Blueberries Abound at Moody Blues Farm in Lithia

This time of year, blue fingertips and tongues are par for the course for the Moody family.

The Lithia family spends eight weeks each year picking, and consuming, blueberries at their farm, Moody Blues Farm, 404 Cloverleaf Drive.

And there are plenty of blueberries to go around, enough that the family opens up their organic blueberry patches to the public, allowing residents to enjoy the simple pleasure of picking their own blueberries to turn into pies, jellies and cobblers.

This is the second year Matt and Laurie Moody have opened their doors to public picking.

"We're fairly new at growing blueberries," said Laurie Moody. "Our first harvest was last year."

Although they've lived at the farm off County Road 39 for 15 years, the Moodys, fifth-generation Floridians, originally raised cattle, horses and two children on the 12-acre property. Currently 2 1/2 acres are planted in certified blueberries with a total of seven acres certified for future expansion.

"We were looking for something to do as a family and something relaxing for Matt to do when he's home," said Laurie. Matt Moody is the owner of Moody Construction.

"A friend and relative of Matt's, Lee West, owner of Frosty Blue Farms, said we should do something with our property and suggested we try growing blueberries," said Laurie.

However, the Moodys weren't satisfied with a conventional blueberry patch.

"We wanted to go organic," she said. "We didn't want to use any pesticides chemicals because our grandchildren are out here playing all the time. I wanted them eating only healthy things. We also wanted to produce the highest quality, healthiest and tastiest blueberry possible for our family and friends. It's more difficult and costly to grow organic blueberries, but it's worth it."

So the Moodys became nationally certified organic blueberry growers, not imagining the demand for organic berries.

"We were just amazed at the number of people who were seeking organically grown blueberries," said Laurie. "This was just our second weekend open, and we had crowds of people coming out to pick blueberries."

She noted that there's only a six- to eight-week window when blueberries are available.

"It's a short season," she said. During that time, it takes the entire family, including the Moodys' grown daughter and son, to manage the U-pick operation.

Even their grandchildren, 5-year-old Mattea, and 8-year-old Noah Hamrick, get into the spirit of the endeavor, helping customers pick blueberries and carrying their buckets.

"We're still learning as we go," said Laurie. "But, so far, it's been very successful."

The Moodys use overhead irrigation to water the blueberries, using water from a replenishable pond on the property, thus saving money on water. Plants are also fertilized via a drip irrigation system.

They keep weeds down by running rolls of weed mat between the rows of blueberries, inadvertently making the bushes accessible for those in wheelchairs who want to pick their own.

Even their method of dealing with pesky birds is innovative. They string discarded CDs on clothesline around the blueberry patches. The reflective CDs scare mooching birds away.

And young Noah can attest to the taste of the final product.

"They're really good," he said. "I like to eat them right off the bush. Once, my sister ate so many, her tongue turned blue."

The Moodys grow six varieties of berries including Winsor, Emerald, Abundance and Jewel. The berries vary in taste and appearance.

The old barn on the property underwent a facelift and now accommodates an area for checking customers out. A line of rocking chairs look out over the property and give weary blueberry pickers a place to rest.

Sherry Lynch from Brandon eats organic foods for health reasons, and said she was delighted to discover an organic blueberry farm so close to home.

"The No. 1 reason I came here was because I have cancer and I believe it's important to eat organic foods," said Lynch. "It's a challenge sometimes to find organic products. But the blueberries here are the best I've tasted, the sweetest. I'm very happy I found this place."

Lynch said she mixes them with yogurt or bakes them in muffins. "I'm making a bunch of muffins tomorrow for Easter brunch," she said.

The LeBlanc and Daus families traveled all the way from Largo to pick berries at Moody Blues Farm.

"We were impressed that there was an organic blueberry farm," said Fred Daus. "So we decided to make it a family outing. We use the blueberries to make jam, we freeze some and we eat a lot in pies. But organic blueberries are sweet just by themselves, too. The kids love eating them plain.

"This is a great sustainable organic farm," added Daus. "More people should know about it."

This weekend will be one of the peak times for picking blueberries, said Laurie Moody. The farm is open only weekends from 8 a.m. to dark. Because the Moodys want to ensure there are enough berries to go around, they only take reservations for pickers. The season ends in mid to late May.

She notes that, because they cost more to grow, organic blueberries are more expensive than conventional blueberries. The Moodys charge $8 a pound for U-pick and $9 a pound for pre-picked fruit. A bucket holds about 6 pounds.

To make reservations, call  813-684-8468, e-mail info@moodybluesfarm.com  or visit http://moodybluesfarm.com/.

As for Laurie, her favorite way to use blueberries is in cobbler. She offered to share a longtime family recipe.

Laurie Moody's Blueberry Cobbler

1 stick of butter

cup of milk

cup of flour

tsp. vanilla

cup of sugar

2 1/2 to 3 cups blueberries

Melt butter in the bottom of a baking pan. Mix the milk, flour, vanilla and sugar with the melted butter and spread on the bottom of the pan. Top with the blueberries. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown. Top with vanilla ice cream.