I found some blueberry bushes on our property a few weeks ago. We only have 2 acres. But those two are filled with apple trees, blackberry bushes, a pear tree and several blueberry bushes. Most of which we didn’t know about before we bought the house.
A few weeks ago, when we found the blueberries, we had already missed out on the first round to ripen. Hundreds of blueberries littered the ground. But that didn’t matter much. Our first haul garnered six and a half pounds of some of the biggest blueberries I have ever seen.
I don’t even really like blueberries. I mean, they’re alright. But finding them, picking them and cleaning them has brought something out in me that I didn’t know was there. A foragers instinct that I’ve never explored. Every few days I’ll go and survey the land. I’ll take my colander just in case anything is ready to be picked. I’ll stop by my pear tree, check on the one pear that still hangs. At one time there were 2 pears on it, but something got one of them. After I confirm that the pear, is in fact, still in the tree, I move on to the blueberry bushes. I pick what I can. Trying to contain my excitement at the bounty so as to not pick any before they’re ready.
Next, I move on the apple trees. When we did our home inspection before we bought it last year, our inspector was pretty impressed by how old the trees appeared to be. Upon inspection of the apples, some research, and a professionals opinion we have concluded that these are Baldwin apples. One of the oldest types of apples there is. First introduced to Maine in the late 1700’s. They are great for making pies, apple sauce, and cider. A couple of friends came over for dinner the other night and they tried some of the apples. The smaller one they tried was still tart, but the bigger one was sweet. They should be great for baking.
I told my husband the other day that I wanted to be a farmer. He looked concerned. I assured him that I meant as a hobby, not a profession. We are going to work our way up to getting some chickens next spring, I think. In the meantime, I wanted to make sure I could keep something alive, other than humans and dogs. So I started a herb garden. So far so good. Much better than my succulent garden last year.
As the weather changes and fall creeps in, the thought of all the baking and cooking possibilities with these provisions gets me even more excited for fall than I usually am. I’ve already tried out a few recipes that I’m excited to share here soon. So keep your eyes peeled for:
- Blueberry Lemon Freezer Jam
- Homemade No-Churn Blueberry Ice Cream
- Tomato Basil Bisque
More will be added as soon as the apples ripen.
East Coast Approach 
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