Last year, Emily Spear, Emma Dames, and Shira Shen picked blueberries at Fox Trail U-Pick blue berry farm. This year, Fox Trail Farm will join Cornell Cooperative Extension Open Farm Day on July 18. Owners Kirsten and Dustin Spear look forward to inviting all to their farm, located at 776 County Road 42 in South Otselic. (Photo by Kirsten Spear)

SOUTH OTSELIC — Fox Trail Farm will join Cornell Cooperative Extensions’ Open Farm Day, July 18, and owners Kirsten and Dustin Spear look forward to inviting all to their U-Pick blueberry farm, located at 776 County Road 42 in South Otselic.

Kirsten said this is their first time joining Open Farm Day, adding they will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with over 1,000 ripened blueberry bushes ready for picking.

She said she will be on site to answer any questions and will also give tours, adding, “It’s a wonderful experience to pick blueberries with your family and we’re so excited to be a part of the Open Farm Day program, especially with the timing, as it’s blueberry season from mid-July into August.”

They also have a self-serve farm stand open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and will post opening business day for the stand on their Fox Trail Farm Facebook page.

Learning about blueberries and the maintenance process had its challenges, but Kirsten said they were ‘happy challenges’ as she loves to learn new things, adding, “There’s a learning curve there.”

Recently, the Spears have been busy pruning their blueberry bushes. That will continue through mid-May.

She noted the bees that come in to pollinate the flowering bushes aren’t honey bees. Blueberries are native to America and were here before the honey bees came over on the boats, but they do have a few small bees that pollinate and larger bees that sonicate the flower.