. They are open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at both locations.