Blackberry U-Pick Season 2008Season starts in July, goes through early September. U-Pick at Blackberry Blossom Farm Plan a morning for picking sweet, delicious, organic blackberries and start a family tradition with the ones you love!
Below are several questions we answer frequently about who we are and how others can come visit us. A U-Pick Farm is an opportunity for you to come pick your own fruit and experience the life of farming without the day-to-day work. It's the "fun" part of farming. We do all of the planting, pruning, watering, mulching and getting it ready. You come to pick and eat those delicious blackberries! All of this at a fraction of the price you'll pay at your local grocery store. Blackberry U-Pick Savings Consider the going price of Blackberries for a half-pint at your local east Tennessee chain store: $2.99, yes, that's right... for a HALF-PINT! Here at Blackberry Blossom Farm, you pick your own for $10.00 a GALLON! That's the equivalent of 16 half-pints with a total value saved of $37.84, not counting tax! When you help do the work (which is fun) to harvest, you can fill your freezer for pies and cobblers for all year for the cost of the equivalent of store-bought blackberries. A good reason to search out all kinds of U-Pick local farms and attend local Farmer's Markets. "What kind of berries do you have?" Our Blackberries are not the wild thorny kind. These thorn-less canes produce mammoth sweet blackberries with more fruit pulp than the seedy wild ones. The taste is superior and will make you realize blackberry picking can be an enjoyable experience, not a painful one! Pick only the sweetest completely black berries for fresh eating. For preserves, jelly, jam or cobblers, a certain amount of "almost" ripe berries will add a pleasant tartness. Looking Ahead to Berry Season 2009... Raspberries are on the horizon, red, purple, black and yellow. We even have an unusual Wineberry! More on that next Spring!
We highly recommend early morning picking, around 9:00 for several reasons.
2) The insects are at a minimum earlier although insect repellent is still recommended. 3) You'll be home to put those blackberries in the freezer or make that jelly before lunch. 4) Little ones will be more excited about learning to pick and enjoy the experience if it's earlier and cooler.
One of our favorite young pickers, do you think she enjoyed those berries?
"How do I set up a picking time?" Just simply contact us at Blackberry Blossom Farm and we'll get right back to you. We may suggest certain days according to how many people have come to pick before you or are scheduled to come. We want you to have maximum ripe berries to pick so you'll make good use of your time. "Do I need to sign anything?" Yes- we have a very short, all-inclusive release form for you to sign for your whole party which simply says that you assume all responsibility for anything that happens to you or your party while visiting Blackberry Blossom Farm. " May my children come?" Of course, we love well-behaved children on our farm! We have five of our own and know what a wonderful tradition berry picking can be for a family. Please go over our Farm Rules below and make sure they understand that a farm can be a dangerous place if the rules aren't followed.
2) No running or playing in the blackberry rows. Getting hurt is sure to ruin a fun outing. 3) EAT the berries! We encourage you to eat as many berries as you want while picking, that helps add to the multi-sensory experience. This also helps teach children what a ripe berry looks like, and why we shouldn't pick the unripened ones! "May I bring my pet?" Blackberry Blossom Farm has two working German Shepherds that patrol the farm when we don't have customers here picking. They are secured in a building when you come. Out of respect for our working dogs, please leave Fido at home so our dogs aren't confused when let out after you leave. Of course, Service Dogs are always welcome. "What should I pack for our Blackberry U-Pick experience?"
2) Insect repellent. Tip...We recommend Pure Vanilla extract put in a small spray bottle and diluted with a little with water. This works well against gnats, which is the main insect you'll encounter in early morning. If you bring a "regular" repellent, please apply it as you get out of your car. We're an organic farm and don't want our berries contaminated with any amount of insect repellent, especially since we encourage eating while picking. 3) Water bottles or drinks and a cooler to keep them in. You may want to put your berries in a cooler as you pick them until you can get them home. 4) A picnic lunch/brunch or snacks. There are plenty of places under a tree to spread a blanket for a break and a snack. Next year we'll have picnic tables and a few activities for kids to enjoy while parents continue picking. 5) Hand wipes, wet wash cloths in a bag, something to wipe berry stained hands and faces! 6) We have a bathroom in our home set aside for customers but there is no bathroom facility at the berry patch. We suggest you encourage everyone to "go" before heading down to the patch for picking. Next year our camp bath house will be open for our Blackberry U-Pick customers as well as our Camp Store with snacks and drinks and crafts. 7) Please bring an Epi-Pen or other medication for anyone who may be allergic to stinging insects. 8) Camera, don't miss those wonderful shots of your family enjoying this fun time! 9) Early morning picking usually finds dew still on the grass, wear shoes you don't mind getting wet. "Where do I go when I arrive at Blackberry Blossom Farm?" Come on up to our house at the end of Blackberry Blossom Lane to check in. After you contact us, we'll email you travel directions. We'll be expecting you and will have everything ready for your U-Pick experience. We'll lead you back to the berry patch and help you get started. Have a general idea of how many quarts you'd like to pick. We normally have plenty of other produce available for you to purchase at Farmer's Market prices. We'll gladly pick garden vegetables for you while you pick blackberries so you can take home truly fresh produce. Just ask what's available from the garden and we'll give you the inside scoop. Blackberry Blossom U-Pick also has washed and frozen gallon bags of berries for purchase. Perfect if you need more than you can pick or would like the convenience of popping them right into your freezer without having to process them. These are frozen individually before bagging so they can be removed a few at a time for smoothies or yogurt. Please bring a cooler if you plan to purchase these. We specialize in purple vegetables, since we're primarily a Blackberry Farm, we felt we should stay with a theme color. Enjoy purple okra, beans, tomatoes, lettuce, cabbage, potatoes, carrots and beautiful purple cone flowers for your table centerpiece. That's all there is to it! We hope you enjoy your time at Blackberry Blossom Farm and will return every year.
We're looking forward to seeing you in 2009! Where's a good U-Pick Farm close to me? Here's a wonderful site which will help you find great farms where you can pick your own fruit & vegetables, no matter where you live. Check them out! Pickyourown.org, and tell Blake we said "Hi"!
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"So... what is a Blackberry U-Pick Farm and how does it work?"
