Gierke Blueberry Farm

02/19/2026

Normally don't share public service announcements, but I know that a lot of you who follow this page have pets and awareness of the symptoms of your pet eating discarded ma*****na might help some day.

Please be mindful when walking your pets on the trails or even on the ice. It is unfortunate that we have had reports of people dumping cannabis & related product instead of disposing properly. Listed are the most common symptoms of cannabis ingestion. Please contact us if you think your pet has come into contact with any type of product that contains cannabis.

02/01/2026

The tamaracks are adorned with sparkly bling this cold morning. Sorry, the photo couldn't capture them in all their glory. I can see sparkles in the blueberry patch as well. The tamaracks were just noticed first.

01/24/2026

Really reaching to find indoor things to do so as not to have to go outside. Hence why I am conjuring up a lame post that reads like it is very informative about farm life in the UP.

Everyone knows how brutal the winter conditions have been this week (below-zero temps, high winds and snow). I thought I would share how we "manage" snow here at the farm. Ninety percent of the time I am plowing with the farm truck. Sometimes I use the 7' blower on the back of the tractor, but the tractor lacks a cab and so it is more pleasant to use the truck to clear snow. Plus the dog can join me in the truck.

The aerial image shows all the areas (shaded in white) that I keep clear at the start of the season The areas outlined in red are the now packed banks of snow (see the pictures, which I took today), retreating from the original boundary. To start it was 0.69 acres of cleared area, according to the mapping software. Roughly I have filled in about 0.15 acres, but probably more as I have high banks in several other areas that I didn't bother to mark.

I'll do use the tractor to push some of the banks back, especially around the greenhouse, which I need to keep clear so that the snow that is shed does not build up and collapse it. I will also cut some of the banks back a little with the blower on the tractor to give my plow truck room to make it around the west side of the greenhouse. Mostly I will continue to retreat from these areas, lessening what I keep clear. I will probably start using the tractor more, as the blower can throw snow up over the banks I have made.

I was pretty smug about how much firewood I put up this year at the end of December. It seemed then that I had used only about a third and I thought then I might have some left over. But nothing eats up a woodpile like a multiweek polar vortex. These past few days I have felt like those stokers on a steam engine, continuously feeding wood to the fire. We have been feeding both our wood furnace (downstairs) and our woodstove (upstairs). We have now used a bit over half our firewood, which might be enough if we have an early spring. Fingers crossed.

01/11/2026

The art of the three-way head butting is still a work in progress here at the GBbF.

01/04/2026

There was a heartfelt request for goat pictures. Not much else to take pictures of here at the farm during the winter, except for snow. The goats are anxious to roam but they are also deterred by the deep snow. The snow got deep fast this winter, after it got serious. We go out for recess almost everyday. They seem warm enough in their shelters but miss being able to browse/graze unfettered. Hopefully, before we know it, the days will be longer and warmer and we can roam beyond the areas that get plowed. Until then, if you want to visit a stir-crazy goat, dress warm.

11/25/2025

In case anyone is wondering: I estimate that it takes only twice as long to complete farm projects when the goats help...

11/01/2025

Everyone is chipping in to finish preparations for winter at the farm. Frank is holding the ladder while John takes down the gutters we used to collect roof rain runoff for the greenhouse drip irrigation. Otis is stacking and Gus is baahing out unnecessary instructions. Although the tamaracks are mostly gold now, the Sun angle is such that they appear awash in fall gold. For once, more beautiful in the picture than it was in person.

10/25/2025

St. Anne's Home School Co-op visited the farm Thursday and knew we were still in mourning. Despite the cold weather, this warmed our hearts. Stu was 25 years old. Llamas typically live to 20, so his cup overflowed. p.s., a shout out to the Jeffers Middle School who picked and visited here 9/19 for their Farm-to-School project community dinner. They also sent hand-drawn/written cards of appreciation but too many to post.

09/25/2025

Something else to visit if you are in the neighborhood of our farm this weekend

09/25/2025

Quick note that we are going to close for this picking season at the end of the day on Sunday, 9/28. I will be taking down the remaining amenities in between now and then, but not putting up the official closed signs until Sunday night. Thanks, John

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09/18/2025

We are in the last days (picking wise, not Biblically speaking). Amenities have been reduced, as has the parking availability (please park as shown in the map). Road signs are coming down Friday. We'll remain open a week or two longer, TBD, pending the availability of berries. It is looking like that the end will be abrupt. The best picking are the remaining late varieties adjacent to the plowed pasture (to be sown with a cover crop of winter rye and hairy vetch today!) between the solar panels and the field.