Blueberries

July is blueberry season in New England. Depending on the variety, they ripen from early and mid July for some early varieties all the way to Labor Day for late varieties. We have a couple of blueberry bushes at One Love Farm. Just enough for us to enjoy a couple weeks of the sweet treats.

For us, we have never had any issues with blueberry worms. That is a good thing, too, because they are very difficult to control organically. What we do have a problem with is birds. Just before they are ready to pick, the birds pick the bushes clean of all the fruit. I have tried bird netting, but they just pick through the holes to get the berries. Recently, I tried using row covers over the bushes. Row covers, made of spun nylon, are normally used to protect veggies from cold weather in early spring and late fall. But, these also prevent birds from getting the prized fruit.

I like blueberries fresh by the handful. But my favorite way to have blueberries is topping vanilla gelato. Or, better yet, as a blueberry lavender sorbet.