Blueberry Picking

I can’t honestly remember the first time I went blueberry picking. Taking fruits and vegetables from a garden was something I knew all about from a very young age. I never took to it like some of my siblings, but growing things, and weeding, and seasons were never foreign. Not like some people (like my husband) who have grown up in a city (like Pittsburgh).

Not that Ed doesn’t know about growing things, and gardens, and seasons. He does. He just doesn’t have first hand experience. So, I started him small. We went strawberry picking in June. It was the end of the season and we had to hunt hard for the little berries, but he enjoyed it. So, I decided he could graduate up to blueberries.

Actually, I think blueberries are easier to pick than strawberries. No bending over and crawling. And this season has been amazing. We first went the start of July. We ended up with several pints after an hour or so of picking. Trained by my mother, I do like to freeze fruit and have it all year round. So, we met back up at the farm when he got off from work today to try again. I called ahead because it is nearly August and the season should be coming to an end. But, nobody told that to the blueberries. The bushes were covered with berries and not half of them were quite blue enough to pick yet. I don’t know if the season started late because of the cold winter or the cool, wet summer we’ve had is keeping the season going longer; but we picked several more pints today and it didn’t take half as long.

Next month, we’ll graduate to something we can do for months: apple picking. (I may need to purchase a small freezer…)

Ed picking blueberries.