My Rhubarb grew wonderful this year. It is now about dying out. I did get some excelllent peaches already for the store. i only paid 97 cents a lbs. We don't have hardly any farmers markets around me so it's store or grow it yourself. That's why I have a garden now. And want to start canning. When I lived in connecticut there were farmers markets everywhere.

Like Farmgal says, fruit's probably a decent deal if you can get it for less than $1 a pound, but that's still pretty 'spensive if you're going to factor in your flats, your utilities and your time. It all depends. You'd want to compare what you paid for things that are already canned against your cost to can your own. Store-bought fruit should always be washed well, because you don't know where it's been. But the quality of your home-canned food is better, you know exactly what's in it. And there's something so satisfying about seeing those pantry shelves all loaded down with home-canned fruits and veggies, jams and pickles. To me, Thanksgiving always had a special significance after a full summer of canning.

We lived in northern Indiana for several years, about 30 years ago, around Hobart/Valparaiso, and they had several WONDERFUL U-pick farms. A friend and I would leave our young children with our husbands and go off on a quest. We'd bring home HUGE cabbage, gunny sacks full of corn, and all kinds of other things. Some things we had to pick ourselves and other things they'd have fresh-picked in bushel baskets, ready for us to just grab and go. Where we live now, in NE Oklahoma, there are no U-pick farms. In my back yard, I planted two peach trees, a plum tree and two apple trees. I have a grape arbor along my back fence that is a pipe frame with stock panels on the vertical sections and across the full length of the top, where I grow seedless grapes. This spring, I planted two Nanking cherry bushes. In this part of Oklahoma, our weather is strange. We get early springs and everyone runs out and plants and then a late frost and bitter cold winds comes along and zaps everything. I am lucky if I can get a fruit harvest one year in three. This year I was lucky. However, the high winds blew almost all my plums to the ground while they were still little, so I have had very few plums. The peaches are almost ready to pick now so I will be busy with them soon. My apple trees are loaded and I'm so glad because I have only one bag of apple slices left in the freezer.

My back yard is not all that big, but I make the most of it that I can. I have three raised beds where I grow my tomatoes, asparagus, lettuce, onions, beans and squash. I grow vertically anything that will climb to better utilize what space I have. There is still room for one more raised bed but after that I will have no back yard to speak of, which is OK, because we have no little children, there's a city park just outside our back gate if we have company with children, and our dog -- well, he lolls around mostly on the back porch. He finds places in nooks away from the raised beds to do his "business" and we clean up after him so as not to get any "shoe surprises".

I can't seem to grow rhubarb. We get torrential rains in the spring, and about the time everything gets used to all that water, the weather changes and everything dries up. So far all the rhubarb I have planted has rotted. I have to grow peppers in containers in semi-shade, and even then the wind beats them nearly to death in the spring.

If you have a back or front yard, you can grow fruit trees and berry bushes. They can be quite lovely when in bloom in the spring and will fit in to your landscape as well as any ornamentals. --Hope this helps. --Ilene

I buy it at farmers' markets & roadside stands in season.

It sometimes costs more than I would like, but I find the canned things I make from it --- jams & jellies, appleasuce, fruit in light syrup, etc. --- delicious, and for the flavour, the healthy ingredients, and the connection to our community, I think it's well worth the cost and the time.

To me, that is. Of course everyone has his or her own priorities, but I don't think mine are "foolish."

We don't live on a very large income, but good local food is something we're willing to spend some of it on.

Zabby

whynotmi...what is berry canes? Or what are berry canes? I've never heard of them...Then again back east we call the edge of the road and front yard a curb not a berm like here in North dakota.. and you sit of a couch or sofa not a davenport....LOL

ilene_in_neok: Yes, very helpful. Our weather here sounds similar to yours but sans high winds unless a storm is passing through. We have a little over an acre of land outside of town. The problem is at least 1/3 is useless as the limestone is just under the surface and even weeds dry up and die. Another section is rock above ground and between the rock are large trees. What I'm trying to say is between the rocks and the shade we don't have a large area for gardens. To get grid of the trees makes property here so hot that summer use is not possible. You'd have to stay indoors most of the day. :( When I out moved here 21 years ago I planted 2 each of pear trees, peaches and plums. Apples die here of cedar rust. Well fireblight gets most other fruit trees. All died except for one self-pollinating pear tree which is full of pears again. But then we have the squirrel problem. This may be the first time in all those years we actually get any pears for ourselves. :) I have walked through these woods and down by the lake looking for berries or any kind of wild fruit and never found one berry bush - nothing edible. No farmer's markets here either. The only one I know of is a farce. Shriveled cukes and squash, bananas which don't grow here, mealy peaches with no flavor. I don't know how they stay in business. In fact they may not be there anymore.

bp_farmgal: blackberries and others similar to them grow in "canes" which are also called branches in some places.

Zabby: I should be so lucky to have access to "local food." If I don't grow it myself it comes from the grocery stores. And this is still a semi-agricultural county. As the prices go up my husband and myself will no doubt grow more and more of our own food.
It's not just the high price of fruit and veggies at the store but we have no idea what's on them, what they were sprayed with. Then you have the cost of canning them. In some areas electricity is out of sight and going up all the time. We've taken these things into consideration as well. Electricity here isn't that bad so canning is still worth it to can your own home-grown or free-found food.

Oh, um, canes are what my family call the plants that raspberries and blackberries grow on. I'm not sure why but my family seems to have different names for different sources of berries: strawberry patch, blueberry bush, raspberry cane or bramble (a tangled mess of canes). Maybe it's regional to the northeast? I'll have to ask my parents next time we talk.

We call 'em canes in Oklahoma too. Sometimes "brambles" if the canes are tangled. We're considered "southern" so maybe we had "northern" influence. To-may-to, To-mah-to. LOL

Greenhouser, we do share many similarities in our regions. I'm on the border of 6a/6b, near the Kansas line. I think Tennessee is in the same zone, am I right? We have some areas where there's sandy soil on top of limestone just as you mentioned. Fortunately, I have "black gumbo" soil, which is a pain, but at least it can be amended with compost, manure, lots of leaves and grass clippings and eventually have some decent soil. My friends in southern Oklahoma had red clay soil.

If you can't grow trees, how about berries?? I'm sending you a link where you can get a few unusual things this year. Some of them are edible, some make berries just for birds. This place is a workshop for the mentally retarded. They just charge you $7.95 for shipping and handling of usually two plants but the plants themselves are donated to them so they are free. In ordering from them, you are providing meaningful work for people for whom it is nearly impossible to get a job anywhere else. I got my nanking cherry bushes there last year. I ordered them too late to get fall delivery but I got them this spring and they arrived bare root. I used Jerry Baker's grandmother's "bare root tonic" to soak them in and then planted them. They are thriving. I usually go to Dave's Garden Plant Files if I want to find out more about a particular plant that I'm thinking about buying.

I bet you could grow raspberries and blackberries, maybe Rabbit Eye blueberries, how about currants and gooseberries? Everybody says you can't grow raspberries in Oklahoma, but I grew them at the east foundation of the house I had before (also in Oklahoma) and they did really well. With my Squeezo I made some really *kickin'* seedless raspberry jam. Stir a spoonful into your hot cocoa in the winter and prepare to go to heaven.

I have thought of buying a little plot somewhere to use as a garden. But I have a friend that had her garden stripped in the night -- they even took the baby green beans, green peppers and green tomatoes! My friend and her husband were sleeping in the house not far away from the garden. The robbers were so quiet the dog didn't even wake up. Her neighbors had seen a white Suburban with several people in it on the road about the time she thinks they hit. So I would suspect my little plot, with no one anywhere near it, would be susceptable to marauders. We get enough discouraging things happening to our growing things here without that!

Yes, we have squirrels here too. Lots of my neighbors have pecan trees in their yards, there's a black walnut tree in the park only about 100 feet from my back gate. So they are well fed. One year I had a fall-ripening peach that had peaches on it for the first time and the squirrels absolutely stripped it before anything even got ripe. I have my peach trees pretty close to my back porch now, and the dog will notice a squirrel up that close to the house. We have a lot of mockingbirds that are the worst about pecking a big ol' hole in something that's JUST about ripe. I have to net my tomato plants to keep them out. It's always something -- this battle between gardener and everything else.

Here is a link that might be useful: Free Trees and Plants in Nebraska

I only buy when the fruits are on sale and look good enough to can. I have a few apricots on a small tree every year and used these along with a box of 6 HUGE ones I got at BJ's. The spread was excellent and with plenty of ascorbic acid added so it retained that nice apricot color. Next will be red reaspberries in my garden, and these get mixed with last years crop I froze. The result will be a lot of nice tasting red raspberry seedless jam. I also plan to mix in a few red Goji berries in some, as well as a mixture of a few blueberries, black raspberries, and maybe even a few dried cranberries, as a mixed berry spread. All of these will be made with Splenda and failure proof Pomona pectin. Last year, my small apple crop yielded 12 quarts of apple pie filling too. Obviously if you have the space outside to grow stuff, you can easily plant many trees and berry bushes and harvest during the ripening stages. In a few years (if I am stlll around) I hope to have quince, and Asian pears, as well as a cherry tree that will continue to produce. For now, its just vegetables like lettuce, and soon cukes and waxed beans, as well as broccoli which is getting quite big now, but still no flower heads yet.

To: ilene_in_neok

The only thing that will live and thrive here of the things you mention are wild blackberries. The soil is a poor reddish clay with pockets of black humus where leaves accumulated over time. It's called "gladeville soil" which is a droughty heavy clay. It's also alkaline so Iron must be added. Our summers are ungodly hot and humid with little rain. So plants must not only tolerate high temps and humidity, but summer drought also. Our winters can have cold snaps when it's below zero. Few plants can tolerate such conditions. They contributed the death and disease of our fruit trees I was told. The blackberries I had in the past were all lost to deer and birds. The whole area became such an eyesore, with tall weeds and trees that couldn't be weeded out that we tilled it all under several years ago.

I had a great sunny patch (in a raised bed of rich topsoil) for toms and peppers out by the road but the plants were picked clean. As you said above, the thieves even took the green toms and half developed peppers. The dogs never heard them. I tried growing Chard there and the deer took care of them... nothing but stubs out there now. Next year I'll try flowers. If they go too, then I'll abandon the raised bed to the wild prairie primrose that can live anywhere with no care. No one wants it and nothing eats it.

Greenhouser, have you tried pickyourown.org for PYO farms? They don't often advertise too much, so there could be one hiding near you. These are where I get most of the fruit I can. I get the vegetables from a nearby produce stand that buys from local farmers, filling in what's not available locally with produce from other states.

When I moved from Charlottesville VA to Richmond, I was so sad to leave our city farmers' market, which had the most beautiful local produce, cheese, and food items. In Richmond there was only a very sad market in our not-very-residential downtown; most of the nearby growers went to the markets in other cities. Now, 4 years later, the popularity of farmers' markets is exploding and there are 3 in Richmond on different days, plus a few in the nearby counties. So maybe soon there will be the same near you. Other than tomatoes, produce is not a big commercial thing around here, these are just small farmers selling small amounts.

Hang in there and keep looking!

Melissa

Here is a link that might be useful: Pick your own farm search

Melissa, I posted that link on another thread. I love it! I've found some great sources in my area, and a few that are a bit out of the way but worth the trip.

Some U-Pick tips I've "picked up" over time:

Call first! Nature has its own schedule so always call to make sure you know what's ripe for picking. Find out what, if any, containers are available for carrying the harvest home with you. Depending upon the answer I sometimes load empty boxes in my car to make transporting things easier. Bags of apples, peaches, etc. can spill over while driving. It doesn't hurt to ask about the availability of restrooms.

The basics of light comfortable clothing, sunscreen and good shoes are essential.

Avoid going very early in the week if possible. Very often they are picked clean after a busy weekend (when most people have time to go). I find Weds/Thurs to be ideal.

Bring a good hat: wide brimmed for fields narrow brimmed or baseball style for orchards.

Bring a loose, light long-sleeved shirt. There are times when you'll appreciate having your arms covered.

Bring a friend. Makes the time go faster.

Bring gloves.

Pack a lunch and make sure to include plenty of water. (See bathroom note above.)

I find singing as I pick to be a wonderful thing. If nothing else, people think you're a bit crazy and avoid you. Cuts down on the competition for picking dontcha know. hehe

Personally, I avoid the "circus" farms. You know, the ones with petting zoos, hay rides, corn mazes, etc. Around here they all seem to have higher prices.

Almost forgot, have a picking target. Basically, know how much you want/can use before you start. It's easy to get into a zen like groove and end up picking more than you planned on.

Anyone else have U-pick tips to share?

I have a single black berry plant here thats right next to my compost heap. It resides next to my red raspberries and has remained confined there for 2 years now. It unsual growth habit has allowed it to stay in the one place without choking out or killing off the nearby red raspberries. It blossoms much later and the berries are quite big. By that time, birds don't seem to bother with them or the nearby raspberries or even a few nearby blueberry bushes that also produce later. For raspberries and the black berries, I prefer growing thornless types, as they are much more 'picking friendly'.

> Zabby: I should be so lucky to have access to "local food." If I don't grow it myself it comes from the grocery stores. And this is still a semi-agricultural county.

greenhouser,

You are right that we are lucky in good access to locally grown stuff. I've noticed, too, often how agricultural areas are often the least easy to find local food in; most farms are geared toward packaging on a large commercial scale.

But don't despair---farmers' markets are popping up in more and more places. Even the suburban Florida strip mall/subdivision wasteland where we visited my sister-in-law recently has one, she said (though it kept slipping her mind to visit it between strip mall trips, sigh). But often they start out small and prove so popular that they expand. (Heck, keep increasing your gardening the way you are and maybe you'll be selling at one soon yourself!)

Even in our own area, which has long had more small farms than most, the availability of, and general appreciation for, local food has really swelled in the past few years since we moved here. The local government launched a project to promote the concept, and not just farmers but one of the big grocery stores got on board, so even at the large chain grocery we see signs pointing out things from the area---not very many compared to how many products are in the store, but a few more each year, and they're given special promotion treatment.

Almost everything I can starts with peak-season, just-picked (or frozen at peak), local produce; otherwise it mostly isn't worth it to me to bother. Produce is cheaper in season, of course, but it's not a question of cost, but of quality; I've learned from experience that if I don't start with great fruit or veggies, I get a mediocre canned product, at which point it isn't worth the trouble and I might as well buy "fresh" imported fruit & veg instead, for my own tastes. I would rather splurge on small-batch quality canned goods made where the produce IS fresh....

Zabby

The nearest Farmer's Market is at least a 35 mi round trip. I've been there several times and was very dissapointed in the quality of the fruit and veggies. It's in the 90s here all summer which doesn't help and these places aren't air conditioned. At least this one wasn't. When I see tropical fruit being pushed at a FM I know the food isn't local. These people pick it up wholesale in the city and bring it out here and push it as local grown. The worst rip off was a small bushel of beautiful peaches. They ended up so mealy and tasteless I tossed them all on the compost pile.

To: Melva

Apparently that site is for advertising. Once I clicked on GO for my state, then chose blackberries, all I got was ads and information on the fruit I chose. Nothing about Pick-Your-Own places in TN.

I've attached a link to the mid-Tenn page of the site. The top of the page has ads but if you scroll down you'll see the listings with addresses, phone numbers and produce they offer. Hope it works out for you. =)

Here is a link that might be useful: middle tennessee upick list

Thanks. I got them this time. :) Now I have to ask my husband if he knows anything about picking tree fruit. I can't tell when they're ripe - unless they're pears.

Greenhouser, peaches get mealy if they've been held below 40F. I bought a peck of peaches from an orchard one time and then noticed they had just come out of the refrigerator, but I had driven a ways out to get them so I settled. They were very mealy. Guess I'll pick my own at that orchard next year.

Hope you can find something local to can! Or as Zabby said, hang in there a few more years, local food is becoming more popular.

Melissa

Here's a link to a page that talks a bit about how to tell if some fruits are ready to pick. I generally go by taste, smell and touch.

One of my apple trees is ready when I am celebrating my birthday. Also a blueberry bush or two are usually also loaded and no birds attack by then.