COBDEN, Ill. — Bill Bass and family of Blueberry Hill and Bass Farms are teaming up with University of Illinois Extension to host the second of four twilight meetings at their farm on Monday, June 18, 2018 starting at 6 p.m. University of Illinois Extension Local Food Systems & Small Farms Educators, Bronwyn Aly and Nathan Johanning, have been partnering with area farmers over the past four years to provide four evening “twilight meetings” to highlight and demonstrate diverse farming enterprises across southern Illinois. Anyone involved or interested in local food production or learning more about farms in our region is encouraged and invited to attend. Blueberry Hill is located off of Illinois Route 51 about 6 miles north of Anna in Union County. Blueberry Hill was established by Charlie Stadelbacher many years ago as a u-pick operation for blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. Bill Bass and family purchased the farm a couple of years ago and continue to grow and sell blueberries and blackberries. Bill is an experienced fruit and vegetable grower and operates a thriving retail specialty crops business just outside of Cobden, IL. While folks can still u-pick blueberries and blackberries at Blueberry Hill, much of the fruit from this farm is also pre-picked and sold through Bass Farms’ numerous retail outlets. Current plantings at Blueberry Hill include 7 acres of blueberries and 3 acres of blackberries.
Over the course of the evening, Bill will share his experiences getting starting and expanding his production over the years. We will be covering everything from establishing and maintaining blueberry and blackberry plantings to post harvest handling and marketing. We encourage anyone interested in learning more about diverse fruit production and marketing in southern Illinois to capitalize on this on-farm learning and networking opportunity.
DATE: Monday, June 18, 2018
TIME: 6 p.m.
LOCATION: Blueberry Hill Farm 675 Wrights Crossing Cobden, IL 62920
DIRECTIONS: From the South (Anna): Go north on US-51 for 6 miles, turn left on to Blueberry Hill Road for almost 1 mile. Then turn right onto Wright’s Crossing Rd. The farm will be on the left. From the North (Carbondale): Go south on US-51 for 12 miles, turn right on to Blueberry Hill Road for almost 1 mile. Then turn right onto Wright’s Crossing Rd. The farm will be on the left.
This program is provided at no cost but pre-registration is appreciated. Please register online at http://web.extension.illinois.edu/ghhpsw/or by calling 618-695-6060 no later than Friday, June 15, 2018. For more information about the Twilight Meeting contact:
Bronwyn Aly – baly@illinois.edu; 618-695-6060
Nathan Johanning – njohann@illinois.edu; 618-687-1727
Click the link for a flyer: Blueberry Hill Flyer
— University of Illinois Extension
For more news from Illinois, click here.