We have heard from some of our members hoping to come out our strawberry upick over the last few weeks. If you were one of those folks, believe me we were disheartened to turn everyone away who inquired. We just didn’t have enough strawberries this season to invite folks to come pick. Hoping for better growing conditions for next year!
However, speaking of upicks, if you are ready for some exciting news from your organic growin, vinegar fermentin’, jam jammin’, apple saucin’, fruit growin and friendly farmin folks here in southwestern Michigan, continue reading!
We are excited to announce we are officially opening our blueberry upick this summer! In a mere few weeks, to be exact. The upick will be over at our new blueberry farm located at: 3835 Pier Road, Benton Harbor, Mi., 49022. We have farmed this new piece of land over in Benton Harbor 100% organic for 3 years now, and we think we really have the hang of it. The bushes are bursting with berries already, “jewels, a vision for thieves”, as poet Robert Frost would say.
This year, our upick for blueberries will feature two crowd favorite varieties:
Blue Crop (in mid July-early August) large, firm, and somewhat tart; great for freezing, baking, preserves, and eating fresh.
Jersey (late July-August) classic, sweet flavor. One of the oldest grown varieties in the country. Dark blue, medium sized. We love these for freezing, baking with low sugar, or eating fresh.
Ready to plan your visit to come pick? Upick will be open:
By appointment only: July 10-12th, July 17th-19th, 24th-26th, 31st-August 2, August 7th-9th, 14th-16th: 10-6pm.
*To schedule an appointment, head over to our calendar to select a time slot that works for you: https://calendly.com/earthfirstfarmsupick
Details! Parking is free. Bring your own container or purchase one on site to take home. Picking buckets will be provided. Priced by the pound. Bathrooms located on premises. Farm store will be open during upick with local honey, prepicked blueberries, and other items for sale.
Mask and hand hygiene will be required while in on farm in common areas. Mask up while in check out area, to and from bathroom areas, parking, and in general when within 6 ft of other folks. Please respect social distancing guidelines while out in the upick areas: 6 feet self-distancing. Let’s keep each other and our staff safe!
Tips! Please bring sunscreen/hats and water. This is only a upick; there are not any additional activities on site. However, downtown Benton Harbor is 10 minutes and farm is located very close to Lake Michigan. Many Air B&B options are in the area as well as dozens of sites on HipCamp.
As always, call ahead for up to date information and what we are picking on a given weekend at: 269-815-3370. Please also check out our upick tab on our website for additional information and tips: earthfirstfarms.com
Mark those calendars, update your camping gear, and make the travel arrangements. We hope you can come out to visit us for blueberry season this year!
Your friends,
Sydney, Tom, Gonsalo, and the EFF Crew
