Vegetable Growers News
March-April 2001, Vol. 8, No. 2
Charlie O'Dell, Extension Horticulturist, Virginia Tech
Are direct marketing fruit and vegetable growers keeping up with, or aware of, the health and nutrition information in the press these days about blueberries? Do growers realize that in recently reported and publicized medical research, blueberries scored highest in health-protective or phytochemicals content in a test of 60 fruits and vegetables at Tufts University? There USDA maintains a Human Nutrition Research Center investigating effects of antioxidants on human health and on aging. As reported recently in Newsweek magazine, in this research blueberries topped the list of fresh produce for total antioxidant or phytochemicals content or strength! They are THE number 1 "Antioxidant King".
It is reasonable to expect that more consumers should be eating a cup of blueberries on their cereal each morning, fresh-thawed from their freezer, microwaved. Here's how I do it: 1 cup frozen blueberries, place in microwave-safe bowl, thaw 1 minute on timed defrost, then microwave on medium power setting for 1 minute and 5 seconds. They taste just like they came off the blueberry bush! What other fruit can make this claim! Where will your customers get enough blueberries to freeze at home for increasing their daily intake of antioxidants? Think about it!
Did you know that Japan imports almost every bottle of blueberry wine commercially produced and bottled in the United States? They are aware of the antioxidants protective health benefits connection of blueberries, that these protectants may be concentrated in the juice and wine made from blueberries. You can hardly ever find a bottle of blueberry wine in the United States to try, perhaps just for medicinal purposes, while we continually read about fears of future wine grapes over-supply! Did you note the exciting health-emphasis in blueberry articles in American Fruit Grower, April, 1999 issue, page 16, and May, 2000 issue, pages 22 and 24?
Did you know that by using recommended techniques you can begin highbush blueberry harvests the second year after planting, and obtain new vegetative growth of 4 feet height a year (grower-proven in Virginia)? With today's availability of disease-free tissue cultured nursery-grown plants, drip irrigation and generous use of compost and surface mulches, growers can greatly shorten the older, break-even time on these perennial plantings that may produce fruit annually for 30, 40 or more years. Remember, blueberries have no tap root, moisture must be applied regularly, then conserved with surface mulches and organic soil amendments, to prevent plant stress, declining yields and eventual plant death. Plan carefully to do it right, or don't go there at all!
The 5ADAY health message is catching on with urban consumers, they would love to find more U-Pick farms in many areas of the country, as well as sources for purchasing locally grown fresh-picked blueberries. There are blueberry types and improved varieties for most areas of the country: rabbiteye and southern highbush types for warmer areas, northern highbush varieties for cooler/colder areas. Yet, in most areas of this region, for example, blueberries are almost unknown as a potential crop of increasing interest and consumer demand. Why not consider giving them a closer look!
Additionally, for this region there are abundant variety choices to allow a selection of harvest dates that may best fit into your on-going direct marketing farm enterprises or for fruit production for juices and wine-making. We have highbush varieties that ripen here in late June, varieties that go across July, still others that ripen across August and some that ripen into September. Strawberry growers often pick early and mid-season ripening blueberry varieties to harvest directly behind their strawberries, getting their same customers back after the strawberry season, keeping them coming back on through most of July. Specialist blueberry nurseries offer a large selection of varieties, choices of types of planting stock, plus excellent planting and care instructions.
Take the time to follow their soil preparation, planting and management instructions, they want you to succeed! We have had excellent results with dormant 2 year old plants set in either early November or early April, at least 2 varieties should be used for best pollination and fruit yields, 3 may be even more desirable. Using 3 varieties may also give you a good solid 4 weeks harvest period, so pick the time you want to be marketing blueberries, from the exellent choice of varieties for specific maturity dates.
An excellent such planning, planting and cultural practices reference for growers in this region is: Highbush Blueberry Production Guide, Pub. # NRAES-55 available from Northeast Regional Agricultural Engineering Service, a Cooperative Extension effort of several NE and mid-Atlantic research and extension workers. Hey, if 2 heads are better than 1, try over 20 blueberry specialists that contributed to this fine, 200 page publication, your ready reference for success! It is available from your state Extension Publications Center, here in Virginia from our Va. Tech Publications Distribution Center, phone 540-231-1322.
Often by late July, high temperatures reduce U-Pick fervor for going out into hot fields to gather fruit, but busy customers still want those fresh-picked blueberries. Did you know there are commercially available blueberry fruit catch frames that roll up under the blueberry bushes, limbs or stems are gently tapped with a rubber, hand-held hose to shake off the ripe fruit? Too many green fruit shaken off means you're tapping too hard! Did you know that with such a simple, hand-operated, wheeled rolling catch frame you can harvest a fruit laden large bearing plant in just moments? Then tilt the frame on its wheels back so that ripe fruit rolls to a rear flap which is opened so that the berries fall right into the container. Berries are then gently run over an inclined blower and belt to remove any trash. You CAN solve the hot weather picking blues of your U-Pick customers and still offer them fresh-picked blueberries at retail prices!
Take a look at the digital camera photo image of such a catch frame, sent to me by BEI Corporation in Michigan, they have been making and marketing blueberry harvesting, cleaning and packaging equipment for many, many years, but no one told me about this simple catch frame until this year, so don't feel badly if you didn't know of it either! For larger growers they also make simple-to-operate tractor-pulled mechanical 1-row blueberry harvesters that are used both for fresh market sales and for processing. BEI Corp., phone 616-637-8541. It's time, folks, to take another good look at blueberries!
Trade names are used in this publication for information purposes only. Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and Virginia State University do not warrant those mentioned nor do they intend or imply discrimination against those not mentioned.
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