Meet Tennessee Farm Fresh Producer of the Month:
Jon Kelly with Kelly's Berry Farms

Are you a berry lover? If you are, you don’t have to travel too far to find some fresh home-grown berries here in Tennessee. At Kelly’s Berry Farm, you have options. If you come out to the farm in May, you will find rows and rows of strawberries. If June is the first time you get to come out and visit, you’ll find plenty of fresh blueberries and blackberries in season!

Jon and Pat Kelly are brothers who run Kelly’s Berry Farm, and it is
no secret that they know their berries.  They have been growing strawberries since the 70s, the blueberries followed in the 80s and the blackberries were introduced to the farm in the 90s, although in years past the berries haven’t always been the Kelly’s prime focus.  They learned what labor intensive crops were like from their experience growing tobacco (and let’s just note:  it is not easy).  The Kelly’s also grew hay and some nursery stock as well before fully getting involved with the berries.

May of 2009 was a challenging season for many strawberry farmers in Tennessee. The Kelly’s had three inches of rain fall on their fields in a matter of hours one evening, and ten inches over the course of one week.  The sun has begun to shine again and all that moisture has definitely not stopped the demand for strawberry picking! When it’s not too wet, there are berries to be picked, and people ready to pick them.  If you do not feel like “picking your own,” you have the “pre picked” option as well.  The blueberries and blackberries are looking strong and will be here soon!

 You can find Kelly’s Berries at a few different places. They sell them right off the farm at 50 Riverview Ln Castalian Springs, TN.  You can also find them at the Franklin Farmers Market on Saturdays, Hwy 96 in Franklin, and at their roadside stand in Hendersonville. You may want to find them soon, time flies and the season for berries will be here and gone before you know it! For more information click on “Find a Farmer” and check more information about the Kellys and other Tennessee Farm Fresh producers near you!

Tennessee Farm Fresh + P.O. Box 313 Columbia, TN 38402 + 931-388-7872 ext. 2763 + fax # 931-388-5818