Blackberries Blooming, Still Selling Apples & Pecans

   Blackberry bushes are blooming, and most years we go through a cold snap at this time, known as "blackberry winter."  This slows crop development for a few days, then growth resumes.  Blackberry fruit take about 6 weeks from full bloom until berry ripening, so our thornless blackberry harvest should start in mid-June, as it does most years.

'Natchez' thornless blackberries are the first to bloom and the first to ripen. Harvest should start in mid-June.

   Red raspberry flowers have been blooming, and young fruit developing, for over 10 days now.  Raspberry fruit take about a month from full bloom until berry ripening, so red raspberry harvest should start in about 3 weeks.  Expected ripening dates for all our berries, and availability dates for our other crops, are shown in the sidebar at left under Crop Sales Seasons.
   Our workers and I have been busy pruning our apple orchard over the last week, when it's not raining.  We hope to finish pruning the apple trees by early next week, then we'll move on to pruning the peach orchards.  After that, we'll need to thin excess young peach fruit, so the peaches remaining on the trees will grow to a salable size and develop best flavor and sweetness.

'GoldRush' apples stay crisp and juicy through 10 months of cold storage, and get sweeter as starches convert into sugars. I eat a raw 'GoldRush' apple with my lunch every day from December to June.

   We still have many harvested apples for sale, especially 'GoldRush'.  This variety has an amazing storage life in regular cold storage, so it keeps well for 10 to 11 months in our coolers or your fridge.  Small amounts of harvested #1 apples cost $1.30 per pound + tax.  You save $1.00 if you buy a 20-lb. box of apples for $25.00 + tax.
   Our harvested #2 (2nds) apples sell for just $0.93 per pound + tax, so a 20-lb. box costs $18.60 + tax, which is $7.00 less than a box of #1 apples, including tax.  If you get 40 lbs. or more of #2 apples, the price goes down to just $0.88 per pound + tax, so each 20-lb. box costs $17.59 + tax, and 40 lb. of #2 apples costs just $35.18 + tax. 
   We're also still selling cracked pecans for the next 6 weeks or so, until we sell out.  We sell mixed selections from Bill's pecan breeding program in 4-pound bags.  Each bag of cracked pecans has the equivalent of 6 pounds of in-shell pecans, and when you pick them out, you get at least 3 pounds of nutmeats.  These are all large pecans with thin shells and great taste.  Each 4-lb. bag costs $16.67 + tax.
   We also sell smaller, 1-pound bags of cracked 'Kanza' pecans.  You get at least 3/4 pound of nutmeats when you pick out these pecans.  Each 1-lb. 'Kanza' bag costs $4.63 + tax.
   Colder temperatures have slowed asparagus harvest for a few days, but I'll keep harvesting and selling asparagus until early June.  We grow 'Jersey Knight' asparagus, an all-male variety that produces high yields of thicker spears since there are no female plants that spend energy producing berries.  I snap the spears where they break easily, so almost the entire harvested spear is tender and usable.
   Asparagus is sold harvested, still for $2.78 per pound + tax, and is limited.  So you do need to phone 620-597-2450 a day or two ahead and leave a message on our answering machine to order it, saying about how many pounds you want to get, and the day and time you'll come get it.
   We're still open by appointment until May 31, so you also need to phone 620-597-2450 a day or two ahead and leave a message on our answering machine to order apples and/or pecans.  I return calls after dark to confirm your appointment.