Berry Good Living: Cultivating Organic Blueberries with Allison Acres

In this episode of Fresh Take, we welcome special guests Hank and Jessica from Allison Acres to discuss their journey into organic blueberry farming. Hank, a retired FBI agent, shares his inspiration for transitioning to farming, influenced by his background in law enforcement. Jessica, with a background in Environmental Science, talks about her start in agriculture and her role at Allison Acres.

They elaborate on their decision to pursue blueberry farming and shed light on the challenges organic farmers encounter, such as disease management and climate change. Additionally, they delve into soil management techniques, blueberry species selection, and their dedication to environmental stewardship through initiatives like "This Farm CARES" and their involvement in the WWOOF (Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms )program. Hank and Jessica’s commitment extends beyond producing delicious, healthy produce; it's about nurturing a healthy planet and community, one blueberry at a time.

Additionally, they invite listeners to an upcoming special event in collaboration with Florida Organic Growers' Florida Local Food Project, the Spring Farm Tour a part of Millstone Institute 2024 Farm Tour!

This event provides an excellent opportunity to network, learn from experts, and foster meaningful connections with others who are passionate about local food May 18, 2024! Registration is free!

Secure your spots at: https://bit.ly/4cU3TAn

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:03

Welcome to Fresh Take, where we at Florida Organic Growers speak to food systems experts about topics related to organic and sustainable agriculture, healthy lifestyles and the environment. To help us continue our programs at FOG, including our podcast, consider becoming a sponsor. For more information on sponsorship, check out our Get Involved page on our website, wwwfoginfoorg out our Get Involved page on our website, wwwfoginfoorg.

Speaker 2: 0:32

Hello everyone, welcome to a juicy new episode of Fresh Take, where we'll be traversing into the lush landscapes of North Florida with Allison Akers Farm to explore the fascinating world of organic blueberry production. Join us as we peel back the layers of this thriving industry, uncovering the secrets behind cultivating some of nature's most delightful treasures in an organic and sustainable manner. With us today is the owner of Allison Acres Farm, hank Allison, and farm manager, jessica Billy. Welcome to the show, hello.

Speaker 3: 1:00

Thank you very much. Thanks for the invitation.

Speaker 2: 1:03

Of course, I'm always excited speaking with the both of you because of the genuine enthusiasm that you guys bring to every conversation, especially to the world of farming, and I know each of you have various distinct backgrounds and reasons for joining the ag world. So, hank, I just have to start out with your story because I understand you are a US Army veteran and thank you for your service and, you know, had a very long career with the FBI, for 23 years. So I'm itching to learn more about this and what inspired your transition to organic farming.

Speaker 3: 1:50

It's a short story and a long story. It was partly because I had family in Florida as far as the location for organic farming, so I knew I was going to be in Florida at some point. I had a horse farm in Pennsylvania, was looking at doing something in Florida. The property became available to purchase, decided to purchase, decided on a crop. The crop was decided to be blueberries. Had never farmed blueberries before, did a lot of research, decided upon that as the crop and just kind of went from there.

Speaker 2: 2:26

Wow, so did your background in, you know, working in the military and the FBI. Did that influence your approach to farming at all?

Speaker 3: 2:35

No, no, it was really my grandmother, Anderson, who, as a child, she always had a huge garden at her house and probably now probably wouldn't be as big, but I was always amazed at what she could do with a piece of dirt. So that probably was the impetus behind the whole thing.

Speaker 2: 2:57

Right, okay, yeah, being close to the earth and ground with the earth, I think that's what a lot of us seek these days. And, jessica, switching over to you for a second, I know you graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's in environmental science and joined Allison Acres in 2017. So I'm curious to know what stemmed your inspiration for joining this particular farm and just working in the ag fields in general.

Speaker 4: 3:25

So, just like him, I grew up with a grandma that had a huge garden. I've always had a garden. I went to UF. I took a couple of classes, but one of my very first classes was Dr Hockmuth. I don't even know if he teaches still, but it was sustainable agriculture and urban land management, and that was my really big introduction into commercialized ag and how to be sustainable. So that was it. I took agronomy, I took soil sciences as many classes I could get around. Farming is what I took. I took three years off, didn't do a whole lot, and then I started emailing farms around this area and he replied back. Just as simple as that.

Speaker 2: 4:01

Simple as that and he replied back Just as simple as that. Simple as that. Well, I think that you know that's a great story to have that very quick. You know turnaround from Hank and I think there's a beautiful relationship between the two of you, and I'd love to learn more about why specifically blueberries. Is there a reason?

Speaker 3: 4:23

that-. Well, I do have to comment. Apologies for interrupting, but that's all right. She's actually survived almost seven years now.

Speaker 2: 4:32

Oh yeah, that's a that's a very long journey and I wanted to know actually, jessica, if if that was your first experience working on a farm with Allison Acres, or, prior to that, if you had done anything with other agricultural entities.

Speaker 4: 4:47

Oh man, this is my first time.

Speaker 2: 4:49

Wow.

Speaker 4: 4:50

So you have a couple of rookies doing this. Yeah.

Speaker 2: 4:54

Yeah, and you, you stuck to it, so I think you're doing a good job, hank.

Speaker 4: 5:02

It's a road of hard lessons.

Speaker 2: 5:06

Oh yeah, bet, that's true.

Speaker 3: 5:08

So I mean, given that allison acres is a blueberry farm and organic, I'm really curious to know specifically why blueberries and also what made you choose the organic route well, blueberries, primarily because it's a perennial and the thought was put it in the ground, take care of it, you don't have to you harvest and then you don't have to replant. So it seemed a bit simpler to go with a perennial at that time and organic was pretty much all about safety to the people that are working on the farm.

Speaker 3: 5:45

I had heard research and the horror stories about chemicals that are used on conventional commercial farms that I just didn't want to be around and I definitely didn't want the people that are working on the farm with the plants to even be near that stuff. So it was a safety thing.

Speaker 2: 6:07

Okay, right, right, so choosing that as a more mindful practice. So I mean, what are those? Speaking of those challenges, some of the challenges that you find that even organic farmers face?

Speaker 3: 6:17

weeds weeds we could figure out a way to handle the weeds. It would be just so much easier. Taking care of the plant isn't that much of an issue. It's controlling the weeds.

Speaker 4: 6:29

The weeds are our biggest enemy out here.

Speaker 2: 6:34

And so is that. Are the weeds? Something that is kind of less regulated with everything happening with climate change? Is it getting more out of control with the increase in temperatures and all that that's happening?

Speaker 4: 6:49

Not necessarily due to climate change. In organics we have a lot of surface burn, herbicides, weed killers. We don't have really anything that we can spray, so most of ours is one cultural, two mechanical anything that we can spray. So most of ours is one cultural, two mechanical. So we hand pull once a year and then we mow really close to our plants to try to reduce our weeds. It doesn't necessarily have anything to do related to climate change, it's just we don't have a good product to spray, to put it to kill the plant, to kill the weeds and a weed really isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's just a plant we don't want in that specific area.

Speaker 3: 7:30

It inhibits our ability to fertilize because the weed encompasses the base of the plant. So our fertilizers that we put out, that are pelletized, it doesn't reach the majority of the roots of the plants because of the weeds.

Speaker 4: 7:49

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 7:51

Okay, and so what are the measures that you guys have taken to try to mitigate that?

Speaker 4: 7:58

So we hand-pull weeds once a year and we also mow really close to the base of our plants.

Speaker 2: 8:04

Okay, and as far as the diseases and pest control, is that anything that you often have to combat as well?

Speaker 4: 8:12

At first we did, but we had developed a balanced monoculture ecosystem. As crazy as that may sound, we put out beneficial insects if needed throughout the year, different insects for different pests.

Speaker 4: 8:26

So we target our pests with a good guy. We have our natural order of things. Nature has checks and balances. So we try to use our checks and balances to our advantage. So we don't really have too many pest problems. If we do, we spot control. So example would be scale. Sometimes we'll have scale on, say, five or 10 plants and we'll just spray those five or 10 plants. We don't necessarily need to spray our entire field and kill everything, just those five or 10 plants.

Speaker 2: 8:58

Right, okay, and I understand that blueberries specifically require an acidic or low pH soil. Blueberries specifically require an acidic or low pH soil, so how do you manage that on the farm?

Speaker 4: 9:13

So we plant in pine bark Initially, we till that into our native soils to make our planting bed. Every three years we top dress. We also put out elemental sulfur quarterly, every three months, and then when we inject our fertilizer, we are putting in a product called citric acid that reduces the pH of our water. So we're trying to fight our water, which is a eight, and reduce our pH down to a four, five to a five, where blueberry lights.

Speaker 2: 9:40

Wow, so that's a chemistry lab in your front yard, 100%, that's incredible. And so how many acres actually do you guys have currently growing these blueberries?

Speaker 4: 9:50

37.

Speaker 2: 9:53

37. That's a lot.

Speaker 4: 9:54

No, we're small time compared to some of the other ones.

Speaker 2: 9:58

Oh yeah, Okay. So in terms of choosing the blueberry species, is there a specific process that you guys go through for that?

Speaker 3: 10:06

We do a lot of research on the University of Florida website that talks all about blueberries and it's actually fabulous as a resource. And then we talk to other growers. We learn from them their challenges with a specific variety, challenges with a specific variety, and we've actually narrowed it down to a certain number of varieties that we feel on our farm perform the best. So we are specific to certain varieties for that reason.

Speaker 2: 10:34

Oh, I see, Could you share the names of those varieties that you typically use?

Speaker 3: 10:38

One of our sweetest is called the Legacy and it's a cross between the northern and southern rabbit eye. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but the berry tastes fabulous and it's Legacy and it takes a lot of chill hours, probably 500 or 600 chill hours, which is kind of high. It wouldn't work in central Florida but it does for us because we get much colder here than central and south Florida. We also have a Titan blueberry, which is a rabbit eye.

Speaker 3: 11:10

It also takes a lot of chill hours, probably in that 600 hour range, and it produces a large berry of almost the size of a quarter. So that's another one we like. We use a a portion of that field for you-pick opportunities, allowing the public to come in and pick some berries and take them home. And we also have a Presto, which is a Michigan Blueberry Growers Association patented cultivar, Growers Association patented cultivar, which is also very sweet and 200 hours for chill. So we are getting ready to pick that one, probably within two weeks, which for us is our early season. We also have a Georgia Dawn.

Speaker 4: 12:04

Yeah, georgia Dawn's about the same as our Presto, usually three or four days behind Presto for picking. It's a pretty good-sized berry, it tastes pretty good, and then we have a new variety we're testing called Sentinel. It's supposed to be really, really prolific in production, but our plants are still itty-bitty so it'll take us three to four years to even have good production on them.

Speaker 4: 12:31

And that's a universal variety also, and our last one that we want to talk about is called Pink Lemonade. We planted that specifically for a new pick. It is a pink blueberry. It has a higher Brix rating, or sugar rating, than a regular blueberry. It's kind of sweet, kind of tart, depending on when you pick it, and it's the local favorite.

Speaker 3: 12:55

And you will not see that in a supermarket.

Speaker 4: 12:57

You will never see that commercially grown.

Speaker 2: 13:01

That sounds incredible. So is that a hybrid that was developed specifically for higher sugar content?

Speaker 4: 13:08

I believe so. It's more on par with planting in your backyard at home. We had never seen anybody plant it in mass the way that we have.

Speaker 3: 13:17

We have about two acres or so of it it's very finicky, which is why it's not done commercially. One year you may get a fabulous crop. The next year you may not get anything. The next year you may get very little. The next year you may get a lot. So it's unpredictable as to the yield.

Speaker 2: 13:38

That's quite fascinating, and I mean it sounds like there's a ton of different varieties out there. Do you guys know how many blueberry species actually exist? Hundreds, wow.

Speaker 4: 13:48

There's a lot.

Speaker 2: 13:50

And I feel like you know that's something that a lot of the average consumer doesn't really know or get to see, because in the grocery store we're always so limited to the varieties that are shown and showcased, but there seems to be always so many different species out there, of each even just one type of berry, which to me is just mind blowing.

Speaker 3: 14:11

Well, you can go up on the East Coast as well, and you'll find different varieties depending upon the state.

Speaker 4: 14:16

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 14:18

Right and those are specific to the soil and climate conditions, I'm assuming.

Speaker 3: 14:23

Exactly Yep.

Speaker 2: 14:25

Okay, great. So it sounds like there's a lot that you guys might have to dig through in order to determine what species is best for your production. Or do you find that in Florida, especially in North Florida, that there's only a certain few that grow the best?

Speaker 3: 14:40

That's going to be a difficult answer because there's so many varieties. We just know what we've planted works for us. It's going to be a complete different set of circumstances for somebody in simple Florida and South. We couldn't grow anything that would require just 30 chill hours, because it would perish.

Speaker 4: 15:09

I feel like the best way to go about figuring out what would grow best in your area is to learn your chill hours and your heat hours. That would be the basis of figuring out what cultivar of blueberry would be sustainable in your area.

Speaker 3: 15:23

And also your soil. If you don't have the right pH, they're going to struggle.

Speaker 2: 15:29

For the folks listening that are not familiar with these terms, could you guys describe what you mean by chill hours and heat hours?

Speaker 4: 15:36

So a chill hour is anything below 45 to 32, sustained for one hour. Anything below a 32 isn't necessarily beneficial to the plant. Certain cultivars require that to allow the plant to quote-unquote go dormant which they don't really go dormant enough time for them to put roots out. You know, the roots are growing while they're dormant above ground, and after that amount of time has been reached, then they have to go into something called a heat hour, which is, I think it's, 72 degrees or higher, sustained for an hour, for a certain amount of time for it to start to open its blueberries.

Speaker 2: 16:15

Yeah, Thank you for sharing that.

Speaker 3: 16:17

So it also has to have a certain time period at these hours before it will actually say hey, I need to start producing a fruit, though, yeah and that typically occurs late, late summer, early fall, and that's when we can kind of predict what we're going to have for next year's harvest.

Speaker 4: 16:39

So usually in florida, our hot time is July and August, right. So after that crazy heat that we get September, October, November is when they really start developing their fruit buds, at least in our area.

Speaker 3: 17:01

And that's when we stop fertilizing because we don't want to encourage new growth. We want that plant to start calming down and saying, okay, it's not time to put on a fruit bud and run asleep, yep. If we start, if we continue fertilizing deep into summer or even early fall, it'll confuse the plant and they will not put on a fruit bud and then you will not have any fruit the following year off that plant.

Speaker 2: 17:24

Wow, so it's very, very technical process. Is there any other crops that you guys are currently growing aside from the blueberries?

Speaker 4: 17:37

Several. So we have a small spot in one of our fields that has several different things. It has strawberries, blackberries you can pick flowers and that field we basically just call it our experimental field to see what grows. And then we just planted a few avocado trees to see if they will be sustainable. In our area they are a cold party variety that goes down to 15 degrees.

Speaker 3: 17:55

It's called fantastic.

Speaker 4: 17:57

Yeah, 15 degrees is called fantastic. I'm not really too knowledgeable on avocados just yet. We also have two acres of Mayhawk trees, which, if nobody knows what that is, it's like a cranberry that grows on a tree. It's a little sweet, little tart, and make jams and jellies out of it. We also have three acres of Christmas trees that are still growing. They're not ready yet. It's going to be a U-Pick Christmas tree so people can come get their own.

Speaker 3: 18:32

We have some pawpaws that we've planted around the pond we have.

Speaker 2: 18:33

we're trying to see what will happen with those. I've heard of pawpaws but I've never had one or seen it before.

Speaker 3: 18:38

We haven't either, which is why we're trying to grow them.

Speaker 2: 18:41

Oh well, that's funny, I think. That's something that I've heard a lot of. And for the avocados, we have a lot of those down in South Florida where I live, but I'm curious to see how those will do up there in Panetta.

Speaker 3: 18:55

So please keep us posted. There's a specific variety called Fantastic, which is, I mean, we couldn't grow what they grow in Central South Florida.

Speaker 2: 19:04

Yeah, it seems that there's a very specific crops that do well in each region of Florida and it's interesting because Florida, I think people don't under, I think people underestimate you know the size of the state and the different characteristics that it brings, but there's so many different crops that we seem to grow in North versus Central versus South Florida, so it's quite fascinating to see that. I'm curious to learn more about your stewardship and education programming. I understand that you guys are really involved with WOOFing, which, for those that are listening who are not familiar with WOOF that is, stands for the Worldwide Organization of Organic Growers. This is a network of national organizations that facilitate homestays on organic farms and typically volunteers exchange work for food and lodging on organic farms. So I want to hear about your guys' experience with wolfing and why you chose to open up your farm to individuals that really want to learn more about organics.

Speaker 3: 20:11

So probably about two years ago, just doing Google searches on organic farming, the wolf website popped up and I started taking a look at it and it's actually an organization that was started, I believe, in England in the early 70s, so it's been around for a while. And took a harder look at the website, and it's a bunch of farmers that opened up their properties to people that want to learn about organic farming. That's what we do. We have roughly 219 acres of farm. It's absolutely gorgeous up here and we wanted to share what we are doing with others and it seemed like a good fit, so we applied, we were accepted and now we host.

Speaker 2: 21:03

That's awesome, so I'd love to hear a bit more about your experience with hosting. Is there any stories that you'd like to share that you know think have made an impact on you as a farmer and a farm manager?

Speaker 3: 21:17

Well, they've all been good. Every person that has been here and I don't know the exact number, it's less than a dozen we just opened it up about six months ago, once we got our infrastructure in place to house them, and I mean that was a process in itself, but they've all been great. They each have their own personalities. We get to meet people from different parts of the country. We currently have somebody here from Yorkshire, england, and he's a hoop.

Speaker 3: 21:48

Primarily because of the language. It's always fun, and actually we've had a couple from Canada as well, and they were primarily French speakers, so that was fun too. They've all worked hard, They've all been great.

Speaker 2: 22:03

That's awesome. It sounds like a really good cross-cultural experience and just you know, being more fluent in some of these other cultures that we might not see as much down in Florida, so that's wonderful that you guys are doing that, and I understand that you also have a designation by the County Alliance for Responsible Environmental Stewardship called this Farm Cares. Can you tell us more about that designation and how you received that?

Speaker 4: 22:33

So it's pretty easy, since we are organic.

Speaker 3: 22:35

No it wasn't easy at all.

Speaker 4: 22:38

Yes, it is.

Speaker 3: 22:40

We have to meet certain standards to even be considered for that.

Speaker 4: 22:43

So being organic.

Speaker 3: 22:45

Once we met those standards, it was easy.

Speaker 4: 22:47

So being organic. Once we met those standards, it was easy. So being organic, you have BMPs, best management practices, that is, being conscious of your nutrient programming, fertilizers, your water consumption and use how you treat the land. Those are your basic things.

Speaker 3: 23:08

So this, this farm cares, is basically that we were already doing that Because we wanted, is basically that we were already doing that Because we wanted to do that.

Speaker 4: 23:12

We were organic.

Speaker 3: 23:13

So, being organic you? We didn't know the award even existed.

Speaker 4: 23:16

No. So we met with a local person that works for the department and they said, hey, have you guys ever heard about this? And I said, no, but I've seen the signs on the side of the road around here with different farms. He's like, oh well, I think I'm going to put you guys in for it. I'm like, um, okay, thank you, and there's only one person that gets the award every year per county, I believe. Oh, wow, so we got that award and, honestly, if you're an organic farmer, you should be doing all of these anyway. And if you're a regular farmer, conventional farmer, some of these practices can save you money. You know, being cognizant of your fertilizer, use your water, use that'll, you know it saves you money in the long run, it does matter.

Speaker 2: 24:00

Wow, yeah, I haven't heard of this designation either, so when I came across this doing the research on on allicin acres, it sounded like something that more farmers should know about, and so is there a specific application that you guys had to fill out for that?

Speaker 4: 24:17

Yeah, so you want to get in touch with your local county extension agency and ask your ag representative if you can find more information on this farm fairs. They will put you in, I guess, a pool if you will, a group out of your county and see who qualifies that year and they'll pick that person as the award winner.

Speaker 2: 24:45

Okay, very cool, and congratulations for getting chosen for for that designation. Is that something that you have to reapply for every year, or is it something that just kind of is permanent once you get it?

Speaker 3: 24:58

one and done one, and done, okay, awesome so I also want to this is a little bit change of topic we are also part of the National Wildlife Federation so yeah we're a designated wildlife habitat too and that's part of what the organic standards require.

Speaker 3: 25:17

We have a certain area of the farm oh, it's probably about 10 acres that we do not do anything with. We just let it stay natural. And about three years ago we had a representative from the county tax office come out and because we weren't farming it, they wanted to tax us differently, because it was just so. We explained to them the purpose of it and so it stayed the way it was as part of our agricultural program.

Speaker 2: 25:56

But that's wonderful wildlife federation.

Speaker 3: 25:58

We're part of that too.

Speaker 2: 25:59

Wildlife habitat and is that something that farmers can also be a part of if they have that kind of piece of land?

Speaker 3: 26:07

dedicated to that personal choice. We just want to be a place where the bugs and birds and animals can survive that's great.

Speaker 2: 26:19

I love that. I mean the mutual beneficial aspect of growing and being able to provide a habitat for the wildlife is a wonderful thing. So I want to know, based on your organic practices, things you've experienced, what advice would you share with someone who's looking to grow and hasn't gone into that world yet, or is looking to transition into organic?

Speaker 3: 26:46

Research. Number one pick your varieties, look at your soil, determine how you're going to water. Water is a big part of what a blueberry requires. It needs. I'm just rough guessing this about 60% moisture in the soil, pretty much always. You can't let it get too dry, you can't let it get too wet. So research what you want to plant and find out exactly what it is that that plant requires, before you even stick it in the ground.

Speaker 4: 27:22

Learn your topography. Learn your soil compositions. Know what you're using for your water source. Have your water tested for all that that's offered for water testing. Know your ph. The ph of your water affects what you're planting greatly because, like a blueberry, we have to fight our water ph. Vegetables and fruit trees may not be an issue. So know your, know your water. And also for water, for food safety a little bit of a tangent here, food safety. You have to test your water while you're in production for pathogens, e coli, salmonella, listeria, all those sorts of things. So do your research. I would say go to your local county extension, talk to your ag representative and say, hey, I'm thinking about doing XYZ. What can you tell me If they don't know? They have the network of University of Florida to ask those questions to people that do know those answers.

Speaker 3: 28:16

And start small.

Speaker 4: 28:17

Yep Start small.

Speaker 3: 28:19

And go slow.

Speaker 2: 28:21

That's great advice. Thank you guys for sharing that. And when you say start small, how small are we talking?

Speaker 4: 28:27

Depends on your crop small. How small are we talking?

Speaker 3: 28:29

depends on your crop right well, it depends on your pocketbook too yeah, it's expensive yes so if you're, you know somebody at home start with your backyard.

Speaker 4: 28:42

If you could make that work and you can do it financially, where you're making somewhat of a profit and meeting your overhead costs, then you can see what it'll take to expand maybe an acre to two acres.

Speaker 3: 28:54

So with a blueberry, don't expect anything worthy of it for about three years. So you have to be able to survive a couple of years without any income. It's all expense up to that point, and then hopefully Mother Nature will treat you right at year three. It would be good.

Speaker 4: 29:15

Know your crop.

Speaker 2: 29:18

So patience is the other key, is what I'm hearing too, also decide when you need income.

Speaker 3: 29:23

You don't want to do blueberries. If you need income from those blueberries on year one.

Speaker 2: 29:28

Right, that's a long process. Well, thank you so much for sharing this. You know very insightful information, and before we wrap everything up, there's a couple of more things I want to point out, which is where can people find more information about Allison Acres? Is there a website, a Facebook page that you guys want to shout out?

Speaker 4: 29:47

So we have a Facebook page. Our website is under construction. So if they look on Facebook and just type in Allison Acres and then Pineta, Florida, you'll be able to find us.

Speaker 2: 29:59

Perfect. And if folks want to actually visit the farm, are there specific hours or events that take place for tours or anything of that nature?

Speaker 4: 30:07

So we are having our first spring long tour May 18th. Check our Facebook, watch our Facebook for updates on that and do you want our address?

Speaker 3: 30:18

We can give you the address. I mean if you. If somebody wants to come up anytime that we're here, they're more than welcome to come up anytime that we're here. Our business hours are seven to three 30. If they want to schedule an appointment, they're more than welcome to come up anytime that we're here. Our business hours are 7 to 3 30. If they want to schedule an appointment, they're more than welcome to come on a scheduled time. We typically are not open on weekends during the majority of the year until we have a harvest and we can open up for you pick. But our office address is 4076 Northeast Highway 150, finetta, Florida, 32350.

Speaker 2: 30:54

Perfect and I want to also just expand a little bit on that upcoming event on May 18th. I know this is a collaborative event also with the Florida Local Food Project at FOG the Florida Local Food Project at FOG. So we're really excited to kick that off with you guys and have that be our first on-farm event in the North Florida area. So this is part of a bigger farm tour, my understanding is correct.

Speaker 4: 31:18

Yes, ma'am, it's Millstone Institute out of Tallahassee, it's all of basically the panhandle up into the South Georgia. It's a self-directed farm tour. You can also go online and look that up on Facebook and they'll have like a guidebook that outlines every farm that's going to be on the tour. The tour is a Saturday and a Sunday. We're only participating on Saturday and people are more than welcome to go to whichever farms they feel like they are interested in.

Speaker 2: 31:48

Perfect. So for everyone listening, if you're interested in being a part of that tour, please check out the about text under the episode for more information about that and other links for Allison Acres and the resources that they mentioned. And with that we've reached the end of today's sweet journey and discussion on organics. We hope you've enjoyed learning about the passion, dedication and ingenuity that goes into cultivating these delicious berries in an organic and sustainable manner. A heartfelt thank you to you both, hank and Jessica, for taking time out of your busy schedules and sharing these insights with us today.

Speaker 3: 32:28

And a heartfelt thank you to you all too. It's been great.

Speaker 2: 32:35

You were actually interested in us, always, every day, and to everyone listening. Please remember to share this with a friend, rate us, tell us what you think about our episodes and as you savor the flavor of your next blueberry treat whether it's a freshly baked pie, a tangy jam or simply a handful of fresh berries remember the hard work and care that farmers pour into every harvest. Let's continue to support our farms and cherish the natural wonders that our planet provides. Until next time, keep embracing the beauty of nature's bounty and savoring the simple joys of farm fresh goodness.

Speaker 1: 33:13

We hope you enjoyed today's episode. Florida Organic Growers is a 501c3 nonprofit organization, so to keep our content available and free to the public, we need your help. Please subscribe, rate and review wherever you listen and consider making a tax deductible donation or become a sponsor. Learn more about our work and how you can become a sponsor from our website, wwwboginfoorg.