We recently made a couple of trips to Central and Coastal California. I had wanted to take the kids down to see Grandpa Cliff's workplace - Munger Farms - east of Delano, CA. Their primary crops are blueberries and pistachios. They just happened to be in the middle of blueberry harvest, but we started the day out by picking blackberries. Years ago they planted blackberry bushes as hedges to keep people out and, more importantly, to gain a competitive edge on their new cash crop - blueberries.
It was an ideal Saturday with highs in the mid 80s. We picked blackberries for nearly an hour. The kids really got into picking berries that were as long as their thumb and twice as thick. Rachel ended up adopting a 2:1 policy - two blackberries for her bucket and one for her mouth. The kid's faces were all smiles - with spots of purple/dark red.
The kids were interested in picking blueberries. Grandpa Cliff was kind enough to take a break, take us over to some of the blueberry rows and teach the kids about the different varieties (star, emerald, jewel, santa fe, etc.) and the finer techniques of picking the ripe blueberries.
All three of the kids liked picking blueberries more than the blackberries, as explained in this video:
We had a great time - we ended up with five full one-gallon bags of blackberries and almost two bags of blueberries. We've been eating and enjoying the berries fresh, frozen, in homemade blueberry ice cream or blueberry dessert bars, etc. Come for a visit and we'll be happy to share.
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