PRODUCT INFORMATION No artificial preservatives added  No pesticides used on fruit  No coloring added into the jars  All fruit is grown on farm, except cranberry

From the bloom or young fruit shown below, the mature fruit is handpicked and sent directly to the kitchen for processing.  As highlighted above, we grow all the fruit, except cranberry and in some instances fig.  There are no pesticides used on the fruit nor do we put preservatives into the recipes.  We like to prepare our product using natural ingredients.

There are different varieties of each fruit grown.  The blueberries are Southern Rabbiteyes of which there are four different varieties, namely Climax, Premier, Bluebonnet and Tifblue.  These varieties do surprisingly well in our warm and humid climate.  One half of the blueberry crop goes to the local market and the other one half we process into pepper jam and regular jam.

The variety of blackberry the farm grows is primarily Kiowa.  We have tried the other varieties and so far this one has been the best.  Picking is difficult because of the thorns and when we plant another section we may try a variety which does not have thorns.  The Kiowa berries are big, full of juice and make an excellent jelly.  Because of the seeds, we make jelly instead of a jam.  The jelly is robust and full of flavor.

We also prepare a Cranberry Pepper Jam and include a jar in all Christmas packages.  The fruit is  traditional on all holiday tables, but with the added jalapeno it will add moisture plus taste to your ham or turkey dinner.

The fig trees on the farm are Celeste, but we also buy Black Mission.  The fruit on the Celeste is very sweet, but the fruit is often too small for our commercial use.  When we plant again it will probably be with Improved Celeste. 

On the other hand, our persimmon trees are very productive, and if you want to taste persimmon at its finest, try a jar.  Our trees are Fuyu, which is a native variety to Japan and the fruit is non-astringent.  Once peeled, it can be eaten like an apple.  The meat is hard and it has a wonderful flavor.

It is difficult to say which pepper jelly is our best.  It solely depends on your taste and likes of the different fruit and berries.  But I guarantee you, if you ever try the Satsuma pepper jelly glaze over salmon or duck you will order a case.  Satsuma is a mandarin citrus fruit in the tangerine family.  We harvest our trees in November and December and sell into the local market.  We grow more than enough fruit to make pepper jam and regular jelly for our jam and jelly market.

Mayhaw is a fruit which is native to most of the Southern states.  The fruit matures into nickel sized red fruit which looks like a miniature apple.  It is bitter to eat but it makes a marvelous jelly, and with habanero peppers added, the taste is sweet and unique.

Another local favorite is muscadine jelly.  Most of our jelly is made from the Ison muscadine variety.  The vines produce their mature fruit in August and each grape has to be handpicked one at a time.  It is labor intensive, but if you try a jar, I think you will know that the time spent to harvest is worth the effort.

We know that whatever jar you select that it will be one of the finest jams or jellies you ever tasted.