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Ritchie Blackberry Farm, Yale, Oklahoma offers fresh blackberries during June and July through Oklahoma Farmers' Markets, you pick operations, special orders and wholesale fruit.
In the spring of 2006, our sons, David and Jonathan Ritchie decided they wanted to start a vineyard. They wanted to raise grapes, but the old folks have a soft spot for blackberries. Also we were coming out of a couple of very bad drought years, and blackberries are more hardy than grapes, and late Oklahoma freezes don't affect blackberries as badly as grapes. In the spring of 2006 we burned the field and started planting. We sometimes think we have done everything wrong at least once, but we must be learning, because God has blessed us with a beautiful field and we had a bountiful harvest in 2008. If 2009 is anything like 2008 we will have at least 9000 lbs of blackberries next summer. Come and pick your own and enjoy the peace of the field, or come and see us at one of the Oklahoma Farmers' Markets listed below.
We have a brochure with an order form included. If you would like to receive one please give us a call or e-mail .
Click on the small pictures on the left to see enlargements. Click the BACK arrow on your browser to return to this page.
 | Stick your right hand in and this is what you get. This was taken June 28, 2008. This and the next picture show you just a little of what you can pick standing in one spot. |
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 | Stick you left hand in and this is what you get. |
 | This is a close-up of the Triple Crown Blackberries blooming. We have 3 different varieties of thornless blackberrie, Apache, Ouachita, and Triple Crown. The Apache variety is more up right and produces big long berries. The Ouachita and Triple Crowns are similiar, but the Ouachita plants are more up right, and produce a little earlier than the Triple Crowns. The Triple Crowns are more trailing but HEAVY producers. They all produce an abundance of excellent juicy fruit during June and July. |
 | This is a picture looking across the trellises. You can literally see the head of the Ritchie family just visible above the last row. |
 | This shows the Triple Crown Blackberries still green in early June 2008, but they were heavy with ripe fruit by July. There are lots of all three varities. |
 | This shows the apache blackberries turning red. They should be ripe by the 2nd or 3rd week of June. |
 | This is a close-up of the Triple Crown Blackberries showing the 3 stages of ripening on the same plant. |
 | A few blackberries on a checkered table cloth to show the size. |
 | One of our thornless blackberries laying on one of our brochures, along with 8 native thorny blackberries picked nearby. |
 | DeEtta came to pick and pick and pick! |
 | Lucille and DeEtta came together to pick. Lucille says she froze her berries on a cookie sheet and she takes a few out, thaws them and they are just as good as fresh picked. |
 | We package our berries in pints and quarts for resale in stores and at farmers' markets. |
 | This is a teaser of things to come in a few years. These are cherries picked from one of our Cherry trees. We have transplanted 10 of these cherry trees to the farm and have planted 30 other cherry trees in 2008. We hope to have you pick cherries, both pie cherries and dark red cherries in 3 or 4 years. We have also planted 16 pear trees and 12 plum trees. |
Pricing
Farmer's Market price is $4.00 / pint and $7.00 / quart
You Pick price is $3.50 / pint and $5.00 / quart, $16.00/Gallon
Pre-picked price at the farm is $3.75 / pint and $5.50 / quart, $18.00/Gallon
Wholesale pricing will be determined by the quantity sold. Call for more information.
YOU PICK schedule.
Customers are allowed to come and pick their own fruit at the farm on Monday, Wednesday, Friday,and Saturday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and noon. Other times can be arranged if you will contact us first. We try to avoid the heat of the day for picking. The field is mowed, and there are no thorns, chiggers or snakes. The plants are trellised so there is very little bending. If for some reason we cannot have a scheduled picking the farm gates will be closed. Please respect the signs and do not enter when no one is available to assist you. Thank you for your cooperation.
Directions to the Farm.
We are located between Yale and Stillwater North of highway 51 on Mt. Vernon Road. Mt. Vernon is 3 miles west of the highway 51 and highway 18 intersection and approximately 13 miles east of Stillwater. There is a Mt. Vernon Street sign on the south side of 51 but you turn North and there is no street sign on the North. The farm is 1/2 mile north of 51 on the west side of Mt. Vernon Rd. There is a sign near the farm gate. There are 2 highway signs, green on the front and silver on the back, one on either side of highway 51, that make Mt. Vernon Rd. easy to find. They are directly across 51 from each other and can be seen from quite a distance. When headed west the green sign on your right says Leaving Pawnee Nation. Turn NORTH on Mt. Vernon just BEFORE the sign. When headed east the green highway sign on your right says Entering Pawnee Nation. Mt. Vernon is the next immediate road going north. Be sure to turn north just EAST of the 2 signs.
If you are coming from Tulsa, you can take the Cimarron expressway, i.e. 412 through Sand Springs, go west to the Keystone Dam exit, after crossing the dam, go west on Highway 51.
If you are coming from Stillwater take 6th street east and you will be on highway 51.
If you are coming from the north or south take highway 18 to the intersection of 18 and 51 and turn west. Mt. Vernon Road is 3 miles west of the intersection.
Oklahoma Farmers' Markets Where You can find Us.
Monday 4:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. Pearl Farmers' Market, 6th and Peoria Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tuesday 10:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Downtown Tulsa Farmers' Market, 3rd and Boston Williams Green Tulsa, Oklahoma
Wednesday 8:00 a.m. - noon We will try to be at the Cherry Tree Farmers' Market at Brookside in 2009 if possible, 41st St and Peoria WestLake Ace Hardware parking lot Tulsa, Oklahoma
Thursday 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. Cushing Farmers' Market, Cleveland and Broadway, Cushing, Oklahoma
Saturday 8:00 a.m. - noon Perhaps the Tahlequah Farmers' Market 2111 Mahaney Ave Lutheran Church Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Saturday 8:00 a/m. - noon Bartlesville, Oklahoma Frank Phillips Park, Keeler at FPB
Blackberry Wine.
We are currently experimenting making blackberry wine. We will be sampling our product at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. We will keep you posted if we decide to take the plunge into producing wine for sale!
You may call or fax our land line at 918-358-5363, call our cell phones at 918-605-6226 or 918-636-7214, or e-mail .
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