2024 Chicago and Northeastern Illinois Blueberry U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org
Find a pick-your-own farm near you! Then learn to can and freeze! Since 2002! We update continuously; Beware the copycat websites!
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Blueberry U-Pick Orchards in Chicago and Northeastern Illinois in 2024, by county
Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for blueberries that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have blueberries orchards that are open to the public. If you know of any others, please tell us using the add a farm form!
Remember to always check with the farm's own website or Facebook page before you go - or call or email them if they don't have a website or Facebook page. Conditions at the farms and crops can change literally overnight, so if you want to avoid a wasted trip out there - check with the farm directly before you go! If I cannot reach them, I DON'T GO!
PLEASE report closed farms, broken links and incorrect info using the "Report Corrections" form below.
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DeKalb County
You Pick Berries, aka UP Berries - strawberries, raspberries (Autumn, red), blueberries, blackberries 30683 Lanan Road, Kingston, IL 60145. Phone: 815-784-2541. Email: mjdrozd@yahoo.com. Open: Daily, during daylight hours from 8:00 AM to sunset. Directions: See website for directions and map. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, only. You Pick Berries, aka UP Berries . A Self Serve Honor system in place; Raspberries start late in mid July and go through until the first frost. Strawberries in June, blackberries and blueberries after that and Raspberries start late in August and go through until the first frost. We are open every day. This is a self serve/honor system business. No cashier on site. Please bring cash or your checkbook (instructions and supplies provided). No Business Phone - Sorry. (UPDATED: July 18, 2018, JBS) Comments from a visitor on September 27, 2010: "UP Berries was great. Christine is so nice and the berries were delicious. Not crowded and not expensive. It was a very relaxing day." Comments from a visitor on August 27, 2010: "My husband and I spent a lovely afternoon picking the largest raspberries we have ever seen. The bushes were practically overloaded too so there was plenty to be had. I plan on going back this weekend for a few more. " Comments from a visitor on August 22, 2010: "I wanted to send my thanks for the wonderful listings you have here. We stopped at UP Berries in Kingston, IL and had a wonderful time picking delicious raspberries. We will definitely be visiting this farm again! The honor system was mapped out with very detailed instructions and it was a delight to pick from there. Thanks to the instructions here half of the loot is already turned into jam; the other half is properly freezing now on a cookie sheet! Thank you again for all this site has offered, and a big thanks to UP Berries!"
McHenry County
McCann Berry Farm - Uses integrated pest management practices, blueberries, porta-potties 18110 Kishwaukee Valley Road, Woodstock, IL 60098. Phone: (815) 568-1061. Email: mccannberryfarm@gmail.com. Open: from the 2nd week of July thru the 1st week of August on Wednesdays and Saturdays ONLY; TIME: 8 am until Picked out or 12 pm, whichever comes first. Directions: Take Route 47 N or S to Route 14. Turn NW. to 2nd stop light. Turn Left onto Kishwaukee Valley Road 4 miles west of Route 14 \( just past the S curve\); 3 miles east of Route 23. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard. McCann Berry Farm Facebook page. . Fax: NA. . Take Route 47 N or S to Route 14. Turn NW. to 2nd stop light. Turn Left onto Kishwaukee Valley Road 4 miles west of Route 14 ( just past the S curve); 3 miles east of Route 23. We use integrated pest management practices. We have Sunflowers, Jams, Honey. Facebook page. (UPDATED: June 06, 2021) See comments about this farm here!
Will County
Bronkberry Farms - blueberries, apples, pumpkins, farm market, porta-potties are available, hayrides 18108 S. Bronk Road, Plainfield, IL 60586. Phone: 815-436-6967. Email: veen77@sbcglobal.net. Open: Directions: Click here for a map and directions. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. . . spring flowers, fresh vegetables, sweetcorn, pumpkins, tractor pulled hayrack rides. we are just starting up this year so please call or visit our website for availability and hours.
Tammen Treeberry Farm - blueberries. restrooms, picnic area 37131 Essex Road, Wilmington, IL 60481. Phone: 815-458-6264. Email: btammen@tammentreeberryfarm.net. Open: 8 AM till 4:30 PM, Monday through Saturday. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: cash, check, Master Card, Visa, Discover, and American Express credit and debit cards. . Alternate phone: 800-892-5989. . At, you may pick your own blueberries. We grow about 50 acres of blueberries. On average, we begin picking blueberries around mid-July and pick for 3 or 4 weeks. The date we begin varies a great deal depending on the weather. In recent years, we have had large crowds. Sometimes it is necessary to close for several days to give the berries more time to ripen. We have restrooms and a shaded picnic area. See comments about this farm here!
Blueberry Picking Tips, Recipes and Information
Blueberries are one of the easiest fruit to prepare and serve.
There's no peeling, pitting, coring or cutting. They have few natural pests,
(other than birds), so pesticides are generally unnecessary! This year's crop is
fantastic (see
related news story), thanks both to the weather and to
more farms planting more blueberry bushes due to increased consumer demand
over the past few years as more studies proclaim the anti-oxidant and other
health properties of blueberries.
If you are looking for information about a similar
berry, the saskatoon (also called the June berry or Serviceberry)
see this page about
saskatoons.
Picking
tips:
Select plump, full blueberries with a light gray-blue color. A berry with any
hint of red isn't fully ripened.
Ripening AFTER picking?
First, it is key to know that once picked, blueberries will NOT become any sweeter, nor will the flavor improve. The only change that occurs
is the color. They will APPEAR to ripen, but it is only a color change, from white to green to rose to red to pale blue to fully blue. So, white and green colored blueberries will not
"ripen" after they are picked; while blueberries that have already turned purple,
red or blue-ish usually DO change color after they are picked (if they are kept at room
temperature to "ripen").
As the blueberries ripen ON THE BUSH, the flavor goes from tastless to bitter to tasteless tart to tart blueberry flavor to sweet blueberry flavor.
Grocery stores sell blueberries that are tart, not sweet because they had them picked unripe by machine so they are very firm and can handled being
bumped around in shipping. They may look good, but are not as tasty as those picked when actually ripe.
So, the key is, PICK ONLY RIPE BERRIES!
How to pick blueberries
Since blueberries hang on the bushes in bunches a but like
grapes do, the easiest and fastest way to pick them is hold your bucket under
them in one hand and with your other hand, cup a ripe bunch and gently rub them
with your fingers. The ripe berries will drop into your bucket, while the
unripe ones will remain attached to the bush.
When the bushes are at peak, I can easily pick 2 gallons per
hour (if I'm not being distracted by the kids and the sun isn't too hot!).
A newbie might do 1 gallon per hour.and at the beginning or end of the season it
takes more time as the berries are not as plentiful nor concentrated
in clusters.
Tips for storing blueberries after harvesting:
Once picked, don't place the berries, still warm from the sun, in a
closed bag or container. Leave the container open so moisture doesn't form
in the container.
Don't wash berries until just before using, to prevent berries from
becoming mushy.
Chill berries soon after picking to increase shelf life. Store
your fresh blueberries in the refrigerator as soon as you get them home,
without washing them, in a covered bowl or storage container. If
refrigerated, fresh-picked blueberries will keep 10 to 14 days.
Freeze berries in freezer containers without washing to keep
the skins from toughening. Place berries one layer deep. Freeze,
then pour the frozen berries into freezer containers. Because unwashed
blueberries freeze individually, they can be easily poured from containers
in desired amounts. Remember both frozen and fresh berries should be
rinsed and drained just before serving. Just before using, wash the berries
in cold water.
Blueberry Measurements and Conversions
Keep in mind that blueberries vary considerably in density and moisture
content, so these ranges are approximates.
1 gallon of blueberries weighs about 7.5 lbs or (4
liters of blueberries is about 3.5 kg)
1 pint of fresh blueberries weights about 3/4 of a pound. (1
liter of blueberries is about 700 grams)
1 pound of fresh blueberries is usually between about 2 and
3 cups
of berries.
If you have trouble with blueberries settling to the bottom of muffins and
blueberry breads, try one or more of these tips:
Coat them with flour before adding to the batter. Just gently shake the
blueberries in a bag (plastic or paper) with 1/2 cup of flour, then dump
them mix in a sieve to remove excess flour.
It may just be that your batter is too thin. try making the batter a
little thicker!
Fill the muffin cups or baking pan up to 1/4 full with batter (which
hasn't had blueberries added to it yet); then stir the blueberries into the
remaining batter, and continue to fill the muffin cups or bread pan. The
blueberries will start off higher in the mix!