at these three blueberry patches within 50 miles of Morgantown.
This year’s blueberries were late bloomers. Berries should be available until mid-August—it’s not too late to grab a bucket and get picking!
Stern’s Berry Farm (13 miles from Morgantown)
340 Old Saw Mill Road, Independence
Lee Stern and Laticia Chase bought the McConnell Berry Farm in 2018 from Bob and Debby McConnell. They first opened for u-pick the year after with support from former McConnell customers.
Stern and Chase never planned on being blueberry farmers. They were looking for more space for their two—soon to be three—children when they found the perfect place. It just happened to come with 1,500 blueberry bushes. “The farm was here and established, and it was so beautiful,” Chase says. “We didn’t want to waste all the work Mr. McConnell put into the farm.”
Berries are $4 per pound, cash or check only. The farm is typically open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.–noon and 5–9 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m.–noon.
Blueberry Ridge Farm (21 miles)
98 Rustic Lane (off of Tom Moran Lane), Fairmont
For two decades, John Connolly has owned Blueberry Ridge Farms, the only certified organic u-pick blueberry farm in the area. It’s also the largest, with 3,000 blueberry bushes spanning the farm’s 12 acres. Connolly planted them there at the top of Bunner’s Ridge where wild blueberries used to grow.
Berries are $5 per pound, cash or check only. Check Facebook for the latest picking times.
Dorothy’s Blueberry Patch (45 miles)
1031 Mount Olivet Church Road, Rowlesburg
In 2006, Dorothy Bolyard purchased a 50-year-old blueberry patch in the mountains of Rowlesburg. Each year, she picked more than 300 gallons of blueberries from the 150-bush crop and sold them at farmers’ markets in and around Morgantown. Last year, she opened the patch as a u-pick.
Bolyard likes to keep things quaint. You’ll find signs along Route 50 outside of Rowlesburg advertising this year’s bumper crop, but you won’t find Bolyard’s business online. Call or text 304.677.8221 to set a time to pick through mid-August.
Dorothy’s berries are $12 per gallon, cash only, and picking is by appointment only.
Not sure what to do with your pickin’s? Try one of these berry-licious recipes.
posted on July 23, 2020
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