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Your Fruit Connection
If you would like to be added to our email list please contact us . Typically the newsletter will be short and come out weekly during the harvest season [June to August] to let you what is happening. It also comes out once or twice in off season.
Blueberries AND Blackberries are LOADED! There are LOTS & LOTS of Blueberries and Blackberries! BLUEBERRIES: We are now picking Climax and Premier varieties of blueberries. There are a few sweet blueberries in the Tifblue and Centurions. Pretty soon it will be crescendo! Picking time per gallon is low now. Some bushes are bending way over with fruit load. They need your help to get the weight off the bush! Blueberry season lasts a long time and we will have blueberries until late August or possibly even early September. BLACKBERRIES: Kiowa and Chickasaw blackberries are loaded. There are still some prime Jim and Jan and they are very sweet. The Choctaw are about done but still some. The Navaho blackberries are just beginning along with the Georgia Gem where king berries are ripening. The Chester have a long ways to go and we are forecasting mid July for them. PRICES: The prices this year are $1.75 per pound u-pick for blue and blackberries and that works out to be about half the price compared to pre-picked. Pre-picked berries are $5 per quart or $20 per gallon. That is about $4 cheaper than last year! We try to forecast pre-picked needs each day but if you want to be sure we will have pre-picked berries when you come, it is best to give us a call to make sure we will have them ready. DRESS FOR THE WEATHER: Long sleeve loose fitting shirt, hat, long pants [cotton works well] and carry some water. When your sweat evaporates it helps to cool your body. If you are not sweating or sweating excessively it is time to get out of the sun. In this day of cell phones carry it with you to the field and if you feel bad, dizzy or have a problem call 350 9345 or 637 8041 and we will come help. FIGS are forecasted for August 1 along with seedless grapes. Muscadines are still forecasted for August 18. The rain has been marvelous and we continue to get an inch a week! Perfect! The bushes look so great this year which bodes an even better crop next year.
Thank you for your support! Looking forward to seeing you in the fields!
Blackberries Approaching PEAK
We started picking blueberries on June 11- the earliest ever! We are picking the varieties Climax and Premier. We will have a limited supply of pre-picked blueberries. It is best to call ahead (864-350-9345) so as to make sure we have picked what you want. We pick early in the morning so a little lead-time is very helpful. The bushes have lots of lush green foliage so we are forecasting lots of sweet berries this year. The volume available to pick will increase steadily over the next month. We should have blueberries until late August or even early September. The blackberries are coming on strong!. Picking conditions are good, approaching excellent, and PEAK OF SEASON will be here SOON! The seedless table grapes are doing great! We anticipate starting Venus the end of July. Then we will pick Jupiter, Mars and Neptune during August and early September. Summer figs will start around August 1. Zoe found a ripe breba (spring) fig so there are a few out there if anyone wants to try. It will be slow picking now but once the summer figs come in we will be loaded. Muscadines are forecasted to ripen August 18.
Thank you for your support! Looking forward to seeing you in the fields!
Open for Blackberries June 4
We open for blackberry picking on Thursday June 4. We will be closed Friday June 5. We will be open Saturday June 6 from 8 AM to 6 PM and Sunday June 7 from 12 noon until dusk. Starting Monday June 8 we will be open our regular schedule for the entire season. The regular schedule is from 8 AM until dusk Monday through Friday , 8 AM - 6 PM Saturday and 12 noon - dusk Sunday. We will be picking Choctaw, Prime Jim And Prime Jan blackberries. We will not have any pre-picked berries available yet. We will advise by newsletter as soon as we begin to pre-pick. Blueberries start June 18.
We are looking forward to a great harvest!
Blackberries June 4
It is official; we will open June 4, 2009 with blackberries. Blueberries are still forecasted at June 18. We have had marvelous growing conditions with lots of good rain… at least an inch a week. The bushes are so “happy” … they have a marvelous green glow about them and are bending over with their fruit load. Get to Know Your Farmers - Carolina Farm Stewardship is sponsoring tours of 19 farms this weekend. For $30 a ticket you can tour all 19 farms with every one in your vehicle on just one ticket. Tours are from 1 to 6 pm on both Saturday and Sunday. With your ticket you will get a map to all farms so you can plan where you will go each day. The tickets are available at The Market in Keowee Town on Route 11, at the CFSA web site www.carolinafarmstewards.org, Bee Well Market in Pickens, Upstate Food Coop near Six Mile off of 137 headed toward Norris, Anderson farmers Market in downtown Anderson, At Whole Food in Greenville {also a Sponsor of the event} and 1038 Pinckney Rd in Pauline SC in Spartanburg county. Or you can just buy a ticket at one of the participating farms listed below.
See you in the fields!
Blackberries June 3 or 4
We keep getting excited here! We made it through Spring frost season with only some damage to blackberries and no damage to blueberries thanks to our new wind machine pictured on the home page. And we also had a very friendly spring weather-wise. We have gotten near perfect rainfall also and the berries are swelling nicely! We are anticipating blackberries to start about June 3 or 4 th. Blueberries will start perhaps around the 17th or 18th of June. It has been cool and there is a heavy crop and the heavier the crop the slower it is to ripen. There will be some early breba figs… no prediction yet… but the summer figs will start August 1. The seedless table grapes are looking great! And we anticipate starting them in the end of July. The muscadines are looking good too and we are forecasting about the 18th of August for muscadine harvest to start. The crimson clover in the grapes did well reseeding itself and except for where the deer grazed it to a “nub” we will get about 70 pounds of nitrogen to acre from it. Chickens are happy and we are selling the eggs at Amazing Savings in Six Mile. Ann and Lou did great with the pussy willows and other stems this winter and we are expanding our plantings and putting up a hoop greenhouse. Zoe will probably have a few vegetables for you on Monday afternoons this summer. We will let you know more when get closer. Strawberries started April 18. See our last newsletter [below] for some local growers. See you in the fields!
Blackberries June 1, Blueberries June 15
Greetings from The Happy Berry! We don’t do strawberries BUT Strawberry season is here. Local growers advise that they will start picking April 18 or within a few days of the 18 of April. Although we have not had many frosts we have had cool wet weather that is slowing ripening. A few warm sunny days and they will ripen quickly now.
Some local growers:
Hardy Berry Farm is located on 232 Strawberry Road off of Dobbins Bridge Road 4 miles west of Anderson. Kevin says he will open on April 20. They are open 8 to 8 each day. They are also into fresh flour and several other berries including blue and blackberries like us. The number is 864 224 5441. Beechwood Farm is located 204 Bates Bridge Road near Slater/Marietta SC. Their phone is 864 836 6075. They said that they would open on the 18 th of April but anticipate supply to be limited initially but there will be tons in just a few warm days. Like us at The Happy Berry they only take cash so no credit cards, thanks. Happy Cow [330 Mckelvey Road, Pelzer, SC] will have strawberries this year. They are growing organically- one of two organic harvests that we know of for strawberries. They use lots of cow manure and it is a plastic culture system. Tom points out that they are not certified because of the cost but that they have not had anything put on them, not even organic plant pharmaceuticals. If you headed south on route 25 from Ware Place go 1.9 miles to the second left. That is Mckelvey Road and they will be one mile on the right. Tom Tratham said that depending on sunshine he will open 18 to 20 th of April - call 864 243 9699. Callaham Orchards is located off highway 20 in the Cheddar community just outside of Belton SC. If you get to Winston you have gone to far. Andy said he will start on April 18 th with a limited supply but a few warm days and they will be loaded. Phone is 864 338 0810, web site www.carolinapeaches.com, email callahamorchards@charter.net Rose Hill plantation also has organic strawberries, not certified, grown in a plastic house. They have 9000 plants so some times get picked out so call first 864 306 0303. They also have a very interesting store on site and things like Happy Cow milk. They are located on Three Bridges Road Easley SC. They have been picking for quite a while since they are in a greenhouse. ABOUT US - At The Happy Berry we are forecasting blackberries to start about June 1 and blueberries to start about June 15. Our eggs are available at “Amazing Savings” Main street in Six Mile SC. We are very appreciative of all the nice rain… lets hope it keeps up. We are forecasting a great crop of blueberries this year. We got the wind machine up this winter but only had to use it on one night. We will try to get a picture up on the web site www.thehappyberry.com. On behalf of all of us local farmers…we appreciate your support! Come see us! Anytime!
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