Re: This is what July brings from our orchard

Mominohio · ‎08-08-2010

@mousiegirl wrote:
@Mominohio wrote:
@CaliKat wrote:

@Mominohio

Congratulations on your first blueberry harvest of the summer. They're beautiful! I'm happy for you, but I'm so envious. I've never tasted a fresh blueberry that wasn't either bland, or a little tart. I would love to pop a few of those sweet beauties in my mouth, just to experience what a blueberry is supposed to taste like. Enjoy!

@

We are lucky to live just a few miles from one of the best blueberry farms I've ever seen. They grow berries that shame mine. They are so big, so sweet, absolutely a dream!

But boy are they expensive. That was the motivator for us to plant some of our own. We had always heard they are 'fussy' to grow, but we seem to be doing ok, and we invest really very little time and effort into them.

I think they have so many varieties of fruit trees and plants now that are much easier and more productive than those of years gone by. The biggest challenge we have is keeping the deer out of them, we have to fence them in! (oh that is fence in the blueberry bushes, not the deer!!!LOL)
@Mominohio Are your blueberry bu---s large? How many do you have? Are they self pollinating? I planted seven last year, and am getting some berries on each plant, but it will be years, I imagine, before I have a great crop. I eat blueberries almost daily, frozen organic from Costco when fresh aren't available. They are so healthy.

I have been eating blackberries and raspberries from my garden, and am expecting another crop of blackberries in a few months.

I bought two boysenberry plants this year, my absolute favorite berry and almost impossible to find, though my produce market carries them for a short time every summer, so I buy a load and stuff my face for days, lol.

I am also growing strawberries this year, used to grow them, so thought I would try again.

@mousiegirl

We've had our blueberries in for maybe 5 years, and while the bushes are not as big as I'd expect them to be by now, they do, with the right weather produce pretty heavily for their size. That bowl in the picture is about a one quart size, and I expect to fill it at least five more times as the various varieties ripen over the next month.

We bought a grouping of plants that cross pollinate, but I don't believe that each individual one self pollinates. When blueberries are truly good (and much of the year, what we get in the stores is not!) I can eat them till I'm sick. Simply love them!

My husband makes me so mad, he won't keep the strawberry patch weeded, and won't mow it over either, so we don't get too many strawberries anymore, but thank heavens for my Amish neighbor across the road. She keeps me supplied enough to make strawberry jam each June!

Katcat1 · ‎07-21-2011

Yum. I just froze some blueberries and want to eat them frozen if I can. Someone was telling me how good they are eating them that way.

kindness is strength

Grade1Teach · ‎03-09-2010

Very nice!!

There's nothing better than home-grown blueberries!

ZoetheCat · ‎11-30-2014

This brings back memories for me. My parents gave my husband and I the land that we built our house on. It is about 300 yards in back of their home - the home where I grew up. The property where our house sits was covered with blueberry bushes and, as a child, I picked blueberries to my heart's content. It wasn't even my parents' property at the time but the neighbor was happy to let us take all we wanted. Those blueberries were so sweet.

We now have our own garden where those blueberries once thrived. The garden is huge. It's kind of ridiculous as there are only two of us. We have tomatoes, brocolli, peppers, eggplant, zucchini, cabbage, cukes, potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, beets, Green beans, corn, pumpkins and gourds. Did I mention that the garden is huge? We do share our bounty of course. My dad has passed, but mom still lives in my childhood home, and my sister and her family live right across from me. We all love the fresh produce. It's a lot of work but there is nothing like making a great meal with just-picked veggies.

Mominohio · ‎08-08-2010

@ZoetheCat wrote:
This brings back memories for me. My parents gave my husband and I the land that we built our house on. It is about 300 yards in back of their home - the home where I grew up. The property where our house sits was covered with blueberry bushes and, as a child, I picked blueberries to my heart's content. It wasn't even my parents' property at the time but the neighbor was happy to let us take all we wanted. Those blueberries were so sweet.

We now have our own garden where those blueberries once thrived. The garden is huge. It's kind of ridiculous as there are only two of us. We have tomatoes, brocolli, peppers, eggplant, zucchini, cabbage, cukes, potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, beets, Green beans, corn, pumpkins and gourds. Did I mention that the garden is huge? We do share our bounty of course. My dad has passed, but mom still lives in my childhood home, and my sister and her family live right across from me. We all love the fresh produce. It's a lot of work but there is nothing like making a great meal with just-picked veggies.

@ZoetheCat

You sound like me! LOL

We have a huge garden and a 'too big for our needs' fruit orchard. I tell my husband every year to cut the garden back, but alas, he must be deaf!

It certainly is satisfying to go out and gather your dinner from your own land. Sometimes we sit down to a meal that every item was fresh picked from our own yard!

We have a storm coming tomorrow afternoon, and hubby was gone all weekend, so early tomorrow morning, we will be back in the garden weeding and getting things picked before the rain AGAIN!

I love your blueberry story, and too bad there aren't at least a couple of those bushes left, if for nothing else, the sake of nostalgia!