I got invited to go pick blue berries… with the ‘cool’ kids (disguised as middle-aged moms). These gals are fun and funny. My complete instructions were to bring an ice chest for the berries and cash.
Honestly, this was not really enough information to someone born and raised in Southern California, who had never eaten a blue berry until they were an adult and certainly has never been berry picking.
How big of an ice chest?
How much cash?
What does one wear? (Do I need gloves? Long pants for the thorns? Do blue berries have thorns? Will it be hot? Will it be cold?) The gals might be ‘cool’, but they were not actually a plethora of information, but I was game and jumped into the ‘blue berry picking’ opportunity.
The berry picking farm was at the base of the mountains and the day was gorgeous.
The ‘cool kids’ were shocked that I’d never been berry picking. Trying to figure out how many blue berries this novice picker needed to pick was daunting. The ‘cool kids’ were talking about pounds and pounds, enough to last all year, how to wash them or not wash them, freeze them, how to use them, fresh, frozen, on oatmeal or for baking. Clearly, I was with some serious blue berry lovers.
Given a large blue bucket and 2 hours, I did my best to fill it. Stopping only occasionally to ‘sample’ the fruit, for informational purposes, as some of the berries were tart and some sweet and I was just trying to make sure I only picked the sweet ones, which I am pretty sure I did not.
Slowly my bucket filled and the berries stopped plinking into it and started plunking into it. It takes a LOT of blue berries to fill a the big blue bucket!
13.5 pounds of blue berries, each one picked by yours truly and as My Loving Spouse said, “What on earth are we going to do with 13 pounds of blue berries?”
“I have absolutely no idea….hopefully eat them.” I sort of got into the whole challenge of just trying to fill my bucket and the ‘cool’ kids frenzy about whether they were going to have picked enough to last all year.
I’ve washed them, froze them and shared them. I have now possibly eaten more blue berries in the last week than in the rest of my life all together…. oh, and best of all…. I had fun!
Hi!
What blueberry farm did you go to? I just moved to Ellensburg and am looking for a place to pick blueberries.
Hi Lyn,
We went to Bybee farm in North Bend. North Bend is a darling town, so it was worth the drive. Here is their information. http://bybeenimsfarms.com/index2.html
Have fun!
What a cool story, Ellen. Thanx for sharing, my friend. Blueberries are truly part of God’s gift(s) to humans.
Thank you Jack….want some beets?
What a fun day! I’ve never been berry picking either, so lived vicariously thru your expeience. I bet they are good frozen and eaten that way too…. like frozen grapes…. little tart popsicles of juice!
I could not quit laughing when I read about your blueberry experience. You seem to have fun no matter what the day brings….Love your blog. I definitely think you and your family should audition for your own “reality TV” show.
Ellen, we’ve been introduced to blueberry picking by Brian who has about 18 bushes of different strains. Those the kids don’t graze go inside so they can go inside the kids both fresh and frozen. Their garden is a constant source of food, entertainment (more for the kids) and variety. They have boysenberries, red and gold raspberries, strawberries (earlier in the season) and some pears and apples. The variety of veggies is too big for me to remember. We have joined the farmer contingent with blackberries (all that will grow in Texas heat) and a variety of veggies of our own. Fun, but soil preparation w/o mechanization is a trial for my rapidly aging back.
Pancakes. Cakes. Ice Cream. All made better with blueberries!
Oh, Ellen, I kind of envy you, how wonderful, I am waiting for the blackberries to mature, ( In the hedgerows) then I will be out there to make blackberry jelly. ( Yum!)
Our garden is ‘North facing’, so we don’t get much in the way of produce.
But Allan does his very best, and over the years hasn’t made much in the way of veg, or fruit, through no fault of his own, it isn’t the right garden to yield a crop of any sorts.?
Allan tries his best to grow Strawberries, Raspberries etc. But it is all under the trees, so not much luck. ( I have eaten 1 strawberry from his crop, and it was lovely, but have left him to enjoy the rest of his crop.)
Bill and Betty (my cousins in Canada) have had so many fruits this year they are giving them away, and this is after freezing, making jam, bottling and eating them!
Well done Betty and Bill! I wish we could do the same!
Sxx