Apple Picking in the Greater Boston Area

Now that September is here and the kids have started back to school, fall weather and fall foliage can’t be far behind. This also means that apple picking time is here, and if you weren’t spending all of your August weekends on the beach, you may have already visited some of the local farms to pick early arrivals like Jersey Mac, Gravenstein, or Puritan apples. Not to worry if you missed these, there will still be plenty of other varieties in September and October.

Source: morgueFile

As you can see, some of the farms offer apple varieties not commonly found in supermarkets or produce markets. The chance to try a new kind of apple is one of the reasons for picking your own. If you’re interested in picking a particular variety of apple, call ahead or check the orchard’s web site to be sure they are ready to be harvested, otherwise select a farm, drive out and be surprised.

While there are no apple picking venues inside Rt 128, there are quite a few inside Rt 495. If you really want to make a day of it and pick several apple varieties, some pears, sample cider, and take advantage of family oriented activities, then consider going out to the Stow/Bolton/Harvard area where there are approximately a dozen farms open for picking. In Harvard at Doe Orchards you still may be able to pick peaches (until mid-Sept) along with your apples. In Stow at Honey Pot Hill Orchards you can pick apples now and starting mid-Sept, pears to go with them. Want a little beer or wine to go with your produce, or a nice meal? Consider visiting the Nashoba Valley Winery in Bolton where you can choose from over a dozen apple varieties, peaches and plums while they last, take a tasting tour of the winery and having worked up an appetite picking, enjoy a meal.

If you live in Boston and are looking for something closer than Bolton or you live north of the city, consider driving to Danvers. There you’ll find Brooksby Farm where you can pick apples and visit a variety of farm animals. A short distance away you’ll find Connors Farm where you can pick apples, enjoy apple cider and apple cider donuts, and relax on a hayride.

South of the city you’ll find C.N Smith Farm and Singleton Orchards, both in East Bridgewater. Further west you’ll find farms in Wrentham, Franklin, Holliston, Sherborn and South Natick.

For more information on apple picking in Boston – Apple Picking in Boston