• Duathlon:  Pick a bushel of tomatoes, then carry two large watermelon at a time from the field to the waiting tractor.
• Triathlon:  Pick a bushel of tomatoes, then carry two large watermelon at a time from the field to the waiting tractor, dig one bushel of potatoes (we will loan you the shovel) and carry them into the market for us!!

Summer Apples:  We have two great summer apples on the market right now.  Jersey Macs and Earli-blaze.  They are both excellent for eating or cooking.  We have samples of each for you to try to see which you like best.   They are available by the bushel, peck, 1/2 peck of pound. For those of you who love the Jersey Mac, this is the last weekend for them. so hurry over.

Baked goods:  Our bakers are offering fresh peach pie this week (because it is finally peach season!!) andfresh apple pie made out of our Earli-blaze apples.   I can personally attest to both of these pies being delicious.  Of course the bakers say it is because of their crust, I say it is because of our fruit.    You decide….

Watermelons are here:  We started bringing in watermelon today.   These are the real thing: Crimson Sweet (striped round with seeds) or Charleston Grey (long green oblong with seeds.)  Sorry, we don’t grow any seedless watermelon as we find seeded watermelon so much tastier.

Canteloupe:   The canteloupe must have loved this summer’s weather, as they are really nice this year, and so sweet.    We have three sizes:  Medium, Large and Extra-large (and even we are shocked by the size of the extra large!)  The season is at its peak right now and won’t last much longer so come out and get some.

Peaches:  We still have Red Haven peaches, available in small eating quantities only, no bushels.  We have a very small peach orchard since we took out a peach orchard last fall.

Sweet Corn:  Our own sweet corn is now gone for the season, but we will be bringing in Stears Sweet corn (white and bi-color) hopefully through Labor Day weekend.

Greenhouse Tomatoes:    We finished taking out the greenhouse this week,  a huge thank you to all of our customers who have faithfully bought greenhouse tomatoes from us since April.  We have a few left to sell, plus all of the remaining green tomatoes we are selling for 50 cents a pound, this is the time to make fried green tomatoes!!

U-Pick Field Tomatoes:  We are having a very difficult tomato growing year based on a number of field conditions and the weather, beginning with the spring planting.    We had to replant them several times this spring,  which is one of the reasons causing them to be late.    The extremely hot/humid weather in July caused excessive mold/mildew.  Now some of the plants have developed late blight.    There are good years and bad years in farming; and with last year’s tomato crop being so good, this year’s is disappointing.  However,  we still have good tomatoes, with the same great flavor that you are used to getting from us.

Given the need to continue to take care of the tomato plants and keep them as healthy as possible as the tomatoes ripen, we have decided we must postpone U-Pick until at least some time in September.  Knowing our customers are anxious to start canning tomatoes, we will pick them and offer “field tomato seconds” at the same price you could have picked them for: $12 a bushel.  A field tomato “second” is simply a “not so perfect tomato.”   It might have a crack, a skin mark where the tomato touched the wet ground, or be mis-shaped.  These are perfect for canning, you will just have a little extra work to cut some of the spots out.     If you would like these, please call and give us your name, phone number, and quantity desired (limit of 3 bushels per customer until we get everyone some tomatoes).  We will call you as soon as we can get them for you.  269-244-5690.

We will still have tomatoes to pick once we open the U-Pick in September, for $12/bushel.  Check back at the very end of August to see if we have an opening date.  We have about  80  plants that we put in late, which have not even started turning red yet!  So far, these plants are large and beautiful, have not been affected by the blight and are producing lots of tomatoes, if you can just be patient and let them grow and ripen!!  Your patience and support of this change is appreciated as we work through this problem.

Other vegetables on the market:  onions, red potatoes, various kinds of peppers, summer squash, spaghetti squash, cucumbers, eggplant, green beans, cabbage, kale and collard greens.

Brandy House:  The brandy house will be open on Saturday from 1 – 4 for tasting and to learn about how we make brandy.

Fall apples and grapes:  We have a good crop of both this year and will have them available for U-Pick and picked in the market.  They are going to be late this year by about 10 days to two weeks.  Check back the week of September 5th for an update on how they are progressing.

Sorry, no pictures again as my camera has still not turned up from being lost.    I still think it got lost picking corn, if you happened to find a camera in your dozen of corn, please let me know!

Thanks as always for buying local goods and produce.

Beth and everyone else at Corey Lake Orchards

Peaches:  We will start picking a few Red Haven peaches this weekend.  We will NOT have these by the bushel, but in small quantities only: 4-lb boxes for fresh eating.  Because the peaches are late, we expect to have them for about a month once they start.    We will not be bringing in very many each day until they get riper, so please call the market to make sure we have some or have us save them for you, before you drive out.  269-244-5690.

Tomatoes:  We are bringing in quite a few field tomatoes now and are finishing up our greenhouse tomatoes.  As we close out the greenhouse, we have lots of green tomatoes for sale at a “close out” price of $7 a half bushel.  This is the time to make fried green tomatoes or green tomato salsa!   U-Pick tomatoes:  Because we want the tomatoes to be ripe and plentiful, it is going to be at least another week or 10 days before we open the U-Pick tomatoes.  They will be the same price as last year:  $12/bushel.  So, Please check back about August 22nd.  Sorry!

Homemade Baked Goods:  This weekend our bakers have brought two new cookie types.  I was allowed to sample each today, Yum!  The first is a new cookie they have:  zucchini chocolate chip cookies!  They are amazing, especially with a good cup of coffee.  The other is their normal sugar cookie, but this week in apple shapes with faces.

Bartlett Pears:  We have a good crop of Bartlett pears coming, but not as many as last year.  They will probably be ripe the last week of August.  If you would like some, please call us and get your name on our list and we will call you when they are available.  We want to make sure all of our customers get the pears they want as it is getting more difficult to find pears in the State of Michigan, (just not many growers), so we have many other markets which would like to buy them from us if we have any left over.    Call us at 269-244-5690, let us know your name, phone number and how many bushel you would like.

Fruit on the market now: Jersey Mac apples and melons (blueberries are gone for the year.)

Vegetables on the market now:  sweet corn, onions, red potatoes, various kinds of peppers, summer squash, zucchini,  cucumbers, eggplant, green beans, October or cranberry beans, kale, and collard greens.

Brandy Tasting:  It is open every Saturday from 1 – 4.  Please come out and visit with Bruce and try some brandy or our wine.

Sorry, no pictures of the farm this time, I have lost my camera…..I know it will turn up somewhere (maybe in the bottom of a bushel of corn?)

Thanks, as always, for buying local.

Beth and everyone at Corey Lake Orchards

Fruit:  We still have blueberries and hope to have for about another week.  Our melons (canteloupe) are just starting to come in.   We are starting to pick Jersey Mac Apples which are good for eating fresh or cooking.  We will have a very good apple coming in about a week called Earli-blaze, which is excellent for cooking (especially pie) and eating.

What’s coming for fruit? Some peaches will hopefully be ready in about a week to ten days.  Peaches are late this year because we took out one of our early peach orchards last fall, so we only have midseason and late peaches this year.  We have a small crop this year of Stanley prune plums, check back around August 20th for ripening update.  We have a good crop of Bartlett pears this year, check back with us around August 22 for availability.

Peaches ripening on August 6, have color but not size yet....

Fall crops:    Many of you are beginning to ask about apples and grapes.    As of right now, we have a good crop of both.  We will keep you updated in these emails on when each variety of apples is ready as well as grapes, but we won’t have much information until September.   We will have U-Pick on both of these crops.

Preview of fall apples, 8-6-11

Preview of fall grapes, 8-6-11

Vegetables:  We have plenty of vegetables, especially sweet corn right now!    We are waiting for the next planting of green beans to come in, so probably will not have more green beans until about August 17th or so.  We have started picking October or “cranberry” beans.  This is a bean that must be shelled out, like a pinto bean.  We fix a large pot of these every week when they are in season, they are Mr. Hubbard’s favorite meal.

Tomatoes:  Everybody is anxious for U-Pick tomatoes.  They are coming on slowly, but check back around August 13th and hopefully we will have a starting date by then and price.

Onions:  We have all of our onions harvested now for the year.  We had to pull them earlier than we would have wanted due to the heat and humidity.     They are still drying but can be purchased now “on the string.”   There are 4 varieties, all sweet.  All of the white and yellow onions are 80 cents per pound “on the string.”  The red onions are $1.00 per pound “on the string.”

• Yellow Sweet Spanish
• White Sweet Spanish
• Candy (Sweet yellow onion, very large)
• Mars (Red, sweet onion)

Getting large quantities for canning/freezing:  If you need large quantities for canning or freezing of anything we grow, please call the market and we will take your name/number and how many you want and call you when/if we can get those for you and give you pricing.

The Humming Bird garden:  A large bird has appeared in the hummingbird garden, which is certainly not in the hummingbird family.    Maybe it will help harvest the sunflowers which have grown to record height and will require a ladder to be picked!!

As always, thanks for supporting us by buying local produce and goods.

Beth and everyone at Corey Lake Orchards!

Onions:  We have harvested all of our “Candy” onions.  This is a large, yellow, globe-shaped sweet onion.  If you have been getting onions here this year, this is what you probably have purchased.  You will find them hanging on the market to dry.  With harvest complete, we have changed our pricing to give you better value:   The cleaned, single onions in our bin are $1.00/pound or if you buy over 4 pounds, they are  80 cents a pound.  The” onions on the string”  hanging all over the market are also 80 cents a pound.  So far, we have gotten great feedback from our customers on how much they love these onions, thank you!!

Harvesting the onions in the field, tying into bundles to hang

Onions hanging on the market to dry

Baked goods: Our bakers are bringing blueberry and zucchini bread this weekend, try it, and give them feedback!!

Tomatoes:  We are still bringing in tomatoes from our greenhouse but are also starting to bring in several bushel a day  from the field.  The first thing we noticed is how spoiled we got from eating the “perfect” greenhouse tomato!  Since they grew in a controlled climate, never touched the ground or had to deal with inclimate weather, they looked good and tasted good.   Let’s just stay the field tomatoes are not as pretty, as they have been subjected to just about everything mother nature can throw at them!  But, the important thing is, they taste great!!  We’ll let you know when there is enough to start U-Pick tomatoes.

Mr. Hubbard picking greenhouse tomatoes, they grew so tall this year this is even a reach for him!

Vegetables:  The market is full of summer vegetables:  corn, cucumbers, zucchini, spaghetti squash, yellow summer squash , green bell peppers, sweet banana peppers, hot hungarian peppers, jalapeno peppers, eggplant, red potatoes cabbage and green beans.

Fruit: The only fruit we have right now is blueberries, but we have plenty of them.

What’s coming:  We hope to have peaches and melons within a few weeks.  Both crops are coming along nicely.   We probably will not have enough peaches to sell by the bushel, it just seems like the cold winters and deer have really taken the toll on our peach orchard.

Here’s hoping we see you this coming weekend for fresh, local produce and other goods.

Beth and everyone at Corey Lake Orchards

Also, due to the extreme heat we are trying to leave as much produce in the cooler as we can, so some of the bins of vegetables may seem like we don’t have many, feel free to ask if there is more to bring out.

For those of you following the Hummingbird flower garden, almost all of the flowers are in bloom, including the sunflowers.  Thus, we will have lots of flowers for sale this weekend, including sunflowers.  Bring your own vase if you want and make your own bouquet!

Sunflowers in the Hummingbird garden, 7-20-11 The little "specs" on the flowers are bees pollinating

Yes, we have Sweet Corn!  We started picking corn this week and should have it all weekend.  It is bi-color.  We have been selling out early each day, so if you want corn, come early in the day or call us to save it for you.  (269-244-5690).

Denim "guarding" the corn on the way back from the day's picking

Baked goods:  Our bakers are bringing a new pie this weekend called “cherry berry.”  made with cherries, blueberries and cranberries.    Be sure to check that out.  Also, if Michaela waits on you, be sure to thank her and her family for going out blueberry picking during this hot week in order that they could pick and freeze enough blueberries to make pies for the  rest of the year!

Blueberries:  Our blueberries will be ending this week, but we will continue to bring them in as we have been from Leduc’s in Paw Paw.    They are telling us they will have blueberries for several more weeks.    We have them available in 10-pound boxes for $25, 5-pound boxes for $13.00, $5 a quart or $3 a pint.

Summer vegetables: The market shelves are full now with the summer bounty:  green beans, red/white/yellow onions, green bell peppers, sweet banana peppers, hot Hungarian peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, green and yellow zucchini, peas, sweet corn, new red potatoes, and lots of yellow summer squash!

Tomatoes:  Our field tomatoes are slow in coming, despite the heat.  Fortunately, our greenhouse tomatoes are still coming in.  We have also started picking green tomatoes daily for those of you yearning for fried green tomatoes!!

Lodi apples:  This will be the final weekend to get Lodi apples, which is a great applesauce apple.  We will have more varieties of summer apples following this one.

Brandy tasting this Saturday:  Our brandy house will be open from 1 – 4 on Saturday, please come meet our new brandy maker, Bruce.  He had his first experience this week making brandy, he may have a few stories to tell about it!

So we know it is going to be a hot weekend, but we would still love to see you coming out for fresh local produce and other goods.

Beth and everyone at Corey Lake Orchards

• 10 pound box is $25.00**
• 5 pound box is $13.00**
• 1 Quart for $5.00
• 1 Pint for $3.00

**It would really help us if you could call us in advance and order these, thanks!  269-244-5690.

Baked goods:  This weekend our bakers will be featuring fresh blueberry pie, since of course it is blueberry season.    I highly recommend their blueberry pie which is available Friday, Saturday and Sunday!

Vegetables: The market is now full of summer vegetables:  green beans, fresh dug red potatoes, fresh onions, peas,eggplant, zucchini, summer squash, cucumbers, bell peppers, sweet banana peppers, hot Hungarian peppers.    But still, we know most of you are waiting for sweet corn:  We might have some on Sunday, if it is as hot as predicted.  Call us to find out;  269-244-5690.

Again, thanks for buying local,

Beth and everyone at Corey Lake Orchards

The good news is that we planted 1000 bushes this year,  so as they mature in a few years, we should have plenty of blueberries and be able to offer U-Pick.

Blueberries ripening; 7-4-11

Raspberries:  We have two local suppliers who will be bringing in black and red raspberries as available.  These are $3.50/pint.  Feel free to call us to see if we have them on hand as it varies by day.

Summer Vegetables:  Each day we bring in more and more summer vegetables:  Fresh dug red potatoes, freshly pulled onions, zucchini, yellow summer squash, peas, cucumbers, lettuce, green bell peppers, hot Hungarian peppers and sweet banana peppers.   The quantities available vary by day, so call us if you want us to hold something for you after we bring them in each morning.  269-244-5690.

“Make Your own flower bouquet:”  On Friday, Saturday and Sundays, we will set up a “make your own flower bouquet” station.  Bring your own vase or buy one of ours.  These are picked from the hummingbird garden adjacent to the market.

Sample of flowers from the Hummingbird garden to "make your own bouquet'

Tomato shortage: Sorry,  we currently cannot keep up with the customer demand for our greenhouse tomatoes, so they are not available every day.    Hopefully soon the field tomatoes will start ripening so we have fresh tomatoes for you each day.

Lodi Apples are coming soon!  The first apple of summer might be ready by this weekend.  If you don’t know this apple, it is the modern version of what was known as the old fashioned “transparent apple.”   They have a thick yellow skin and a sharp/tart taste!  Due to its ability to cook down very quickly, it makes a great (but tart!) applesauce.  Those folks who like sour things like sour candies, also like to eat them fresh.  We seem to have a bumper crop of them year, so give us a call if you would like to place an order and have us call you when they are ready.

Lodi apples, week of 7-4-11

Sour Cherries are now gone for the season, we are picking the last few very ripe cherries off the tree tomorrow hoping to make some cherry brandy!

Where are green beans and sweet corn? These seem to be the most frequently asked question:  Our answer is:  They are coming, but totally dependent on the weather.  We expect to have both in about 10 days to 2 weeks.

Again, thank you for buying local.

From everyone at Corey Lake Orchards

U-Pick Pricing:

• 75 cents per pound to pick
• 60 cents per pound for 100 pounds and over

Picking information:

• U-Pick Hours:  8 – 6 daily, please be finished picking by 6 pm.
• The sour cherry trees are about 10 – 20 feet tall.   For good picking, you should bring your own ladder.
• Be sure to dress appropriately (closed shoes, long pants and sleeves) as you many run into poison ivy/sumac in the orchard area, among other hazards.
• Please bring your own containers.  We have buckets you may borrow to pick in, then you can transfer to your own containers (bowls, tubs, buckets, etc.)
• Check in at the market first for directions and to weigh the containers you are picking in.

Picked Sour cherries:  $3.00 per quart (approximately 2 pounds).

Strawberries are now finished for the season.   It was another difficult season for us not having enough for everyone, plus the last four days of rain ruined what was remaining, but thanks to everyone who was able to enjoy them with us this season.

Sweet Cherries opened for U-pick on Wednesday June 22.    This was earlier than expected, but the weather from this past week with 4 days of rain,  have caused the cherries to start spoiling.    We have four different kinds in our small orchard across the street  from our market.  You can still try to pick them, but it is very difficult due to the damage caused by the rain.   Please realize that we have an older orchard with about 15 – 20 very large trees.  Since we do not have a lot of sweet cherries, we would recommend you not travel a long distance to get them, but if you are in our local area and want to get a few cherries to enjoy eating, please come on over.  We know for many of you, it is a tradition to come pick a bowl of cherries!  We have several colors:

• Dark red (black)
• Red
• Yellow
• Red/Yellow blush

Picking information:

• The sweet cherry trees are very tall (15 – 25 feet).   Please bring your own ladder.
• Be sure to dress appropriately (closed shoes, long pants and sleeves) as you may run into poison ivy/sumac in the orchard area, among other hazards.
• Please bring your own containers.  We have buckets you may borrow to pick in, then you can transfer to your own containers (bowls, tubs, buckets, etc.)
• Check in at the market first for directions and to weigh the containers you are picking in.

Pricing: $1.50 per pound to pick

Picking hours are 8 – 6 daily, we ask that you finish picking by 6:00 pm. 

Picked Sweet Cherries: we no longer have any picked cherries on the market.   They are just too difficult to pick given the rain damage.  Wow, what a short crop, about 3 days!

So what else do we have on the market? The end of strawberry season and the short cherry season leave us with a “gap” of produce available on the market since we grow everything here.  We have some lettuce, peas and onions coming in, but we are now awaiting the next group of summer vegetables.    Of course we still have our great greenhouse tomatoes every day and baked goods on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.  We’ll let you know when more things are ready.    On a positive note, yesterday, we picked our first tomato out of the field.  As many of you know, it is my Dad’s goal to always have the first tomato ready in the state.  He has even set a new record for himself by picking his first one on June 25th!

A glimpse of some of the small joys of farming: This particular last week with all of the rain which ruined the sweet cherries and strawberries and kept us out of the fields was certainly frustrating for those of us in farming.  But there are always small pleasures and joys we find among our days as well.  This past week, when picking radishes, I discovered this nest of bird eggs in one of the plants.   Then, at the end of the week, there were baby birds!!  Needless to say, this group of radishes did not get picked!

Thanks for buying local produce and goods…..from all of us here at Corey Lake Orchards, we truly appreciate you as customers.      Beth

We will open our Sweet Cherries for U-pick on Wednesday June 22.    This is earlier than expected, but the weather from this week (rain on 6-20) followed by today’s extremely hot weather and more rain, have caused the cherries to start spoiling.    We have four different kinds in our small orchard across the street  from our market, some are ready now and the others will be ripening in the next 3 – 5 days.  Please realize that we have an older orchard with about 15 – 20 very large trees.  Since we do not have a lot of sweet cherries, we would recommend you not travel a long distance to get them, but if you are in our local area and want to get a few cherries to enjoy eating, please come on over.  We know for many of you, it is a tradition to come pick a bowl of cherries!  We have several colors:

• Dark red (black)
• Red
• Yellow
• Red/Yellow blush

Picking information:

• The sweet cherry trees are very tall (15 – 25 feet).   Please bring your own ladder.
• Be sure to dress appropriately (closed shoes, long pants and sleeves) as you may run into poison ivy/sumac in the orchard area, among other hazards.
• Please bring your own containers.  We have buckets you may borrow to pick in, then you can transfer to your own containers (bowls, tubs, buckets, etc.)
• Check in at the market first for directions and to weigh the containers you are picking in.

Pricing: $1.50 per pound to pick

Picking hours are 8 – 6 daily, we ask that you finish picking by 6:00 pm. 

Note:  Some of the cherries have started to spoil and others the birds have started snacking on unfortunately.

Picked Sweet Cherries: We  have them available to sell at the market now for $3.00  per pound.  We hope to have them through June 26th, but they may only last a few days given the weather.

Sour Cherries: Check back around June 27th for an update on Sour cherries.  They are just starting to turn red, but need to gain some size yet and color and finish ripening.    We have not set a price for these yet.

Strawberries: The strawberry season is coming to an end.  We hope to have picked berries for $3.00/quart available through this weekend.  As most of you know, we had to move to a U-Pick reservation system this year due to having fewer strawberries, if you are still trying to pick some, you may come out during the hours of 8 – 11 on Thursday through Sunday, without needing an appointment.  We expect Sunday will probably be the last day.  Since the weather is changing things every day, call first to make sure we have picked berries and check on the picking conditions:  269-244-5690.

We apologize for how crazy strawberry season has been this year, especially for those of you who wanted to pick your own.  We did our best to accommodate as many of you as we could, some of you we could not fit in and for that we are sorry.  We know we made a few mistakes as we tried a new reservation/appointment system.    We would very much like your feedback as this winter when we have a little down time we’ll think through how to manage next year’s strawberry season.

As we close out the season, here’s a few pictures that remind us how special strawberry time in Michigan is, especially for our youngest customers:

Summer vegetables are starting: We are pulling fresh “Candy” onions daily, our snow peas, snap peas and shell-out peas are just starting to come in, and we have several varieties of lettuce available.

Happy First Day of Summer from all of us at Corey Lake Orchards!

Their offerings for pies will be:  Rhubarb, Rhubarb-Strawberry, Cherry, Dutch Apple, Blueberry, Sugar Free Cherry and Sugar Free Apple.  They will have both the regular 9-inch pie as well as a smaller pie (perfect for two people or I have actually been known to eat one by myself!)

They will also have Chocolate Brownies and 3 kinds of Cookies: Frosted Sugar Cookies in flower shapes, Monster Cookies and Frosted Lemon Cookies.

Eggs:  We are trying to supply you again this year with local eggs.  But…..the local chickens are not cooperating, (too hot?  too cold?  too much rain?) so for a while, our egg supply is going to be short.  You may want to call to make sure we have them before you come over for eggs.    One of our local suppliers is a family from Jones, who have a variety of chickens, which lay blue, white and brown eggs!    Sarah (12), Nathan (9) and Matthew (3) have around 50 chickens and this is their summer project.  When we have eggs, they are $1.75/dozen.

Asparagus:  We are still picking asparagus daily and hope to for about another week. $1.65/pound.

Rhubarb:  We will have rhubarb through strawberry season.  $1.50/pound.

Greenhouse Tomatoes ($2.00 pound) and Cucumbers ($1 each).     We are picking these daily and have a pretty good supply coming in.

Strawberry Sighting!  we picked a couple of quarts today.  We have a new early variety we are trying this year called AC Wendy.  This early berry is just beginning to ripen so we may have a few quarts for sale starting this weekend.  The rest of our berries are for mid-season, so we still think they are 7 – 10 days away.  Pricing for this year is:

• Picked Berries:  $3.00 a quart; a flat of 8 quarts is $22.00; a case of 16 quarts is  $40.00.  We are now taking orders for flats and cases, and will call you when they are available.  Please call us on 269-244-5690 to order.

• U-Pick Berries will be $1.30/quart.  We will update you in about a week on picking conditions and availability.

Vegetable plants are now gone for the year.  We still have hanging flower baskets for sale.

Brandy Tasting:   Reminder, we are open every Saturday from 1 – 4 for Brandy tasting.

Thanks again for buying fresh, local goods.  Hope to see you soon.

All of us at Corey Lake Orchards

Vegetable Plants:  We are now sold out of plants for the season.