For those who need something fun and different to do on the weekends, picking your own fresh and seasonal fruit is always a great idea. It’s a fun activity for both grown-ups and kids alike. And with fresh fruit farms as close as an hour-long drive away, now’s the time to stock up on u-pick blueberries, blackberries, and more. Whether these berries are for smoothies, pies, that morning açai bowl, or something else is up to you — you can even get a little crazy and throw a few berries in your Sunday brunch champagne for some added fun!
This time of year is prime time for delicious fruits like blueberries and blackberries. If you’re lucky enough, the same fields that house yummy berry bushes might also have other fruits ripe and ready to go, like peaches. Read on to find out where to go berry picking near Essex County, New Jersey this summer.
The Benefits of Eating Locally — And In Season
Many have undoubtedly heard it before — eat locally, eat seasonally. But for those wondering why there are many reasons why eating locally is better for both personal health and for the environment. Here are just a few:
- It reduces the need for “extra” resources (water, shipping costs/equipment)
- It supports the local economy (money goes directly to the people growing it rather than small percentages of different hands involved in moving and shipping it)
- There is a higher nutrient count
- It encourages more biodiversity
- Eating locally + seasonally often contains fewer chemicals (even if it’s not organic)
As mentioned above, locally-grown, in-season produce generally has a higher nutrient count. As a general rule, local foods are fresher. Think about it — they’re grown nearby, so farmers don’t need to pack, ship, or freeze them around the country in order to get where they’re going. All those processes tend to reduce a food’s nutrients.
Read More: A Guide to Lavender Fields in New Jersey
The Health Benefits of Eating Berries
In addition to using local berry-picking as a way to give back to the local economy, there are also so many amazing health benefits of eating berries. Blueberries, for example, are a superfood. According to Healthline, these tiny berries are low in calories but high in nutrients like fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, and manganese. Blueberries are also an antioxidant — with the super ability to actually increase the antioxidant levels in the body.
Strawberries (which peak mid-summer around June and early July) contain many health benefits worth noting. One cup of strawberries contains the daily minimum of vitamin C and can help fight against diseases and signs of aging. According to Health, the amount of vitamin C in strawberries is responsible for producing collagen, which keeps your hair, skin, and nails looking young, healthy, and clear.
As for blackberries, these high-in-fiber berries are beneficial to our health, too. Blackberries are also sufficient in fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, and manganese, making them crucial to improving brain health and function, preventing oral disease and infection, healing wounds, regenerating the skin + encouraging collagen production, and so much more.
With both blueberries and blackberries super high in fiber, you might be wondering why fiber matters so much to our health. A 2013 study determined that not getting enough fiber increases a person’s risk for developing heart disease. One cup of berries has about eight grams of fiber. Not sure how much fiber you should be getting to begin with? Fiber intake has a lot to do with different factors like age, sex, and weight but as a general rule, women should have an intake of at least 25 grams and men should get about 38 grams of fiber per day.
Berry Fields Near Essex County
Now that we’ve established the many benefits of berries (and eating locally and seasonally), find out which fields and farms near Essex County provide berry picking this time of year.
Alstede Farms | 1 Alstede Farms Lane, Chester, NJ
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This fruit-picking farm in Chester, New Jersey is just about an hour away from Essex County. And wow, is it worth the ride. Alstede’s fields are open daily to the public and it’s the perfect time to pick-your-own juicy raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries (as well as peaches). It’s open 9AM to 6PM every day.
Battleview Orchards | 91 Wemrock Road, Freehold, NJ
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Battleview Orchards has awesome u-pick strawberries, and while the strawberry season is now over, the farm also has u-pick peaches, sour cherries, and nectarines if you want to bulk up your fruit-picking. It’s open 9AM to 6PM every day but Tuesday, when it’s closed. Its Facebook page is a great resource to see which produce is ripe for the picking. Sour cherry season is a highlight for the farm, and bakers love this kind of fruit for delicious recipes.
Farms View Roadstand | 945 Black Oak Ridge Road, Wayne, NJ
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This family-owned farm is a farmers’ market and garden center that provides strawberry picking for the season (while we know the strawberry season is over, bookmark this for next year!). The farm grows over sixty different fruits and vegetables, sells everything you need for your garden, and even has baked goods and preserves, as well as plants. The farm is open 9AM to 6PM Monday to Saturday and 9AM to 1PM on Sunday.
Happy Day Farm | 106 Iron Ore Road, Manalapan Township, NJ
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This delightfully named farm is relatively new to Manalapan Township. Established in 2012, the family-owned property provides pick-your-own raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries. It’s also known for its scenic lavender field and sunflower picking. Just keep in mind that on-site farm purchases are cash only. The farm is open from 10AM-5PM on Wednesday and Thursday, 10AM-3PM on Friday, 10AM-7PM on Saturday, and 10AM-5PM on Sunday. It is closed on Monday and Tuesday.
Hillview Farms | 223 Meyersville Road, Gillette, NJ
A mere 45-minute drive outside of Essex County, you’ll stumble upon Hillview Farms in Gillette, NJ. Here, you’ll have over 53-acres of locally grown fruit to peruse. The farm has blueberries ready and willing to be picked in July. By August, the farm might already be transitioning to peaches, but it’s worth calling ahead to check out the current supply. Hillview also has a Farm Market open every day from 9AM-6PM, where it sells everything from fresh broccoli and potatoes to honey, tomatoes, and homemade pies — but the fields close to the public at 5PM every day. You can also purchase firewood at Hillview.
Ochs Orchard | 4 Ochs Lane, Warwick, NY
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About an hour from Essex County is Ochs Orchard in Warwick, New York. While Ochs always recommends calling ahead of time to see what pickable produce they have available — everything is subject to availability, after all — the farm generally has an abundance of cherries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and peaches. Ochs is open from 9AM-5PM Wednesday through Sunday.
See More: A Guide to Farmers’ Markets in Hoboken + Jersey City
Snyder’s Farm | 586 S. Middlebush Road, Somerset, NJ
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Snyder’s Farm in Somerset has U-Pick strawberries on weekends in early June. Then, weeks later, it opens for U-Pick blueberries and blackberries. Later in the summer, it also has U-Pick Aronia berries, aka Choke berries, considered a super berry full of vitamins and minerals packed with more antioxidants than blueberries. You can check the Facebook page for open times, as they’re subject to change, but the farm is usually open from 9AM-4PM on Saturday and Sunday only.
Solebury Orchards | 3325 Creamery Road, New Hope, PA
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Located in the lush Bucks County, Solebury is known for its beautiful setting and high-quality produce. Customers can pick their own blueberries and blackberries when in season starting around the end of June. Solebury also has U-Pick cherries. The farm is open from 9AM-6PM Thursday through Sunday.
