BLUE HAZE FARM, METCHOSIN

Other parts of this site describe our holly sales.  This part refers to our farm gate fruit sales. 

  Frozen apple juice is no longer  available till later in the season. It has proven so popular that this is the first time in about 10 years that we have sold out. More in late August, watch this site 

If it is convenient, please bring a bag or box.  The current trend doing away with grocery bags will mean we will have fewer donations from customers who have in the past dropped off their bags for us, something much appreciated.

We have, have had,  or will have apples and frozen, pasteurized apple juice, crabapples,  quince and we sometimes have pears, plums,raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, figs, rhubarb,  kiwis and other fruit in season; drop by or phone or e-mail us.

For Holly, see the holly part of this website for us to send gift boxes to almost anywhere in Canada or USA.  Picked up at the farm, it's $4.00/lb, dipped to keep it fresher.  Self serve, like the fruit descriptions below.

For FIGS please note:  for the 2nd time in about 12 years of growing figs a flock of starlings descended upon the trees when the figs were about 2/3 ripe, a couple of days ago. Only a few figs have so far escaped their attention.  The trees are about 15 feet tall now (too high to properly cover them) so I intend to prune them drastically to a lower height this winter and, like the blueberries and raspberries, enclose them.  This will mean perhaps a few figs in 2010 and hopefully many the following year.  Stay tuned to this website for further information! If you see a flock of fat starlings this year give them my best wishes but they will have to look elsewhere in the future.  The two kinds of starlings here are an introduced bird so they do not belong here.

OPEN 8:00 AM TILL DARK 7 DAYS A WEEK

We do not have honey available now.  We will post here when and  when we have it.

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UPDATED March 2, 2010

Apple Juice (frozen) in 2 litre bottles will be available in late August. TO CONTACT US CALL 250-474-5043, FAX 250-474-4577 OR E-MAIL US AT

    holly@hollychristmas.com

OR

hollychristmas@shaw.ca

 More apples in August 2010!!!   

We rarely ship fruit, especially out-of-the-country ... it is "farm-gate" or "pick-up-at-the farm" only. Fruit weighs heavily and is expensive to pack and ship.  We do NOT at present sell fruit or holly trees.

We have some of the standard apple varieties like McIntosh and spartan but we specialize in odd or old varieties than never make it to the supermarket ... this is an opportunity to try some of them.

Our address is 3817 Duke Road in Metchosin (more sheep than people) , near Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V9C 4B2.  It is about a 1/2 hour drive from Victoria. 

From Victoria take Highway #1 north, and the Colwood exit #12.  You are on 1-A and on Sooke Road.  Continue to follow  Sooke Road, past Colwood Corners (London Drugs & Thrifty Foods), continue past Royal Roads University, turn left on Metchosin Road, go completely through the large gravel pit on Metchosin road and turn left onto Duke Road, then down by the water, watch for our sign "Apples" or "Juice" on the water side. 

Alternately, take Highway #1 north, exit to Langford exit #14 which puts you on the Veteran's Memorial Parkway.  Follow the parkway past the Westshore Shopping Centre (Canadian Tire, Wal-mart) until the parkway ends abruptly at a "T" intersection.  You can't miss this as there is a rather imposing rock cliff facing you. Turn left, then right at the next "T" intersection and you are on Metchosin Road.  When completely through the large gravel pit, turn left onto Duke Road, then down by the water at 3817 Duke Road.

We have had our porch refaced with "river rock" by Joe Thompson, a long-time stone mason from Colwood.  The former (brick) wall, over 30 years old, suddenly fell over.  Scott Paterson has done the porch resurfacing.  We've now moved the sales area back to the porch.

We generally keep the tall, wrought-iron gate closed but turn in, lean out your car window and push the button.  Same when leaving.  But PLEASE, don't let any passing deer see you using the button which opens the gate.  We hope they never learn!!  The gate will close behind you and you can open it again when leaving.   

We specialize in many varieties, some of which never normally reach stores.   None of our apples are stored, so they are only available in the growing season.  They are not waxed or otherwise treated.  No pesticides were applied. Apple varieties which were or will be available are:  yellow transparent, summer red, gravenstein, wealthy, spartan, MacIntosh, yellow delicious, red delicious, jonagold, melrose, mutsu, coxes, king, gala, northern spy, winter banana, fuji, elstar, bramleys (an English cooking apple).  We have two varieties of crabapples (dolgo & hyslop) which make great jelly. Also, quince, not a pear (but looks like a yellow pear), but they make a great jelly. And in May, we have rhubarb and later off and on we have raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and figs.  We have over 400 fruit trees but some years some varieties refuse to co-operate and we get very few of them.  One year in the past, and this year,  we lost almost every fig just before ripening.

DID YOU KNOW?:   Apples of each variety are grafted onto a root-stock.  The  grafted wood (which becomes the main part of the tree on which the fruit grows)  perpetuates the variety (i.e. spartan, mutsu etc.) and the root-stock controls the ultimate size of the tree (standard, dwarf, semi-dwarf etc).  So apples are not  normally reproduced from seedlings. Of course it is from seedlings that new varieties generally arise ...  seedlings that are discovered to be flavorful, disease resistent etc. which are then perpetuated by grafting.  Most of our trees, like in most orchards now,  are dwarf or semi-dwarf in size (4 to12 ft in height)... easier to care for and pick. 

PRICES:   WHEN AVAILABLE:  Various varieties of apples,  pears etc are $1.00/ lb.   Crabapples and quince are $1.25/lb.  Figs are $3.00 / lb. Apple juice is $6.00 / 2 litre bottle.   Rhubarb, when available, is $1.00/lb. Raspberries are $2.50/pint (over 1/2 pound). Blueberries and blackberries are $3.00/qt basket (over a pound). Comb/chunk honey is $8.00/ 500 gm bottle and $15.00/1 kg bottle. 

In limited quantities, in  late August and early September,  we  have some Desert King (green type) figs. In October we  have quince,  which are a hard, yellow, pear-like fruit which can be baked, or used in chutney and various recipes, but are best know for making great jam or jelly.  Like our crabapples. We sometimes have a few Italian prune and yellow plums  and occasionally will have some pears (Josephine de Malines & Flemish beauty) and sour cherries . No sour cherries in 2009.  Also kiwi fruit in November/December.

If you need recipes there are many on the web.  Try Googling "quince recipes" or whatever you are interested in.

Most of the apples are "multipurpose".  That is, they are good for eating (depending on your taste) and cooking. Some make a softer, apple sauce type pie, and others a lumpier pie.  Bramleys (Bramleys Seedling) make a good pie. Some people mix them in pie.  About 2 pounds yield a 9-inch pie. 

Our apple juice is made from our whole, fresh-picked apples,   UV (ultra-violet light) cold pasteurized by Phil's Farm on Oldfield Road, we have it available in 2-litre plastic bottles at 6 dollars. We have had to raise the price this year due to juicing and container costs.

Absolutely no additives,  frozen.  Thaw, shake and enjoy. We sometimes add some ice cubes and a little water in the glass, as it is that concentrated.  Our apple sauce is brown due to suspended apple;  a clear apple juice generally means clarifying agents have been added and most of the nutrients have been removed.

If you have fruit trees and a surplus of apples and a freezer, Phil does custom juicing, if you have at least 100 pounds (that's only perhaps four paper grocery bags full.

Note:  If you  have yellow transparent or gravenstein apples, or some of the less common varieties perhaps, we might want to to buy some from you.  This way we can help some of our customers who are anxious for these varieties but we only have a limited supply. Help us share some of the less common but still desirable varieties.  250-474-5043 or e-mail at holly@hollychristmas.com

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The following tree fruits are available seasonally.  We leave them on the website simply to show you what will be available as they ripen from approximately mid-August until mid-January each year. We'll note below which are actually available currently.

We will annotate the varieties listed below WHEN THEY ARE AVAILABLE:   in Red text.  In Green are upcoming and in blue are finished this season.

APPLES AND OTHER TREE FRUIT:

Some limited varieties of apples should be available in late July and some will be available until early December. 

VARIETIES BELOW IN RED ARE  AVAILABLE NOW.  THOSE IN GREEN  ARE NOT YET RIPE AND READY ... AND IN BLUE ARE FINISHED FOR THE SEASON.

Sour cherries:  We sometimes have a few but not this year.  Contact us in early July next year if you are interested and we'll save you some for 2010.  Sorry we do not have any available for the 2009 season.

Yellow transparent:      Finished for the season.  Anyway the birds get most of them. Yellow-green.  Especially good for pies. They tend to be a little soft, and like most early apples do not store for long.  

Summer red. Finished for the season.   Somewhat sweeter than many  apples when fully ripe.  Our earliest main crop apple.  We don't like to pick them too early.  Flavorful, crunchy but keep only a few weeks, like most early apples.

Dolgo crabapples: Finished for the season.  Dolgo are small, deep red crabapples, slightly sweet but tart flavour.  Some people like these because the jelly is slightly pink in color but we think the flavor of the jelly of both crabapples is similar.

Figs: Finished for the season. Desert King, a "green" fig,   is the best variety for ripening in our climate; late August and early Sept.  About 5-6 per lb. Some people like them soft, and a few like them just "dripping" with juice. They can be frozen but then they're best for putting on desserts such as icecream. They ripen progressively so it's best to e-mail or telephone us and indicate how many pounds and approximately when you can make it out here and we'll contact you. But as we have said, there will be very few if any figs this year.

Hyslop crabapples:    Finished for the season. They are a  large (compared to the earlier dolgo crabapples), yellow and red crabapple.  Generally available in September. They make excellent juice for jelly.  It would be advisable to call (474-5043) or e-mail us so that we can insure that a bag or box containing the quantity you want is set aside for you, as they seem to keep better when left on the tree. 

Gravenstein:     Finished for the season. Gravenstein are not the prettiest apple but popular amongst those who know this variety.  Said to originate in Denmark. A distinctive flavour; good for eating and especially good for pies. 

Wealthy:    Finished for the season. A green and red apple which is good eating but also makes a good applesauce because it tends to discolor less with exposure to air .... the result is a lighter applesauce than made from most apples. It dates back to 1869 and is noted as a particularly good eating and cooking apple.

Spartan:   Finished for the season.   Probably the most popular but the newer Jonagold are running a close second. A deep red.  Good for pies or eating.   This apple was developed in Summerland by Agriculture Canada as a  McIntosh/ Yellow Newtown/ Pippin cross.  Crisp, pure white flesh, small core.  Cooks soft and smooth. Stores well but tends to soften ... still good for pies and applesauce. 

Mcintosh:    Finished for the season. An old Canadian favorite, originated in Eastern Ontario in the 1820s.  It ranges from medium to large in size and from round to oblate in shape with a green base and bright to deep red color. Looks very much like spartan. It is a high quality apple that is prized for dessert purposed. Cooks soft and smooth.A distinctive aroma and a delicious "tangy" flavour. .

King:    Finished for the season. A large apple, convenient sized for cooking but excellent to eat. Crisp. An older variety hard to find. Stores well but tends to soften in storage.

Jonagold:    Finished for the season. Excellent eating apple with crisp, juicy flesh and good flavor.  Also excellent for cooking ...  they tend to be large in size and so are easy to prepare.  Great in salads.  A cross between golden delicious and Jonathan.  Good keeper.

Gala:  Finished for the season.   Cross between Kidd's orange & golden delicious. An excellent quality eating apple.  Medium size fruit, cream flesh, firm, crisp, fine-textured, juicy and fairly sweet with good aromatic flavour.  Yellow with bright red stripes.  Will store for several months.

Elstar:   Finished for the season. Golden delicious X Ingrid Marie cross.  Excellent eating apple.  Fairly new, medium sized apple from Holland with outstanding juiciness and tart-sweet flavour.  Greenish yellow flushed with bright red.  Stores for several months.

Melrose:  Finished for the season. Jonathon X red delicious cross.  Excellent cooking and eating apple.  Medium to large with firm, crisp, green-tinged flesh. Dull copper-red blush over greenish yellow skin; often russeted.  Stores for several months; best to leave to age for a week or two.

Northern Spy:     Finished for the season. Originated in New York in the 1800's, a large, roundish apple, green sometimes with a red, striped coast.  flesh is firm tender and juicy.  A good eating apple but particularly prized for pies.  Best to order as we have a limited supply.

Bramley's Seedling:  Finished for the season. The classic English cooking apple.  Often very large.  Flesh tart, firm, yellowish and rather dry.  Smooth waxy skin yellowish green in colour with dull blotchy brownish red stripes. 

Cox's:     Finished for the season.  Not the nicest looking apple, red/green with a russeting but still a favorite English eating apple.  A russet apple.   We may have a few .... contact us.  There are many sub-varieties, such as Cox's red, with similar but a little different  flavour.  Karmijn, see further below,  is a more modern but similar variety.

Fuji:  Finished for the season. Cream colored inside, firm but juicy, sweet.  A dull red in color, excellent for all purposes. Has a greenish cast, overlapped with pink.  A late season apple. Stores well.

Mutsu:    Finished for the season. Crisp, juicy with a distinctive, delicate tart-spicy flavour. Large, yellow-green blushed with coppery color.  Similar to golden delicious.  Good for cooking and baking, as well as eating out-of-hand.  Golden delicious X Indo.  Stores well. Some people, we are told, leave in peel when making applesauce as it improves the flavor.

Newtown (Newton):  Finished for the season. Tart and tangy, hard and crisp. All green, or with a very slight yellowish tinge.  Cooks firm.  Very good keepers, excellent for fresh eating and cooking.  May have originated in Newton, Long Island between 1700 and 1750 but some believe it is of English origin.  In any case it is probably one of the oldest apple cultivars still commonly available. 

Golden Delicious:   Finished for the season. Not related to the red delicious.   Originated in Virginia in 1916.  Pale yellow, sometimes a light orange flush, one of the most popular apple varieties.  Sweet, somewhat soft,  and low in acidity. Keeps well. There must be several variants because our ripen much later than some others grown locally.

Red Delicious:  .  Finished for the season. A really old "stand-by".  Red, firm.   Very good keeper and resistant to shipping and handling damage; hence its popularity in many stores.  When recently picked can have a surprisingly good flavour.  Loses flavour after storage (we think)  but always good for pies etc.

Winter Banana:    Finished for the season. This one is believed to have originated in Indiana, an old heirloom variety,   possibly in 1876.  A medium to large apple.  Pale yellow color with rosy blush. Naturally waxy skin (we never coat any of our apples with waxes).  Juicy, tangy and aromatic, sweet and tart, a little acidic.  Dense, crisp texture, slight banana aroma.  Good looking apple.  Good for eating or cooking. Stores for several months.

Karmijin de Sonneville:    Finished for the season. One of the cox family, and a russet. We have several young trees which are just starting to produce.  We hope to have a larger supply next year.  The variety originated in Holland about 1971.  It is a cox's orange pipin cross with Jonathon (cox op x Jonathon).    It is attractive, red, very crisp, slightly honeyed, aromatic, acidic and russeted. It is suggested that it be stored for a couple of weeks (after picking) at which time it reaches its peak flavour

 Quince:     Finished for the season. Small crop this year.  Quince are a distinct yellow, slightly fuzzy, pear-shaped fruit. They are neither apple nor pear but an entirely different fruit.

Hard and astringent, attractive odor .... rarely eaten out of hand but made into jelly, baked, used in chutney, a paste with cheese etc. They are normally processed by simply chopping them up ...you don't have to bother to peel or core them unless you prefer to do so.  Process like you would make crabapple or other jellies.  Google "quince recipes". If you make jelly you will want to include this one, either pure or mixed with crabapple or something else.  Mixed with apple they enhance an "apple" pie.

We are told that 3 1/2 lbs of quince with 7 cups of water make about 4-6 cups of jelly;  about 6 1/2   8 oz jars. 

For some unknown reason about half the crop develop distinct splits.  Since you will usually be just chopping them up that is no problem, except that they do not keep more than a day or two without developing decay along the splits, which then has to be cut out during processing. We generally sell split ones for about 1/2 price (50 cents/lb).  A bargain if you are going to process them within a day or two. 

Kiwi:    No longer available.  Keep cool, bring out what you need into the warmth for a week or two to ripen and enjoy. They tend to be smaller than what you often see in the stores but we charge by the pound ($1.00).

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Email: holly@hollychristmas.com