Raspberry Fields Forever

The brilliant sun, cool to cold nights, rich salt free valley soil, and afternoon rains combine to produce a berry that is sweet, firm, and filled with flavor. Nestled in the eastern foothills of the beautiful Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range the Salman Raspberry Ranch consists of six acres of raspberries grown with attention to every detail. The field is hand weeded, watered from the snowy run off of the mountains that frame this lovely valley, and fertilized as needed based on soil readings. No herbicides or pesticides are used on the crop, and customers often eat their berries straight from the vine. Surrounding the berry field are crops of alfalfa and grass, flowers which are picked for bouquets in the Ranch Store, a vegetable garden, and the honey bee hives which help to grow the lush crops. The air is frequently redolent with the fragrance of freshly cut hay and warmed by the ever present sun which is part of the allure of this "Big Sky" country.

Six different varieties of raspberry (carolinas, autumn brittens and autumn bliss, heritage, polentas, and polkas) are grown on the Ranch, each with a slightly different flavor and maturing at slightly different times. Each berry is distinct in its shape, texture, and to some extent taste. When ripe the berries are deep red in color and detach easily from the cane. Raspberries have been grown by the Salman Family since 1982, and the decades of experience with this crop is seen in the quality of the fruit produced. Year after year the same customers reappear at the Berry House, waiting in line for their picking containers and anxious to begin to gather the berries that, in many cases,  having frozen them whole and without sugar, will last them until next year's crop is ready to be harvested.

The U Pick It Field is a perfect family outing. CHILDREN LOVE IT; many of them have never had the opportunity to actually harvest the food they eat.  DOGS, on leashes love to pick up the berries dropped on the ground, especially labradors, and more particularly, yellow ones.  After picking until your two, four, or ten pound containers are filled, (some have picked several hundred dollars worth), a trip to the CAFE for a salad or a sandwich or frito pie along with something really sweet and cold like the SALMAN RANCH RASPBERRY SUNDAES is clearly in order.  And then on your way home, stop for the delicious raspberry jam (use your berries for other delicacies), vinegar, or topping, along with other tasty food items, hand picked, for their quality and uniqueness.  The RANCH STORE  walls are covered in local art and the beautiful photography of Karl Koenig who captures northern New Mexico is all its eccentricity and uniqueness.