Along the southeast coast of Lake Michigan, the bloom is on. The bees have finished their job, the weather is cooperating and summer help is gearing up. It is a good season for blueberries this year in Michigan. And when it`s good for Michigan, it`s good for the world.
Michigan–home of Lee Iacocca, Corn Flakes and vacation homes–is the world`s largest producer of blueberries.
When junior pours a cup of fresh blueberries onto his breakfast cereal in California, South Dakota or Illinois, the odds are those berries came from Michigan. Ditto for blueberries found in the latest frozen yogurt desserts or cranberry-blueberry juice.
New Jersey comes in a significant second, producing about 30 million pounds of blueberries a year. But Michigan churns out twice that amount, about 60 million pounds annually.
Michigan blueberries are grown on 700 farms, such as the one Darice Schmidt operates in Bridgman, about an hour`s drive from Gary, deep into the green foliage of southwestern Michigan. The Schmidt farm is small and, for city folk, a little tricky to find: turn right at the only stoplight in town, then left at an unmarked street, just past Harding`s Friendly Market.
A quick ride in a pickup truck takes Schmidt from the tidy farmhouse to the center of the 20-acre farm: straight, 750-foot rows of eye-high bushes, heavy with delicate, white petals, encircled by bees and the sweet smell of fruit blossoms.
”Now this is absolutely gorgeous,” Schmidt says. ”When blueberries are in full bloom, you think you are in heaven.”
For small berry farmers like Schmidt, the joy of smelling the blossoms and eating the fresh berries right off the bushes is a good part of the reward. Her husband, Bill, works full-time as a toolmaker, but handles much of the heavy work such as spraying and maintaining the farming equipment.
”Because of the variance of the crop, it`s very hard to count on a living from a blueberry farm. You need to get up to about 50 acres to make it really worthwhile,” Darice says.
Indeed, many of the farmers who contribute to Michigan`s reputation are part-time hobbiests. Some farm full time, but others work as salesmen, factory workers and one or two even are bankers.
Darice`s grandfather had a fruit farm in Berrien County, Mich., and when it came time to raise their two sons, Darice and Bill decided to raise them on a farm. In 1971, they moved about four miles down the road from the town of Baroda onto the 20-acre farm which was filled with grapevines and blueberry bushes that had been planted in the 1930s.
”The grapes were sent to grape heaven,” Schmidt explains with just the slightest of smile and a look to the skies. ”They froze out three of the first five years we had the farm, and we decided that the Lord wanted them more than us.”
Not everyone has such trouble with grapes. In fact, the same conditions that make Michigan good for grapes–acid soil, temperate winters, warm summer days, cool summer nights, and plenty of rainfall–also are good for peaches, apples, cherries–and blueberries.
But good doesn`t mean perfect. Michigan gets a good crop like the one this year only about every three or four years, Schmidt says. Farmers can help by thinning the wood from old bushes in winter and planting some new blueberry varieties come spring. But nature controls much of the success of the blueberry crop, she says.
An excessively cold winter without good snow cover can hurt the wood on the bush. Blossoms may freeze in a sudden spring cold snap. Lack of water in summer produces smaller berries, and if high heat and drought continue too long, the bushes themselves may suffer the next season. Blueberry bushes are susceptible to a number of viruses. And then there are the birds and the bees. Bees ally with the farmer. In their quest for nectar to make honey from blueberry blossoms, bees help pollinate the blossoms.
”Most people rent the bees,” Schmidt says as she wraps a light, protective scarf around her hair and hands a spare to the visitor. ”You want about two hives per acre. There are 50 to 60 seeds in each berry; the more pollination, the larger the berry.”
”If the weather is too hot, the bees won`t fly,” Schmidt says. But the bees are thick in the air this year, a stroke of luck for the farmers.
The plight with the birds is yet to come.
A flock of birds can clean up a row of blueberry bushes within an hour, eating tons of just ripe berries. Farmers allow for some loss to the birds, but don`t give up without a fight.
”We put up plastic owls to scare away the small birds and that helps a little,” Schmidt says.
”We tried gas guns that ignite and make noise every 5 to 10 minutes,”
she says, but the neighbors hated the noise. ”One night, a neighbor apparently snuck over and cut the line from the gas cannister to the gun.”
The best defense is to get the berries first. And for this, farmers hire summer help, local students or migrant families. The pay is typically 25 cents a pound. Experienced hands can earn about $5 an hour.
Although the weather and soil in southwestern Michigan are ideal for blueberries, it took a human catalyst to create the Michigan blueberry industry. That person was Stanley Jonston, a professor of horticulture at Michigan State University.
Decades ago, there were wild blueberries but they grew on low lying scrub brush. A person could crawl around all day picking them and come up with little more than a small basketful and purple hands. It was Johnston who made them practical for cultivation.
In 1923, Professor Jonston developed a new high bush and planted them in about 20 acres in the Grand Junction area. Grand Junction now is the center of Michigan`s blueberry region, a 150 mile strip along Lake Michigan from Michigan City, Ind. to Ludington, Mich. His theory was that blueberries would be a viable crop for Michigan farmers during The Depression.
”Blueberries were an exotic crop at that time,” says Bruce VanDer Kolk, promotion director for Michigan Blueberry Growers, a sales and advertising cooperative.
”And in the South, they still are perceived as exotic,” VanDer Kolk says. ”We are blind in this northern area. Go to Atlanta or Tampa, and people don`t consume as many blueberries there.”
The supremacy of the North is changing somewhat, however. New varieties of blueberries that grow well in the South are being developed in laboratories such as the one run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Fruit Lab in Beltsville, Md.
”There is a surge of interest in blueberries in the South,” says Arlen D. Draper, geneticist at the government Fruit Lab. ”There is a very young industry in Texas, Louisiana, Florida and Georgia along the Gulf of Mexico coast.”
To help promote blueberries and share markets, southern farmers have joined the Michigan Blueberry Growers cooperative. ”This extends the season for both of us,” VanDer Kolk says. Southern grown blueberries ripen earlier in the year, and provide markets with fresh berries May through the end of June.
Northern blueberries start to ripen in early July and, because of fairly new, late-blooming varieties, extend through Sept. 15. The northern crop is sold under the label Great Lakes Blueberries; the southern, Great Sunbelt Blueberries.
This year a larger percentage of Michigan`s bumper crop of blueberries will be sold fresh for grocery produce sections.
In 1968-69, about 80 percent of the Michigan crop was sold fresh, and 20 percent were processed, that is, canned or used in dried or packaged goods. The percentage flipped in the 1970s when new harvesting equipment made it more profitable to sell the blueberries for processing: 80 percent of the blueberries were processed, and 20 percent were sold fresh.
”In the last five years there has been a tremendous increase in fresh fruits and vegetables in the produce section, and we now sell about 25 percent fresh (with 75 percent being processed),” VanDer Kolk says. And that amount could yet increase.
”Produce buyers are looking for items to feature. After several weeks of say, peaches,” VanDer Kolk says, ”blueberries look mighty good.”
Even after years of growing blueberries, the little purple fruit still is a treat for Schmidt. ”I could eat my weight twice in blueberries,” she says. And she also has a trick to avoid the stain of blueberry blues:
”Chew them on your back molars,” she advises. ”That keeps your front teeth clean.”
When blueberries are featured in your grocery, try your hand at one of the following blueberry recipes:
This recipe for sugar-crusted blueberry muffins comes from the Great Lakes Blueberries commission.
SUGAR-CRUSTED BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
12 muffins
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 25 minutes
1 3/4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, well-beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup salad oil
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, mixed
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 12 muffin cups. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Make a well in the center. Mix egg, milk and oil together in another bowl. Add all at once to dry
ingredients, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Gently fold in blueberries.
2. Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake 25 minutes, until muffins are puffed and golden. Cool 5 minutes and remove muffins from cups. Brush tops with melted butter or margarine. Dip lightly into sugar and cinnamon mixture. Schmidt`s Blueberries Farm in Bridgman, Mich., gave us this recipes for blueberry-apple butter. The blueberry and spice sauce can be made separately and served warm over ice cream, pancakes, shortcakes or grilled poultry.
BLUEBERRY AND SPICE SAUCE
1 1/2 cups
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 7 to 8 minutes
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup hot water
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cups fresh blueberries
1. Combine sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg in saucepan. Gradually add hot water and lemon juice and stir gently. Cook over high heat until mixture boils, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in blueberries. Continue cooking until mixture returns to boil, about 3 minutes. Serve warm.
BLUEBERRY-APPLE BUTTER
About six cups
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
4 cups fresh blueberries
4 large green cooking apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped, about 4 to 5 cups
4 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon each: ground mace, nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1. Mix all ingredients together in large saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Cook until mixture is thick, about 1 hour.
2. Spoon into containers and cover well. This apple-blueberry butter will keep in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks. Or spoon hot mixture into sterilized glasses, seal with paraffin and cool; store sealed jars in cool, dry place.
Darice Schmidt, of Schmidt`s Blueberry Farm, likes to cut these bars into bite-size pieces and serve them in mini paper cups as finger food.
BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE BARS
Six to eight servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 25 to 30 minutes
Chilling time: 1 hour
Crust:
6 tablespoons butter (preferably) or margarine
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Filling:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 jar (12 ounces) blueberry preserve
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. To make crust, cream butter and brown sugar until light in medium bowl. Add flour and walnuts. Cream with spoon until mixture forms coarse crumbs. Set aside 3/4 cup crust mixture for topping. Press remaining crust mixture onto bottom of ungreased 8-inch square pan. Bake 12 to 15 minutes to form a firm, even crust. Set on rack to cool.
2. To make cheese filling, beat granulated sugar and cream cheese together until smooth. Add egg, milk, lemon juice and vanilla. Beat thoroughly to mix. Set aside.
3. Spread entire jar of blueberry preserve over cooled crust. Carefully spread cheese filling over the preserve.
4. Sprinkle reserved 3/4 cup crumbs over top. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until center appears set. Set pan on rack to cool. Cut cake into 1-inch squares. Serve in mini paper cups as finger food.
The following recipe was developed by Beverly Dillon, recipe tester for The Tribune`s test kitchen.
BLUEBERRY PIE WITH MERINGUE
One 9-inch pie
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Standing time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 60 to 70 minutes
Crust:
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 to 3 tablespoons ice water
Filling:
2 pints fresh blueberries (about 6 cups)
3/4 to 1 cup sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
Meringue:
4 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 to 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1. For crust, mix flour and salt in large bowl. Cut in shortening and butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water until mixture gathers easily into ball. Refrigerate, covered, at least 30 minutes.
2. For filling, rinse, drain berries, pat dry with paper towel. Add sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and lemon juice to large bowl, toss gently with wooden spoon to mix. Let stand 30 minutes.
3. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out pie dough between sheets of floured wax paper to a 10 to 11-inch circle. Gently fit into 9-inch pie pan. Cut off all but about a 1-inch overhang. Fold excess under at rim of pan. Crimp edges. 4. Carefully spoon blueberry mixture into pastry. Dot with butter. Gently lay a piece of aluminum foil over pie. Bake until filling is cooked, about 1 hour. Remove from oven. Let cool slightly on counter.
5. Meanwhile, for meringue, beat egg whites until frothy, using a rotary beater or electric mixer at moderate speed. Add cream of tarter and salt and continue beating, adding sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue to beat until sugar is dissolved and meringue holds glossy, stiff peaks. Add vanilla, mix to blend completely.
6. Spoon meringue onto warm pie filling; spread in even layer with spatula until meringue touches all edges of crust. (This anchors meringue to crust and prevents it from shrinking during baking.) Make swirls in meringue with spatula. Return pie to oven until meringue is golden, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from oven. Refrigerate to cool before serving.
NATIONAL BLUEBERRY FESTIVAL SET JULY 15-19 IN MICHIGAN
Blueberry pie-eating contests, a parade, street musicians, sailboard races, a bowling tournament and nearby beaches. All can be had at the National Blueberry Festival July 15 though 19 in South Haven, Mich.
Most events are free, although there are nominal fees for such entertainment as the pie-eating contest. For a brochure, reservations for golf outings or more information, call the South Haven Chamber of Commerce, 616-637-5171 or write the National Blueberry Festival, P.O. 681, South Haven, Mich. 49090.
NATIONAL BLUEBERRY FESTIVAL SET JULY 15-19 IN MICHIGAN
Blueberry pie-eating contests, a parade, street musicians, sailboard races, a bowling tournament and nearby beaches. All can be had at the National Blueberry Festival July 15 though 19 in South Haven, Mich.
Most events are free, although there are nominal fees for such entertainment as the pie-eating contest. For a brochure, reservations for golf outings or more information, call the South Haven Chamber of Commerce, 616-637-5171 or write the National Blueberry Festival, P.O. 681, South Haven, Mich. 49090.
