Blueberry Picking

[baymule]

Who likes blueberries? I do! I plan on planting blueberry bushes this fall, but that doesn't help me now.

Found a U-Pick blueberry farm 21 miles away. Been there 3 times and picked over 7 pounds each time. It takes 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I wash them, spread on a cookie sheet and freeze. Then I bag them up with the foodsaver. Then we enjoy them all winter.

I'm thinking 8-10 plants is what I'll plant in the fall. Can't wait to pick my own berries!

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you have room in the freezer that's a good way to go. Instead of freezing them on a cookie sheet try drying them and just bagging them. I use an old T-shirt I cut into paper towel sizes to dry them. They will not freeze into lumps if you dry them off so you can pour out however many you need.

I have three bushes. Most years I get enough for blueberry jam and plenty for dehydrating. Freezer space is tight for me. I go through the ones I pick and dehydrate the really ripe ones and use the not quite as ripe for jam and jelly. You get a better set if you use "not quite as ripe" for jelly.

 

[Smart Red]

I picked three big, fat, juicy blue berries today. They were not quite ripe enough, but they were huge. The berries will be ripe enough for picking soon. LOVE those berries.

The currant bushes are full this year, too. Maverick has been spending a lot of time around the bushes and the fruit has been disappearing. He's also been asking me how he could grow a bush or two of currants at home.

The flock has been wandering a bit further from the coop lately. I suspect they found a mulberry tree with fruit falling beneath it. Good for them. As long as they stay in the yard, I really don't care where they go.

 

[Carol Dee]

We now have 6 bushes. DH handed me 3 freshly picked berries last night. But something likes them as much as we do and berries regularly disappear just as they ripen. So far we have not picked enough to make anything. Bushes are still on the small side. About knee high.

 

[Carol Dee]

Acidic and mine are dismal, too. Need to do some soil amending.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yeah, acidic. You can get different values but a pH recommendation of somewhere around 5 to 5.2 is pretty common.

Another problem is that the roots are pretty shallow. If they are in a low wet area they can easily drown. If they are in a well-drained area they can dry out. I spend a lot of time and effort getting water to mine during the hot dry summers. They don't need it wet but they can't dry out too much.

 

[Nyboy]

Bay 3 times last year I tried making your blueberry vodka, 3 times the vodka sat no where near long enough be for it was used. I have a lot of friends who are vodka drinkers !!!

 

[Nyboy]

Red that's great your gardening is rubbing off on grandson, does he wish to grow anything else?

 

[Smart Red]

Wish to grow anything else? He is already talking about the changes he's making here once I'm gone. Yup growing more, growing better and breeding his own kind of chicken. He will have the big pond I'm dreaming of, as well.

 

[Nyboy]

Red you should have the pond, why just dream. Just tell all the rock lovers here they can have all the free rocks they dig up!