Many Blackberries & Early Peaches Ripe

   Many thornless blackberries are ripening and ready to pick now.  Each of our 4 different varieties of thornless blackberries has ripe berries now, and they will continue to ripen over the next 5 weeks, until early Aug.  We'll have plenty of blackberries to pick from now through July 31.

'Ouachita' our second-ripening thornless blackberry variety, has many ripe berries now.  'Natchez' thornless blackberries are still ripening, and 'Apache' and 'Triple Crown' thornless blackberries have started ripening also.

   Peach harvest started a couple days ago, and we have a good amount of peaches to sell now.  We're harvesting our two earliest varieties, 'Surecrop' and 'Early Redhaven'.  I give taste samples of both.
   'Surecrop' is semi-freestone, meaning the flesh clings to the pit a bit until it is fully soft; when fully soft it comes clean from the pit.  'Surecrop' is very juicy with a great flavor, and is great for fresh eating and freezing, but not for canning or baking pies or cobblers.  'Early Redhaven' is freestone, so the flesh comes clean from the pit.  'Early Redhaven' is less juicy with a subdued flavor, and is good for fresh eating, freezing, canning and baking pies or cobblers.

We have a good amount of 'Early Redhaven' peaches to sell now, as well as 'Surecrop' peaches.

    We grow 17 different peach varieties that provide a succession of ripening over 2 1/2 months, from now until about Sept. 10.  Each variety is ripe for about 10 days to 2 weeks.  We have 6 workers now who harvest the peaches from 7 a.m. to 12 noon, Monday to Saturday.  We sell all peaches harvested; we do not allow customers to pick peaches.
   Small amounts of peaches cost $1.20 per pound + tax.  We pick directly into 20-lb. boxes, which I then weigh to 20.0 lbs., so you save $1.00 if you buy a 20-lb. box of peaches for $23.15 + tax.  We also usually have some 2nds peaches, mostly with small bird pecks, cracks or other surface damage, which sell for $0.69 per pound + tax.

   All berries are sold pick-your-own only.  Pick-your-own raspberries cost $1.86 per pint + tax.  Thornless blackberries cost $2.55 per quart + tax, pick-your-own.
   We provide containers, and just ask that you return the containers to us for reuse on your next trip to Brenda's Berries.  We also appreciate it if you can bring some cardboard flats, such as those used for 6-packs of energy drinks or beer, to place your quarts and/or pints of berries in to bring home.  Chetopa Foods saves cardboard flats for us, which we very much appreciate, but we go through thousands of boxes and are now running extremely low on the size that holds 6 quarts of blackberries.
   Come for peaches and/or berries during our open hours for summer: Mon. to Sat. 7:30 a.m. to 12 noon & 7 to 9 p.m., & Sundays 7 to 9 p.m. only.  We're closed Sunday mornings for church (as we are year-round), and from June 1 to Aug. 31 we're closed from 12 noon to 7 p.m. due to high heat.  (Please arrive at a time that allows you enough time to finish picking by our closing time.  Thanks.)  We're open as usual on July 4.
   For payment, we accept cash or checks; NO debit cards or credit cards.  Please bring your checkbook or enough cash to cover what you'll buy.