2024 Northern Ireland Blackberry U-Pick Farms and Orchards

Blackberry U-Pick Orchards in Northern Ireland 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.

County Antrim (Co. Antrim)

County Armagh (Co. Armagh)

County Down (Co. Down)

• Finlay’s Place - Raspberries, gooseberries, blackcurrants and redcurrants
  40 Comber Road, Killinchy, Co. Down, BT23 6PB N. Ireland. Phone: 028 9754 1221. Mobile: 07932 158830. Email: info@finlaysplace.co.uk. Finlay’s Place is a family run business established in 2011* selling fresh local produce including potatoes, eggs and vegetables. After 32 years away in Warwickshire, Finlay has returned to the house where he was born - a solid Georgian farmhouse with adjoining barns which his father James bought in the early 50s.Given the location of this property on a main road, it seemed eminently sensible to start selling our produce directly to the public. Fresh, good quality, nutritious fruit and vegetables with minimal food miles.Situated on the A22 just a stone’s throw from Balloo, Killinchy, Co. Down, N. Ireland, we have much to offer the discerning gardener and cook. We offer homegrown strawberries, Raspberries, new potatoes and local seasonal vegetables in a rustic setting and welcoming atmosphere. Our Pick Your Own (PYO) is proving extremely popular among the locals in Co. Down. We also grow a good range of foliage, alpines, bedding plants and shrubs in our Nursery as well as ready- planted hanging baskets and planters to bring instant colour to your garden. We have the following fruit available for picking starting from the end of June and throughout the summer monthsBlackcurrants - Ebony variety. The sweetest blackcurrant ever! This outstanding dessert variety is so exceptionally sweet that it can be eaten straight from the bush when fully ripe. Raspberries - Glen Ample variety. A high yielding mid-season variety that produces large berries with good flavour and colour. Gooseberries - Invicta variety. A vigorous, spreading bush with large, pale green berries which are good for both culinary and dessert use.Redcurrants - Jonkheer van Tets variety. Bright coloured, redcurrants have a healthy amount of important antioxidants, known as anthocyanins. Click here for a link to our Facebook page. (UPDATED: 30 August 2019, JBS)
• McKees Farm Shop - Trying to find out which fruit and veg are available as PYO
  Stangford View /Holywood Road, Newtownards, County Down, Northern Ireland, BT234TQ. Phone: 028 9182 1304. Open: Monday to Saturday, 8:30 am to 6 pm.
• Millview Farm - Organic, currants (red and black), green beans, peas, raspberries (Autumn, red), strawberries, Tayberries, other vegetables, Other fruit or veg, gift shop, restrooms, picnic area, farm animals, school tours
  33 Ballydrain Road, Comber, BT23 5SS. Phone: 02891872337. Email: davezawadi@yahoo.co.uk. Open: Any time. Directions: From Comber Take the A22 Killinchy Road. Follow the brown tourist signs to Castle Espie. We are 1.5 miles from the A22 along Ballydrain Road. See the farm sign on the right hand side. Click here for a map and directions. Open at all times throughout the year, for sales and farm visits without obligation to purchase; You may purchase a wide range of vegetables and fruit from our shop. We are certified organic for some crops. Payment: Cash, Cheque. (ADDED: June 23, 2009)
  A visitor writes on July 14, 2011: "There is a small shop, no suitable picnic area and no farm animals. No fruit left to pick when we arrived, even though we phoned to check! Not good for family day out"

County Fermanagh (Co. Fermanagh)

County Londonderry (Co. Londonderry)

• Claggan Pyo and Farm Shop - strawberries, Raspberries, red gooseberries, green gooseberries, black currants, red currants, Tayberries,
  116 Highlands Rd, Limavady, BT49 9LY. Phone: 028 7772 2544. Open:
  . We provide containers for you to pick into and there are no charges other than whatever weight of fruit you pick. We look forward to seeing you. Family owned farm just outside Limavady. Most days we have locally grown potatos. We also sell a range of jam making products including pot covers and certo, a range of useful recipes an we also sell jam pots for charity. This year we have planted new varieties of Strawberry and Raspberry in addition to those available last year. In addition we have opened up new grounds to our customers.. Fruit ripening dates will depend on the weather but as a guideline
  Gooseberries start in mid June
  Strawberries start around 20 June
  Red and Black Currants start 28 June
  Raspberries start 12 July.
  Click here for a link to our Facebook page. (UPDATED: 30 August 2019, JBS) (ADDED: 12 July 2015, JBS)

County Tyrone (Co. Tyrone)

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!