Beech Hill Organic Blueberries

Thanks for your interest in our Beech Hill organic blueberries!

HOW DO I GET BEECH HILL BLUEBERRIES?

Ten-pound Box Pre-Order Program

As of April 1, our blueberry pre-orders are filled for 2013. Please visit our farm stand this summer to purchase fresh berries by the quart!

Since 2008, we have offered ten-pound boxes of fresh, clean, organic blueberries for purchase through our pre-order program. This option is available only to current Land Trust members. Not a member? You can submit a membership donation with your order in order to take advantage of this great member benefit.

Orders are normally available for pick up from mid-July through mid-August, depending on the vagaries of nature. .

By the Quart

Fresh quarts of Beech Hill blueberries are available for sale daily (weather permitting) at our on-site farmstand during the harvest season (mid-July through mid-August) at the Beech Hill Road parking lot. No pre-order necessary! For availability during the season, please check in with us at the blueberry barn farmstand at (207) 975-6981. Our 2012 harvest ended on August 10.

All funds raised from these sales support our efforts to maintain Beech Hill Preserve for grassland birds, scenic views, its unique historic landscape, and more blueberries!

Picking Your Own

Enjoy picking your own berries? Since 2003 we have opened designated fields to the public for a free blueberry pick day. The 2013 pick will take place on Sunday, August 4, with a Members Only pick on Saturday, August 3. Bring your own buckets and take home as many berries as you can pick! No raking is allowed during the free pick, and for health and safety reasons, please leave dogs at home. Thank you for your understanding and support!

Except for free pick days, the blueberry fields are not open to the public for picking or other activities! Because the fields are primarily managed by the Land Trust as a commercial farm to sustain the Preserve, we ask that visitors please respect our farm and stay off the fields at all times of year (and remember that your dog must be on leash for the duration of any visit to the preserve, for the health of preserve wildlife, berry plants, and berry consumers!).

Our Farm at Beech Hill

Coastal Mountains Land Trust has been managing Beech Hill Preserve's blueberry fields since 2003. Currently, there are 20 acres of MOFGA-certified organic blueberries in production on Beech Hill.

For more information about Beech Hill Preserve.

Beech Hill Blueberries - Frequently Asked Questions

• Who does all the raking, winnowing, and packing of the berries you sell? Our Stewardship Project Manager Joe Zipparo, assisted by a paid summer intern, oversees a team of seasonal workers who help him hand rake, winnow, sort, and pack thousands of pounds of blueberries from mid-July through August. Hours are irregular and dependent on weather and berries, but it's a beautiful place to work and offers a true hands-on experience with sustainable agriculture. If you're interested in joining Joe's team this summer, please e-mail him at joez@coastalmountains.org or call him at (207) 236-7091.

• How do I become a Land Trust member so I can pre-order berries? Click on the "Support Conservation" button above. Being a member provides you with several blueberry-related benefits: only members may pre-order ten-pound boxes of blueberries. They will also be able to attend a special Members Only Free Blueberry Pick the day before the annual Public Free Pick. Please note that we are no longer taking pre-orders for the current year (2013)!

• How many quarts of blueberries are in 10 pounds? Each quart is roughly 1.5 pounds. So, there are around 6.5 quarts in 10 pounds of blueberries.

• What kind of facility do you have? A renovated sugarhouse was moved to the Preserve in 2009 and has been outfitted with a new Fresh-pack winnower.

• Are the blueberries clean? Yes! Our winnower has a four-stage cleaning process, leaving ripe blueberries with a very low rate of twigs and leaves. Also, our berries are MOFGA-certified organic berries, meaning no pesticides or herbicides were used on or near our fields. You can eat them right out of the box!

• Where do the proceeds from berry sales go? The proceeds from the Land Trust's sales of all Beech Hill blueberries go directly back into managing Beech Hill Preserve.