UNION CO., Miss. - "I love blackberries fresh, for pies and cobblers and all," Pleasant Ridge's Robert Hays explains. "So my mom, as a Christmas present, gave me my first six plants and I set them out in the spring of 2001."

It didn't take long for neighbors to notice Robert Hays' antioxidant-rich blackberries.

Within a year he added four more plants to his garden. Four years later Hays had five times as many and it still wasn't enough.

"Instead of giving away 40-50 gallons a year, I'd start selling them to get a little side money, to pay for my time anyway," Hays says. "Then in 2006 I had about 50 plants producing berries. 2007 I had about a 150; 2008 I had 300."

Today 1,600 blackberry plants are growing in what has become Hays' farm. Another 600 plants will be added by next spring.

As his crop expands, so does the demand.

"Local fruit stands from Oxford to Tupelo, I've got one in Pontotoc and all the way up to Corinth that buys berries from me," Hays says. "Also I've got a winery in South Mississippi in Natchez that has bought a few berries from me this year, starting next year they want two-thousand gallons a year."

The Jackson School District has also put in an order for several-thousand gallons, for its school lunch program.

"If it continues to have success in the next two or thee years, from what I'm told, the state of Mississippi is going to try to get other school districts to incorporate this food program," Hays says.

Being the only blackberry farmer in the state, Robert Hays' hankering for blackberry cobbler is, very likely, about to turn into a full time job.

"I never dreamed of doing this for a living," Hays says. "After this year, it will be a full time job."

Blackberries have several health benefits. They can help prevent breast cancer and cervical cancer, they provide protection against chronic disease, they have anti-bacterial properties and help cleanse blood.  Blackberries contain a pain reliever and they have high fiber content.