Most of the world's blueberry breeders were in Castle Hayne the first weekend in June. That's when Dr. Jim Ballington, professor of horticultural science and long-time blueberry breeder in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and his assistant, Terry Bland, hosted the second Blueberry Breeders' Weekend. Ballington said the first breeders' weekend was two years ago in Corvallis and Lowell, Ore., in conjunction with the USDA, Oregon State University and Fall Creek Nursery. The breeders' weekend was first proposed in 2003 as blueberry breeders toured a breeding program in southern Spain prior to a conference, Ballington recalled. Following the tour, the breeders decided it would be beneficial to meet informally at a breeding program site every several years to review programs and progress in blueberry improvement. The N.C. State University blueberry breeding program was chosen for the second weekend because of the breadth of genetic diversity in the program, the number of cultivar releases the last 10 years and the probability of Ballington's retirement in the next few years. The North Carolina weekend attracted 22 people affiliated with blueberry breeding programs. Ballington said all but two American breeders attended, along with breeders from Australia, New Zealand and Chile. On Saturday, Ballington led the breeders through about 3 acres of breeding plots at the Horticultural Crops Research Station, noting the characteristics of the various plants and answering questions about his program, which is among the largest in the world. The group was chased from the fields by evening rain. On Sunday, the group toured a local blueberry grower's operation. "It's intended to be quite informal," Ballington said of the weekend. "We just get together, look over breeding material and make notes." Some of those notes quickly turn into wish lists. Ballington said he's already getting requests from other breeders for samples of his material

-Dave Caldwell