We had a great blueberry season, but they are almost all picked. U-Pick is now closed for the season, although we may be bringing a few to market the next few times. Thank you to all our loyal customers. We expect to be open for red raspberry u-pick in about 2 weeks.

It is now clear that last winter’s minus 24 degrees hurt the blackberries. A majority of the floricanes, the ones that should have given us berries, died. We still have a number of blooming canes, but we expect a greatly reduced blackberry harvest this year.

It won’t be a fantastic blackberry year, but they are fairly plentiful now, and they are big and delicious. We plan to be open for picking Wednesday and Saturday. You may pick the declining blueberries on the same trip.

Today in Princeton and LaSalle markets we will bring our first few blackberries of the season. We will also have a fair number of raspberries and lots of blueberries. We will have new potatoes, peas, green beans, garlic, onions, herbs and a variety of other fresh garden veggies. Also plenty of Plow Creek Bakery goodies.

This being the 3rd Tuesday, there are special events at the Princeton market — a cooking demonstration, hot food, and more.

I found my first couple ripe blackberries today. Lots of red ones that will ripen soon. I expect that we can bring our first blackberries to market in about a week and be open for picking shortly later. But if you come to pick blueberries, we can let you look for a few blackberries; just don’t expect much yet.

A Tuesday morning field survey indicated that the blackberries are entering peak harvest. Experienced pickers should be able to take 8 or more pints per hour, with a total of 40-50 pints available for each U-Pick session.

Blackberry U-Pick will be open Wednesday 4PM-8PM and Thursday 7AM-5PM. The U-Pick price is $2.50/pint or $2.00/pint for 10 or more.

Due to the likelihood of heavy rain tonight and already muddy driving conditions up the hill, Blueberry and Blackberry U-Pick will be closed Thursday.

Instead, Blueberry and Blackberry U-Pick will be open Saturday from 7AM to Noon. We expect slow picking for both berries; consider staying home unless a pleasant experience and a few pounds of berries per customer will make the trip worthwhile.

It’s beginning to look a lot like summer here at Plow Creek Farm. Stop by Valley Flowers in Spring Valley Thursday 8:30AM - 1PM to select your favorite colors and flavors: Blueberries, Red Raspberries, Blackberries, Sweet Corn, Cherry Tomatoes, Cantaloupe, Green Beans, Peas, Cucumbers, Zucchini, Lettuce, Potatoes, Garlic, Herbs and lots of other veggies. Plus, Bread and Cookies from Plow Creek Bakery.

We picked some sweet corn for Monday lunch. Delicious! I will be bringing a small load of sweet corn to Princeton Farmer’s Market Tuesday. Market opens at 8:30. I will also have blueberries, blackberries, red raspberries, cherry tomatoes, muskmelon, fresh garlic, green beans and other vegetables, and Plow Creek Bakery goodies.

The blackberries are just beginning to bloom. We expect them to be ripe in early to mid-July, so one could pick blueberries and blackberries on the same visit.

We will have lots of watermelon and tomatoes at Princeton Farmers’ Market (8:30 - 2:00) and Peoria Riverfront (8:00 - noon) market. We also have sweet corn, Plow Creek Bakery goods, blackberries, red raspberries, muskmelon, red and green peppers, red and green cabbage, carrots, red and sweet onions, green onions, new potatoes, basil, beets, kale, leeks, cucumbers, eggplant, and swiss chard.