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Ripe for the Picking

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Photo courtesy of ASAP

Sun-kissed berries are a hallmark of summer, and nothing tastes quite like a berry straight from the field. 

Wandering through rows of blueberry, blackberry, or raspberry bushes is not only a delightful experience, it also creates direct connections between farmers and families.

Farmers work year-round to plant, prune, and protect their berry bushes so the public can enjoy them during the fleeting u-pick season, which typically runs mid-June through August. 

Berry farming is full of challenges like unpredictable weather and insects, says Ethan Gouge, who grows black, red, and purple raspberries with his wife Katie at Roan Highlands Farm in Roan Mountain, Tennessee. 

He notes that farm-fresh berries are highly perishable and labor intensive, but he’s not discouraged. 

“The challenges of growing berries are also what makes them a great fit for u-pick,” he says. 

Unlike some farm products, most berries must be picked by hand because they are too delicate to be mechanically harvested. 

Roan Highlands Farm uses this to its advantage by inviting the public to pick their own. 

Farmer Richard Slakman of Deer Haven Blueberry Patch in Hiwassee, Virginia encourages children to taste a few blueberries while they pick, and has them take a “blueberry litmus test” to see how blue their tongues are at the end. 

He says that “the thing I enjoy most is the friendships we have made over the past several seasons with our loyal pickers who return each season.”

At the same time, “mother nature can be harsh,” he says, pointing to the unpredictable spring weather patterns in Southern Appalachians. 

Warm spring weather tricks berry bushes into thinking it’s time to bud and bloom, and a hard freeze can significantly damage the bud and ultimately destroy the fruit. 

“For a small producer like us, it can devastating,” he says.

Debbie Perry from Perry’s Berries in Morganton, North Carolina agrees that an April frost can wreak havoc on berry bushes, but her farm successfully survived last year’s frost. 

She reports that their family-run farm had 1,500 u-pick visitors last year.

Communicating with customers while keeping up with farm responsibilities is a challenge that many u-pick farmers face, says Pam Zimmerman of Zimmerman’s Berry Farm in Marshall, North Carolina. 

She aims to help the public understand that unlike buying produce from a big box store, selections at u-pick farms can vary from day-to-day. 

Most farms request that the public call in advance for current hours and updates on which berries will be ripe when they visit. 

This helps farmers balance interactions with the public with their many farm duties.

All of that hard work has paid off for farmer Johnnie James of Bethel Valley Farms. 

His u-pick and wholesale berry operation sits on old farmland in Vilas, North Carolina, which was abandoned for 10 years before he rescued it by clearing the overgrowth and planting approximately 6,000 raspberry plants and 2,500 blackberry plants. 

Now visitors flock to his farm to pick raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries each summer. 

“We especially appreciate it when people tell us how much sweeter our berries are that the store-bought berries and how much they enjoy being here,” he says.  

Grab a basket and pick to your heart’s content, then reward yourself with a fresh pie or batch of jam—if you can resist eating all of your bounty on the car ride home.

The Berry Best

The Southern Appalachians are ripe with berry picking opportunities in June and July. Whether you take a drive into the mountains or stay close to home, these u-pick berry farms highlight the sweetness of the season.

East Tennessee

Western North Carolina

North Georgia

Southwest Virginia

U-Pick Tips

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