Picked Out 'Til Tuesday

We've had more cars parked in our yard today than I've ever seen.  There were probably 60 cars parked in our yard with parents and children ready to pick berries.  The blueberries, raspberries and blackberries did get picked until the last few people told us that there wasn't a ripe berry left.

Since the weather is cool and the berries need a few days to ripen, we're going to be closed until next Tuesday, June 5.  You should probably call or look to the blog to see when we'll open after that.  The plan is Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, but when the field gets picked clean it just needs some time.

See you next time!

Picking Thursday

We're planning to be open for picking on Thursday, May 31st, from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  All three types of berries should have something ripe on them - blackberries, blueberries and raspberries.  The blackberries will just be beginning their season, the blueberries will be close to the middle of their season and the raspberries are close to the end of their season.  As the weather gets hot, the raspberries fade away.  They love cool, wet weather which we really aren't seeing right now!

I hear the forecast is for rain this week.  Pray that we get a few inches; our water bill was close to $500 last month!

Picked Out Today!

Well, about 200 people showed up to pick blueberries this morning and picked everything that was blue.  If you were planning on coming this weekend or on Memorial Day, there won't be any that are blue enough or sweet enough to pick.

If we close until next Thursday, there may be some that are blue and sweet by then.  It just takes some time, rain, and sunshine for the berries to ripen up and be ready for eating.

Have a good holiday weekend grilling, camping, or out on the lake.  The berry farm won't be the best place to be spending your time this year.  

Picking Schedule

We're going to be picking berries Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday this week from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The Duke variety is bearing right now and the Blueray, Bluecrop and Collins are beginning to follow with their leading berries.  The nice thing about that is that those leaders are plump and good sized berries.  

The raspberries are also ready for picking.  The Nova variety is in full swing, the Heritage and Reveille have less volume, but are also ripe and the Royalty and Wye berries are ripe as well.  There are even a few black raspberries to try.  I love this time of year!

Correction!  Cool Weather Delay

We thought that our season would get started quickly, but with cool weather moving through our region, the blueberries have stayed green.  We're hoping that we will have sweet berries that are blue by Saturday, May 19th and plan to be open then from 7:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

We didn't open for picking last Saturday because there just wasn't enough berries that were blue.  I tried picking a bit on Mother's Day, but the berries are not sweet at all and you have to hunt to find them blue enough to even pick.

With sunshine and warmer weather coming through this week, the berries should ripen and sweeten up by Saturday.  However, we're only working with one variety right now - the Duke variety. The Collins and Blueray varieties should follow it within another week.

The good thing about it all is that the raspberries are ripe and enjoying the cooler weather.  Raspberries are always plentiful with rain and cool weather.  I've been enjoying fruit smoothies with the raspberries adding the tart note.  YUM!

Blueberry Season - 2012

This is the earliest season ever!  I picked 1/2 gallon of blueberries this morning, May 8, before heading for school.  I started picking raspberries over a week ago and have already picked 3 gallons of raspberries.

If you're hoping to catch the season this year, you need to know that it's normally a 4 - 6 week window in which to pick.  Since school is still in session, I'm going to be open for picking this Thursday evening from 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., Saturday the 12th from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and Monday, May 14, from 8:00 a.m.  - 2:00 p.m.  We'll see how the crop looks at that point.

I'm actually going to be in school until May 24th, so I'll be able to open for full picking hours on Friday, May 25th.