2024 Southwest England Blackberry U-Pick Farms and Orchards

Blackberry U-Pick Orchards in Southwest England in 2024, by county

Below are the PYO orchards and farms for blackberries and other brambles that we know of in this area. Not all areas have blackberries and other brambles orchards or farms that are open to the public. If you know of any others, please tell us using the add a farm form!

Remember to always check with the farm's own website or Facebook page before you go - or call or email them if they don't have a website or Facebook page. Conditions at the farms and crops can change literally overnight, so if you want to avoid a wasted trip out there - check with the farm directly before you go! If I cannot reach them, I DON'T GO!

PLEASE report closed farms, broken links and incorrect info using the "Report Corrections" form below.

Avon

Oddly, there appear to be no PYO farms in Avon.

Dorset

• Cat and Fiddle Farm and Café - Strawberries, Raspberries, blackberries, Tayberries, Gooseberries, Blackcurrants, Redcurrants, Plums, Runner Beans, Broad Beans and Pumpkins
  Lyndhurst Road, Hinton, Christchurch BH23 7DS. Phone: 01425 672451. Alternate phone: 07587 633111. Email: sopleyfarm@live.co.uk. Open: 7 days a week; May (farm shop only) 10am - 4pm; June - Sept 9am - 6pm; October 10am - 4pm and late every Thursday throughout October for pumpkin picking, from 10am, Last picking 7pm, gates close at 7.30pm Directions: 2 miles from Christchurch , 5 miles from Ringwood on B3347. At Sopley village, take road to Bransgore ( Derritt Lane ) for 0.5 miles. AKA, Dan Tanners. We grow a wide variety of tasty fruit and vegetables. Pick your own or pop into the farm shop for a ready picked selection and enjoy tea, cake, ice cream and more in the café. No need to book - No dogs on the field In 2020, pumpkins are priced at 60p per kg. They have parking, toilets, a picnic area, farm shop and cafe. Some of the fruit and veg are grown for Pick Your Own, and some for selling ready picked through our farm shop and at Farmers Markets across the South of England. Directions: Hinton on the A35 Lyndhurst Road, 2 miles from Christchurch. It really is a great day out and both fun and educational for the children. We do not charge an entrance fee, you just pay for what you pick. Payment: Cash, credit cards, debit cards. There are wheelbarrows and sledges to help pickers transport their pumpkins. We also have Ready Picked available when in season: Asparagus, Rhubarb, Courgettes, Marrows, Potatoes, Garlic, Sweetcorn and some varieties of Squash. You will also find in our Farm Shop fresh free range eggs and local Dorset Honey along with seasonal salad and vegetable produce of which we don’t grow ourselves, but are still grown locally. These include carrots, beetroot, cauliflower, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers and several varieties of lettuce.(formerly called Sopley Farm Farmshop and PYO) (UPDATED: 7 October 2020 JBS)
• Lenctenbury Farm - blueberries, raspberries (red), strawberries, pumpkins
  Soldiers Road Norden, Corfe Castle, BH20 5DU. Phone: 07798743877. Email: office@purbeckfood.co.uk. Open: Every day 10am to 5pm while fruit is in season, usually June to October, daily from 12th October 10:00-17:00 for pumpkin picking in the field plus in the barn there will be ready picked pumpkins, squash and gourds for eating and decorating use.. Click here for current open hours, days and dates. Directions: The farm is just off the A351 between Wareham and Corfe Castle. Turn opposite The Halfway Inn and the gate is 150 metres on the left. Postcode BH20 5DU. We are opposite The Halfway Inn on the A351 between Wareham and Corfe Castle.Payment: Cash, credit cards. Click here for our Facebook page. PYO Pumpkins are priced by the weight and will be 90p per kg (2020 price). There will be sledges available for the children (and adults) to drag their pumpkins from the field back to the barn and these will be disinfected between every use. Please come during the week if you can as it is likely to be busy at weekends. Maximum group size is 6 unless everyone is from the same family and we will be limiting the number of groups in the field at one time so there is the potential that customers will have to wait until there is space to go at busy times (weekends). Parking is available right next to the barn and it is 90 metres walk to the pumpkin field. No dogs allowed in the picking fields. Strawberries are usually in season from late June to August. Raspberries are usually in season during July and August. Blueberries are usually in season from early July until the end of August or early September depending on the weather. (UPDATED: 7 October 2020 JBS)) (UPDATED: August 05, 2015)
• Sutton Farm PYO - Fruit and vegetables
  Sutton Hokes, Verwood. Phone: 01202 814236. Open: Please call for opening hours.
• West Holme Farm - PYO: Strawberries, Raspberries, blackberries, Loganberries, Blackcurrants, Redcurrants and Gooseberries.
  Wareham, Dorset BH20 6AQ, Phone: 01929 554716. Fax: 01929 551616. Email: office@holmefg.co.uk. They also have a bed and breakfast!
  A visitor writes on August 12, 2011: "We visited Holme Farm PYO near Wareham.  It was very well signposted and laid out and they had a lot of produce, plus a well stocked garden centre, cafe and farm shop.  It was a great place even if you didn't want to PYO!"

Gloucestershire

• Hayles Fruit Farm - PYO fruit: Apples, plums, red and blackcurrants, strawberries, Raspberries, gooseberries, Tayberries, Farm Shop, Tea Room
  Winchcombe Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL54 5PB. Phone: 1242-602123. Alternate Phone: 01242 603320. Email: info@HaylesFruitFarm.co.uk. Open: daily from 9 am to 5 pm PYO fields during harvest (usually June ⁄ July) and pick your own strawberries and other soft fruit, Just give us a quick call before you come because harvest dates are very dependent on the weather. Directions: Between Toddington and Winchcombe off the B4632, Next to Hayles Abbey. Follow the signs from the main road. Ample parking, scenic walks, farm trail, picnic area, tea room, easy access for disabled, toilets, disabled facilities, caravan and campsite, fishing lake, nature trail. Also fresh-pressed apple juice.
  Our farm shop prides itself on stocking a wide range of home grown and locally sourced goods. Open throughout the year there is always an array of seasonal fruit and veg. Add to this an eclectic selection of meat, cheese, preserves, oils, cakes, cordials - all supplied by local producers with the same ethos as ourselves - and we feel sure you’ll find something to whet your appetite. The shop also provides a ‘shop window’ for our own award winning apple juice & cider. The fruit is grown, pressed, pasteurised and bottled on the farm to bring you a product that really does involve ‘zero food miles’.(UPDATED: 24 July 2020 JBS)
• Over Farm Market -SEE THE UPDATE BELOW, sunflowers, pumpkins, strawberries, U-pick and already picked, farm market, gift shop, concessions / refreshment stand, farm animals, birthday parties, weddings and wedding parties, school tours
  Over, Gloucester, GL2 8DB. Phone: 01452 521014. Open: Monday to Saturday, from 9 am to 6 pm; Sunday, from 9:30 am to 5 pm. Picking updates: Click here for picking updates. Directions: On the A40, just one mile from Gloucester. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Debit cards, Visa/MasterCard, preferably by contactless and/or Apple/Google Pay. Click here for our Facebook page. Picking strawberries at Over Farm is really easy as all our strawberries are on table tops, so you can do it standing up. No backbreaking bending over required!in 2020, Strawberries are from £6.50 per kg and raspberries and blackberries are from £9.00 per kg (depending on supply). Dogs are allowed in the PYO field but they must be on a lead and please clear up after them. No picnics are allowed in the PYO field please. Our brand new Food Truck is offering a delicious range of bacon butties, burgers, hot dogs, loaded fries and caffeine treats, you really can’t go wrong! Food truck from 10am to 4pm, card only please.
  UPDATE for 2024: apparently, they no longer have PYO raspberries or blackberries, just strawberries, sunflowers and pumpkins.
  (UPDATED: 24 July 2024 JBS) (ADDED: June 17, 2015)
  
  
• Primrose Vale Farm Shop & Pyo - beans, blackberries, boysenberries, broad beans, corn (sweet), currants (red and black), gooseberries, Loganberries, other berries, pumpkins, Raspberries, strawberries, Tayberries, pumpkins, pumpkin patch-pick in the field, pumpkin patch- already gathered from the field, other vegetables, restrooms, picnic area
  Shurdington Road Bentham, Cheltenham, GL51 4UA. Phone: 01452 863359. Fax: 01452 864592. Email: info@primrosevale.com. Open: June to September (inclusive) Mon - Sat 9am - 6pm, Sun 10am - 5pm; (June & July Sun 9am - 6pm); October to May (inclusive) Mon - Sat 9am - 5pm, Sun 10am - 4pm. Directions: Find us off the A46 Shurdington Road, 50 yards from the A46 / A417 junction, towards Cheltenham. Not far from the M5 junction 11A, 4.5 miles from Gloucester, 3.5 miles from Cheltenahm. Click here for a map and directions. Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries: June - September Currants: July, Gooseberries, Broad Beans: Mid June - Mid July, Sweetcorn August - Sept. Click here for picking updates. Payment: Cash, Check, Visa/MasterCard, Debit. Farm shop open year round, selling our own and local produce, even when the picking fields are closed.
• Wotton Farm Shop - blackberries, blueberries, broad beans, currants (red and black), raspberries (red), raspberries (Spring, red),raspberries (Autumn, red), Tayberries, already-picked produce (of the pyo crop), snacks and refreshment stand
  Bradley Road, Wotton-under-edge, GL12 7DT. Phone: 01453 521546. Email: info@wottonfarmshop.co.uk. Open: Please see our website for PYO times (typically Daily picking until 4.30pm Monday - Saturday and 3pm Sunday, but check first). Click here for current open hours, days and dates. Directions: From M5 Exit at junction 14. Follow signs for Charfield and Wotton-under-edge. Go through Charfield. When arriving in Wotton turn left at the T-Junction (by Shell garage). Head out of town you will find us on the left hand side the first field out of the town. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Debit cards, Visa/MasterCard. On site farm shop. We took the backache out of strawberry picking a few years ago when we developed our unique tabletop growing system. Because of it’s qualities we only use one strawberry variety ‘Sonata’, which produces large, sweet fruit of the very best quality. When you have finished picking your produce, relax with a drink and a snack at our picnic tables outside the shop, and take in the breathtaking views of the cotswolds. (UPDATED: 05 April 2016, JBS) (ADDED: May 27, 2010)

Somerset

• Thurloxton Fruit Growers - broad beans, carrots, currants (red and black), flowers, gooseberries, Loganberries, raspberries (red), rhubarb, Tayberries, Strawberries,
  Keirles Farm Thurloxton, Taunton, TA2 8RH. Phone: 07970 858536. Alternate Phone: 1823413413. Email: info@thurloxton.com. Open: June and July; Dates vary each season; 10am to 6pm daily see our webpage for up to date information. Click here for current open hours, days and dates. Directions: Adjoining the A38 between Taunton and Bridgwater. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, only. Strawberries Several varieties to range throughout the season. Mid June-Mid July
  Gooseberries Large fruit and easy to freeze. Mid June-Mid July
  Raspberries Different varieties giving a spread of season and flavour. July-early August
  Loganberries Excellent for freezing or jam making. Mid July-Mid August
  Redcurrants Superb and easy to pick. Mid June - End July
  Blackcurrants Ideal for that winter pie. Mid July -end July
  Rhubarb Available all season. Mid june -end July
  Broad Beans Available daily throughout the season. June-July
  Potatoes Ready dug for your selection. Throughout the season
  All dates are subject to the variability of the English seasons, so contact us a short while before you wish to pick, to confirm availability! (UPDATED: June 19, 2018, JBS) (ADDED: June 14, 2012)

Wiltshire

• Ansty PYO & Farm Shop - strawberries, gooseberries, Raspberries, Tayberries, Loganberries, blackcurrants, red currants, blackberries, Autumn Raspberries, pumpkins, Christmas trees
  Ansty, Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK SP3 5PX. Phone/Fax 01747 829072. Email: anstypyo@hotmail.com. Open: We have a booking system and seasonal opening times, so before you head out, please phone to check when we are open! Click here for updated times. Directions: Find us on the A30, 6 miles East of Shaftesbury, Dorset, or 10 miles West of Wilton, Wiltshire. Click here for the map for Ansty PYO and Farm Shop. January - Mid April 9.30am - 5.30pm Tuesday to Saturday;
  Mid April - May 9.30am - 5.30pm Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am - 4.00pm Sunday;
  June to Beginning of August 9.30am - 6.00pm Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am - 6.00pm Monday and Sunday;
  Mid August to Mid September 9.30am - 6.00pm Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am - 6.00pm Sunday;
  Mid September - December 9.30am - 5.30pm Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am - 4.00pm Sunday.
  We now grow a wide variety of fruit and vegetables for Pick Your Own or selecting freshly picked in the farm shop. But over the years we have expanded and now have a busy Farm Shop, stocked full of home grown and locally produced goods. We also have a Tea Room where you can relax over a cup of Tea and Homemade Cake whilst taking in the beauty of the Countryside around you! If that's not enough we also make a Maize Maze for the Summer Holidays and a hilarious Pumpkin Event for the Half Term Period in October. Freshly cut locally grown Christmas Trees, home made Christmas Wreaths, Holly and Mistletoe. The Christmas session is another hectic time at Ansty PYO and Farm Shop! The outside of the shop suddenly turns into a big Christmas Tree forest, with freshly cut locally grown Christmas trees. Why not avoid disappointment and pre-order the size you would like so we can guarantee your tree will be fresh when you would like it. We also make Christmas wreaths and have fresh local holly and mistletoe and Christmas cakes, puddings and mince pies. Make Christmas easy and do most of your shopping under one roof!! (UPDATED: May 14, 2019, JBS)
• Lotmead Pick Your Own - Gooseberries, strawberries, Raspberries, blackcurrants, broad beans, potatoes, runner beans, sweetcorn, spinach, beetroot
  Lotmead Farm, Wanborough, Swindon. Phone: 01793 790137. Email: info@lotmead.co.uk. Directions: M4/J15. Dir Swindon. Travel on dual-carriageway to White Hart roundabout - turn by Toys R Us. Just outside Swindon on Covingham/Wanborough rd (only 1 mile from A420 ( Oxford Rd roundabout). Ices and cream for sale at kiosk. The farm shop has soft fruits and vegetables, cream, dairy produce, fresh eggs, honey, frozen fruits. Facilities: Ample parking, picnic area, play area, refreshments, toilets, easy access for disabled. Frozen fruit mixes also available from Farm Shop. Organic Dairy farm with PYO, developing 'set aside' into Wetland Bird Reserve. Farm Shop open seasonally May-Oct.  As well as strawberries, we also grow delicious Raspberries, gooseberries and sweet blackcurrants. Come late August and you can also help yourself to blackberries from our hedgerows - free of charge! Seasonal vegetables: We have a great variety of pick your own seasonal spring, summer and autumn vegetables. These include potatoes, courgettes, runner beans, dwarf French beans, green beans, sweetcorn, spinach and beetroot. Asparagus (until late June) and rhubarb are supplied ready picked and you will find them at the Farm Store. (UPDATED: 24 July 2020 JBS)
• Whitehall Garden Centre - asparagus, beans, blackberries, blueberries, broad beans, corn (sweet), currants (red and black), flowers, gooseberries, Loganberries, other berries, peaches, Raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, Tayberries, Other fruit or veg
  Nursery farm, Woodborough, Near Pewsey, Wiltshire, SN9 5PF. Phone: 01672 851249. Fax: 01672 851465. Email: enquiries@whitehallgardencentre.co.uk. Open: March through October, Monday to Saturday 9am to 5pm Sundays 11am to 5pm See our PYO calendar on our website. Directions: From the Junction 15 on the M4 follow the road to Marlborough then take the A345 to Pewsey. Pass through the village of Oare and about 1/2 mile on you turn right following the brown tourist signs for Woodborough Garden Centre. Follow the brown signs for 3 miles . PYO Daffodils from March through April in In 2019, the daffoldils are available from Saturday 16th February until Sunday 31st March; available daily at £4.99 per bag (2019 price) Maximum of approximately 50 stems. We are a traditional nursery and garden centre with a wide range of plants and trees. We have a lovely coffee shop where all the food is home made. Visit Woodborough - You're sure of a big surprise! Please contact us before coming to pick fruit or daffodils to avoid disappointment. (UPDATED: 04 October 2019, JBS)

Brambleberry Picking Tips, Recipes and Information

If you are getting ready to pick some brambles, either at a farm or along the roadside, you might want some useful information first! Brambles are both wild and domestic blackberries as well as similar sprawling berries, which typically includes the various hybrids like Loganberries, Tayberries, Boysenberries, and raspberries. Brambles typically peak during July, but it can range from early June through October, especially since new everbearing varieties like the American PrimeArk blackberries have been commercialized.

Varieties of Brambleberries, Blackberries, Raspberries and Hybrids

There almost countless variants of brambles. See this page for detailed descriptions of many bramble varieties found at British farms and orchards.

 

Before you leave to go to the farm:

1. Always call before you go to the farm - And when they are in season, a large turnout can pick a field clean before noon, so CALL first!
2. Leave early. On weekends, then fields may be picked clean by NOON!
    
3. Most growers furnish picking containers designed for Blackberries, but they may charge you for them; be sure to call before you go to see if you need to bring containers.
   If you use your own containers, remember that heaping Blackberries more than 5 inches deep will bruise the lower berries. Plastic dishpans, metal oven pans with 3 inch tall sides and large pots make good containers. I like the plastic storage containers.
4. Bring something to drink and a few snacks; you'd be surprised how you can work up a thirst and appetite! And don't forget hats and sunscreen for the sun. Bugs usually aren't a problem, but some deet might be good to bring along if it has been rainy.

Tips on How to Pick Bramble berries

1. There are two types of brambles to know about: thorny and thornless! Obviously, the thornless are easier to pick, but some people claim the thorny varieties are sweeter. With the thorny plants, you want to reach into the plant in the gaps, so you don't need to touch anything but the berry you're after, avoiding the thorns.
2. A ripe blackberry is deep black with a plump, full feel. It will pull free from the plant with only a slight tug. If the berry is red or purple, it's not ripe yet.
3. Repeat these operations using both hands until each holds 3 or 4 berries. Unlike strawberries, blackberries are usually pretty tough, I dump mine into the bucket. Repeat the picking process with both hands.
4. Don't overfill your containers or try to pack the berries down.

General Picking Tips

Whether you pick brambles or blackberries from your garden or at a Pick-Your-Own farm, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

1. Pick only the berries that are fully black, or a purple. Of course, there are a few varieties that are yellow orange or red when ripe, too. Typically, the should feel firm and plump and readily separate from the plant with a gentle tug. .
2.  Reach in between the stems to grab for hidden berries ready for harvest. Bend down and look up into the plant and you will find loads of berries that other people missed!
3. Avoid placing the picked berries in the sunlight any longer than necessary. It is better to put them in the shade of a tree or shed than in the car trunk or on the car seat. Cool them as soon as possible after picking. Blackberries may be kept fresh in the refrigerator for up to a week, depending upon the initial quality of the berry. After a few days in storage, however, the fruit loses its bright color and fresh flavor and tends to shrivel.

When you get home

1. DON'T wash the berries until you are ready to use them or freeze them. Washing makes them more prone to spoiling.
2. Pour them out into shallow pans and remove any mushed, soft or rotting berries
3. Put a couple of days supply into the fridge, wash off the others, drain them and freeze them up! (Unless you're going to make jam right away) Blackberries are less perishable than blueberries or strawberries, but refrigerate them as soon as possible after picking. Temperatures between 34 F and 38 F are best, but, be careful not to freeze the blackberries (while they are in the fridge)!
4. Even under ideal conditions blackberries will only keep for a week in a refrigerator, so for best flavor and texture, use them as soon as possible after purchase

Blackberry Recipes, Freezing and Jam directions

1. How to make Blackberry jam - It is VERY easy - especially with our free Blackberry jam directions - very easy!
2. How to make Blackberry jelly
3. How to freeze berries
4. Blackberry syrup, make and can it!
5. Seedless blackberry pie!
6. Blackberry Festivals: Where, When and More to Find an Blackberry Festival Near You this year:

Blackberry Facts and Tips

• Black Raspberries, also known as "black caps" are a very healthy food; packed with anthocyanins!
• The USDA says 1 cup (228 ml) of blackberries has about 62 calories.
• 1 cup of blackberries, not packed down weighs about 140 grams.
• Select plump, firm, fully blackberries. Unripe berries will not ripen once picked.
• Ohio State University's Article Regarding Their Prevention of Cancer
• Oregon Berry Black Raspberry Brochure
• Blackberry tea was said to be a cure for dysentery during the Civil War. During outbreaks of dysentery, temporary truces were declared to allow both Union and Confederate soldiers to "go blackberrying" to forgage for blackberries to ward off the disease.
• Blackberries were enjoyed by the ancient Greeks, who believed them to be a cure for diseases of the mouth and throat, as well as a preventative against many ailments, including gout.
• The blackberry leaf was also used as an early hair dye, having been recommended by Culpeper, the English herbalist, to be boiled in a lye solution in order to "maketh the hair black".
• Guide to blackberry varieties
• Researchers have known for quite some time that berries contain antioxidants which help to fight cancer causing free radicals. A study at the University of Ohio has found that blackberries are the most potent cancer fighting berries of them all, by nearly 40 percent!
• U-pick Blackberry farms typically sell berries by the pound. A quart equals 1 and 1/2 pounds of fresh berries.
• Do the math and be careful not to over-purchase as Blackberries quickly mold when left at room temperature, and only last a couple of days in the refrigerator.
• You can easily freeze berries that you cannot use right away - just wash, cut the hulls off and pop them into a ziplock bag, removing as much air as possible. Those vacuum food sealers REALLY do a good job of this! The berries will keep for many months frozen without air.
• Want to go to a blackberry festival? See this page for a list!