My friends and I were returning from a fantastic weekend in Boston when we decided to do something out of the ordinary. Enjoying the countryside, we decided to go apple picking! We stumbled upon Charlton Orchards. We went into the store and each paid for a bushel of apples. Then we headed out past the farm and ventured into rows and rows of apple bushes to start picking. For me being a Floridian, I found this to be a lot of fun! It was a perfect September fall day and just walking around the farm, looking for the best looking apples, was a great change of pace. We spent about an hour roaming around and filling up our baskets. We even walked past a herd of friendly cows and offered them some of our fruit, which they happily accepted! Before leaving we bought some homemade apple cider for the road, which was absolutely fresh and delicious. For me being sort of a fish out of water visiting the New England area, I genuinely enjoyed my time at Charlton Orchards. Soaking up the quaint and quiet atmosphere of farmland was just what I needed to complete my Massachusetts getaway! read more

We drove out of our way to stop here. On line showed "open". Sign at old Worcester road said "open 8-5". Sign at entrance to orchard said "open". Pulled in to the parking lot...sign said "closed". Really? So disappointing! read more

This is my favorite farm for picking fruit because it is not too touristy and overrun with kids like tougas farms and the other ones. It's nice and simple and no-frills. Easy parking and friendly staff. Easy in and out and a nice time. We did strawberry picking this time, but in the past other fruits picking was also fun. read more

Last night my husband and I finally got around to opening the bottle of Damson Plum wine I had bought on my visit to Charlton Orchards on June 24. (Yet another reason I was annoyed they insisted on overcharging me for strawberries: I was buying over $20 worth of other crap in their farm store at the time! WTF, people.) Anyhow, my husband and I barely managed to choke down half the bottle, and we're not the type of people who can't finish a bottle of wine together if you know what I mean. We usually like plum wine, and although plum wine is generally on the sweet side, this particular bottle was so sweet we could barely drink it. We even tried mixing it with Pellegrino to make wine spritzers and it was still way too sweet. Honestly, I am not a picky wine drinker, but this stuff was gross. It tasted like kids' cough medicine. If you're looking for locally produced fruit wines, I'd recommend taking a day trip to Nashoba Valley Winery in Bolton, MA. read more

this is a decent orchard reasonably close to boston. combined with the obadia mcintyre farm winery, and you could have a pretty nice day. as far as orchards go, this is pretty good but not the best. i don't know from apples, but they only have a few varieties here. they do, however, also have berries, pumpkins and veggies (though we were told not to pick the veggies). i find most of these places to be comparable on price, though they all have something of a different method. here, it's buy the bag and fill it with as many apples as you can. trust me, it's more than you can possibly eat. the winery is a nice addition. the tastings are about $7 or $8 but the wine is just so-so. i do not like fruit wines. their non-fruit offerings are too sweet for my taste. the chambourcin is an interesting light red best served chilled. i picked up a couple bottles of that. otherwise, if you like sweet wines, this is a good spot for you. location is pretty convenient to the pike and the farm is, of course, pretty. home made jellies, preserves, jams, pies and ciders are available in the farm stand along with locally grown veggies and, interestingly enough, apples. read more

Monarch Orchards Farm - charlton orchards - Fruits & Veggies Near Me - Charlton, Massachusetts

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My fiance and I were here yesterday checking "go apple picking" off our 'Things to Do While We're Still in New England' list. After much research (all my fiance's), we landed on Charlton. Ambiance: Not great. I would not recommend this for families looking for a fun day of apple picking plus. There are other places that are more kid-friendly, actually just more friendly in general. We were met with the most surly woman at the stand. We complimented her on the intoxicating smell of her pies and she barely acknowledged us. When we started walking into the orchard we passed piles of metal scraps which bespoke more of industrial ruin than peaceful orchards. Apples: Delicious- we got two varieties (McIntosh and something small cherry-like: amazing). Even this late in the season there were a ton of apples to pick. We went straight home and put the apples to work baking a pie and making applesauce - both came out incredible and we credit the apples. Scenery: Once you got into the actual orchards it was beautiful. We loved being in the luscious trees and looking over the rolling hills ahead. Prices: $20 for a 1/2 bushel you pick yourself. A bit much, but we go our money's worth...arms be damned. $15 if you buy 1/2 a bushel already picked. Bottom Line: Apples are amazing, everything else not so much. read more

I stopped here today to pick strawberries with my 5 YO daughter. The website looked great, and said that they would have "plentiful" strawberries this weekend. Great - I was really looking forward to picking enough to make a couple batches of jam. When we arrived, the place seemed pretty run down - lots of rusted farm equipment laying around. It's a working farm, so I didn't think it was such a big deal. But it was a far cry from their lovely website. We went into the farm stand and got a tray for picking strawberries. The young woman who helped us was really nice. But she told us that the strawberries were pretty much picked and that this was the last day. I was surprised by that, given what their website said. She did tell us where to find the best berries, so off we went. Picked over was an understatement. There were hardly any berries to be found. Unless they really had crowds yesterday, i can't imagine that the picking was "plentiful". After picking a few berries (maybe 2 cups), we saw that some folks were picking raspberries in the next field, so we went over to pick some of those. There were more raspberries, but still not a ton that you could get to without getting scratched up (we'd come in shorts and t-shirts, not expected to pick raspberries), so we didn't pick very many. As we were leaving the raspberry field, an older woman drove up on a small farm vehicle and yelled/scolded me for picking raspberries and for having a child in the raspberry field. I apologized and told her that we were leaving (we were walking away from the field). She repeated herself, yelling louder. I apologized again, and she drove off. At no point were there any signs that said that picking raspberries wasn't allowed, or that children weren't allowed in the field. This wasn't mentioned when we got our tray for strawberries from the farm stand either. Once we got back to the farm stand, the older woman was there, and scolded me again. At this point, I was so frustrated and insulted that I just wanted to leave. But it got better... There was a minimum charge for the raspberries, so even though I picked less than a pint, they charged me for 2 quarts. Even though I both two more quarts of strawberries, no break on the raspberries. I ended up spending over $20 on 2 1/2 quarts of strawberries and less than a pint of raspberries. I go out of my way to buy local produce and support local farmers. I understand that it's a hard life, and really do appreciate what farmers do so that we can eat delicious local food. HOWEVER, I do not appreciate being yelled at or scolded for not following rules that were not ever communicated, Farm it may be, I am still a customer, and I still expect common courtesy and the benefit of the doubt. I have been to several other orchards whose owners and staff are happy to have the business and helpful to their customers. Those are the farms I'll continue to support. read more

The apples were good however there were no maps to show you the orchard, no signs that were visible to tell you what apples there were, the trees were not well maintained, and the apples on the ground made it dangerous to walk. I am happy for the apples I picked, but I wouldn't go back. read more

Monarch Orchards Farm - Picture of part of the orchard - Fruits & Veggies Near Me - Charlton, Massachusetts

I'm glad places like this still exist. This must have been what strawberry picking was like before the word "agrotainment" existed. On a beautiful Father's day it wasn't crowded and we had no trouble finding strawberries. There are no rides and no clowns. It's just a farm that lets you come by and pick things. read more

My family has been going to this orchard for years. We love to pick strawberries. They are so beautiful and taste fantastic. We also come here for Blueberries. They have the best bushes, they are taller than 6 feet so you can fill your containers on one bush! Very excited for Apple picking, they always have the cheapest bag prices around. read more

Ugh! The girl at the counter INSIDE the "shack" ringing items was plain rude! We saw a sign that said raspberry picking today .. So when we paid for our overpriced $15 small bag of apples ... We asked the nice young lady seated OUTside selling the apple bags if we could pick raspberries too. She said yes but we'd have to pay for that separately INSIDE the shack ... When we went in the rude gal behind the counter said there was no raspberry picking today . We proceeded to tell her that there was a sign and we were told outside we could . She snotily picked up a piece of paper and said no where on that page said raspberry picking , so there was none . She had also just barked at the woman ahead of us who asked for hot apple fritters per a sign and the counter gal very rudely said there were none and the sign was wrong. This orchard is run down and totally unmaintained. The grounds are atrocious ... It looks like hordersville for junk metal items! The orchard itself is totally NOT walker friendly ... Everything is over grown and hard to walk in! And I'm "athletically" inclined! It's a hazard .... Def not child friendly at all . The apples are small and looked to be the size of plums not hefty New England apples! The hour long drive from central CT was a waste of time and money. This place was dirty and run down ... So much so that we opted to forget about the wine tasting ... Just not a nice place--not maintained at all....I would give this orchard negative five stars if I could! It doesn't warrant one star. Their website is very misleading ... Even showing a nice tram for rides to the orchard ... Which sits rusting on the side of the road, with other bits of rusting pipes and metals ... Obviously the tram has sat unused for years. Also on the website is a pic of the "new" wine tasting building, of which the front is littered with JUNK. Definitely not a nice place to do apple picking. The worst part is...my husband and I each chose a few different apples to taste tonite..and the overpriced $15 worth of apples have NO flavor! They are terrible! SO disappointed in this place. I wonder if the State of Massachusetts has health inspectors to ck. out places such as this, as .they do sell fresh baked goods, and meats and eggs, as well as the sadly disappointing overpriced apples. The building the items are sold in is dirty and unkept...matching the demeanor of the horrid cashier inside. Even the pics below are deceiving..the place doesn't look like this! Wish I had taken photos! I didn't realize I could post them here, or I would have. I'm just glad I didn't invest in the wine..esp. in light of the other Yelp review here... read more

I love this place. They have fantastic pies and lots of different jams, jellys, and dressings. The wines are good my husband loves the black gold. I love picking berries and this place has tons. I have been going here for years they have three blueberry patches so they never run out and this year when I went they just planted a new strawberry field. The girls behind the counter are very nice, as for the 'crazy old lady' if you stay on her good side she's a sweetheart who works very hard. The cider donuts are awesome!! read more

I'm here with my family right now and we are having a lot of fun right now. Great if you have a family or if you just enjoy a dun time. I'm glad this place is still around because it has been for sale for quite a while. And plus the little shop as you pull up is very nice unside. They make homemade cider. read more

This place might have good food, but we didn't have a chance to find out because it was so not family-friendly. There's dangerous broken-down farm equipment everywhere, the fences that hold some of the friendly-looking animals like ducks and chickens are electric, and we walked by 3 different people from the farm without getting even so much as a "hello." They don't even let you walk around the orchard without paying them up front, and our only actual interaction was with the girl behind the counter who told me to stop my son from picking up an apple. We gave up and just left. If you have kids, stay away. read more

Been going here for years now. Used to be great. Friendly service, sociable staff and great prices. Hours were always 9-5. This year it seems that the attitude of the staff has changed and the drive to please customers had gone down the tubes. Miserable , unmotivated counter workers turn customers away at 4pm because they do not want to wait for pickers to return. Sign says 9-5 when you walk in. This is my third visit to the farm this year and each time the same experience. read more

My family visited this orchard this past weekend. The host of the wine tasting was rude. You pay $5 for 4 different very small tastes. When we tried to ask questions about the wine, the host was short with us. The apples were good, although not much variety. We paid one fee ($20) for a big bag. We took our son to see the "petting animals". If your an animal lover don't go see them. They are in small pens, with filthy water and living conditions. It breaks your heart. If a farm is going to make money off of tourists, at least treat them with respect. read more

This rating is one of memory. I grew up at the orchard. My parents,Helen and Nelson Wheeler, were the ones who took this property from abandoned corn fields to a productive, beautiful farm. I still wander through the apples, peaches, pears, and blueberries in my mind and know that no one has ever had a better childhood in a more amazing place. read more

We went here because Brookfield orchards was closed for PYO. The farm seemed very overwhelmed by the amount of people that were in attendance the day we went and was extremely understaffed. Pricing was typical for 1/2 bushel @ $20. Farm maintenance could be better - trees weren't pruned well and lots and lots of undergrowth making it difficult to walk around. Also very little to no signage of where to go or what apples were. Also seemed like too over picked - we had a hard time filling a bag. Positives were good cider doughnuts and it seemed like they had a good selection of pumpkins (PYO) and gourds but we didn't get any. read more

My fiancee and I went to pick blueberries yesterday at the orchard. I thought the pricing was great and the field was large. However I am on medication which does not allow me to be in direct sunlight for long periods of time. After the kind girl who works in the store showed us a long road we needed to take to get to the blueberry field I looked around to see if others had driven the road. The road was obviously well worn and there were no signs saying we could not drive. I went to my car when a woman who turned out to be the owner came outside and asked what I thought was, are you driving up. I said yes, she shook her head ok and so we proceeded up the path. Once we were up there for only about 5 minutes she came driving up yelling at us that we didnt ask anyone if we could drive up there and that she was upset that we lied to her. I asked her how we lied and she stated that she asked if we got permission to drive up there. I calmly and polietly stated that I apologize as I must have misheard her. She drove off in a huff and we continued to pick the blueberries. As we were leaving she had placed her vehicle across the entrance to the road so we could not leave. I sent my fiancee inside to pay for the blueberries we picked and ask her to move her vehicle. After waiting about 10 minutes she came outside and said "those are all the blueberries you picked... both of you in all that time" then she came over and proceeded to search in my car to see if I had stolen blueberries!! Cmon really???? I politely asked her to move her vehicle and she proceeded to yell at me in my car window for over 5 minutes refusing to let us leave because we were "taking advantage of her farm and cannot do whatever we want". It literally got to the point where I rolled up my window with her still yelling and had to threaten to call the cops before she would let us leave. I will NEVER return to this orchard and I would strongly advise others to stay away as well! She is absolutely crazy and has no concept of customer service. Watch out if you do go you may get trapped by the crazy, wildeyed owner!! Honestly it kind of felt like I was in a horror movie! read more

I went to this farm on Sunday, October 5th, 2014. I went with my Husband and 2.5 year old son. I have been to other Orchards that are family/child friendly and where there are fun things to do in addition to picking apples but this one is very close to where we live so I thought I'd give it a try. Activities: Nothing. You drive in, walk in to the little store (I guess that's something, right?) to pay for your bag and then walk to the orchard. It looks like there once was a play area for kids (I'll cover that in "appearance"), and there is a winery (not kid friendly). Appearance: I suppose it is functional, but it does not look overly inviting. The little store is decent. There are a few animals as you drive up but you need to look for them in order to know they are there. Once you find them you may not want to approach their pens, as they are dirty, overgrown and dilapidated looking. (I even read a review afterward that stated that the fences were unmarked and electric, resulting in a trip to the ER.) There looks like there was once a play yard for children but it has been forgotten for years. The fence is falling in and there are so many overgrown weeds as tall and the play equipment that you couldn't walk in to the area. As you walk to the actual orchard there are piles of scrap and debris on either side. Once you get to the trees it is fine as apple trees go. Attitude: Nobody was very friendly when we got there. They weren't rude, they just weren't cheerful. They didn't say hello when we walked in. They only responded to questions. Now once we got the apples home events started that will make me never even think about going back and I will tell everyone I know not to even bother. The apples were brown once I cut in to them. They had holes going through some of them. I called and the woman (owner) got very defensive saying that there weren't bugs, that they had a calcium deficiency but I could bring them back and she'd make it right. I went in the next day and introduced myself as the person who had called the day before. Without a single word she walked up to me and flipped open a knife (very close to me) and started cutting open apples. She held one up and asked if this was the "brown" I was talking about. She told me with a nasty attitude that her trees had a calcium deficiency and that it was upsetting that I would imply that her apples had bugs. I explained that whatever the reason for the coloring, it isn't appetizing to bite in to a brown apple. I also offered her pictures on my phone of the tunnels I had seen, which she was not interested in looking at. At this point who I assume to be her husband had joined us. I asked if she thought it might be a good idea to tell customers that her trees had a problem and the apples would be brown. She started yelling "How the "H" am I supposed to know what trees you pick the apples off of?". The husband said "What the "H" do you want lady? We're giving you your "GD" money back!" She and her husband continued to reprimand me and swear at me until I asked for my money and started to leave. I then told her that she should try to be more polite to her paying customers and reminded her that there were several negative reviews on-line, some specifically about her attitude. She informed me that she didn't care about those reviews because they are only sites who wanted money out of her to hide the negative reviews and if she didn't pay they would showcase them. I said that while I didn't know if that was true, I was a live paying person that was right there giving her negative feedback because I was very dis-satisfied with the product and the way I was being treated and that I wouldn't be back again. They started yelling at me again to leave and as I walked to my car the man followed me outside yelling that I ought to grow my own "GD" orchard if I didn't like theirs and see how my "GD" apples turn out. I will never go back there as long as I live. read more

Where to begin? First let me say I have never posted a review before but felt that my experience warranted one. I sometimes read reviews to help me make decisions on whether to patronize a business and hope my review helps someone make their decision. My wife and I were looking for something to do with our three children and decided to go blueberry picking and found the charlton orchards online. We normally frequent Tougas farms but thought it would be nice to try a new place. Should have stayed with the tried and true. Online it stated that there was blueberry picking, as did the one sign we saw on the drive up. Other than that sign, there was little direction on our drive in. It appeared we were driving to an old, closed farm. As noted from another yelp reviewer the entrance to the Orchard is filled with broken down farm equipment. None of those cute 'barnyard pets' mentioned on the website. We found the store and were greeted by a less than friendly gentleman. To our disappointment there was NO blueberry picking. Just apples & blackberries. We settled on blackberries, then met another group who was picking peaches and decided to do the same...we bought a prepaid $20 basket. Had a great time picking blackberries. The bushes were overgrown and there were no rows between them to walk, instead we had to pick our way through (not easy with kids). Next it was on to the peach row. There were a handful of peach trees, only one had plentiful peaches, however, they were too small to pick. The family before us came back empty handed and told us there was not enough peaches to pick. My daughter was very excited to pick peaches so we tried anyways. I was able to gather some by putting her on my shoulders to pick the higher fruit. Even so, I didn't end up with more than 8 peaches, less than half of the basket. We returned to the store with our 'bounty', explaining to the man at the counter that we were unable to fill the peach basket. He proceeded to argue with us, stating that there were plenty of peaches and everyone else had no problems, which we knew was not true. He sent another person into the field in an attempt to prove us wrong. When that person returned, they reported the same...NO peaches! We were given a partial refund, however, No apology was given. Look for another place for a fun family outing. read more

This is a simple place with pick your own strawberries and blueberries. I haven't been for anything else, but they have peaches, raspberries, and apples too. It isn't as built up as some of the other PYO, but I like that. It isn't crowded or overwhelming and the prices are good. The fruit is delicious. read more

Went camping at Wells State Forest, and one of the things we do is go to the Charlton Orchards to pick blueberries & buy there wine before our trip home. Which we did. We picked 6 containers (which they supply) of blueberries. Paid our money & left. On our return home noticed that most of the berries contained little white worms or maggots. Plus we ate a few there. Four adults & 2 children, are we going to get sick from ingesting these? Now what to do with all these blueberries..... Any information would be appreciated on this matter. Haven't noticed this before now.... The pear wine however, delightful! read more

Locals flock to this lovely orchard year after year. They support the owners because they are decent hard working good, good people. The place reminds me of something you would see in a movie depicting a generational industry that continues to devote their lives to a land they love. Yes, it shows that they need more hands. What family farm doesn't? But the end result, their bounty, crops, is a GIFT to this area. When I hold that gorgeous apple in my hand, bite into luscious fruit, I say thank you Charlton Orchard. Up here on the hill, overlooking this orchard, I am in heaven. read more

O.M.G the older lady at the store is soooooo rude. Me my husband and our 2 year old daughter went apple picking this morning, the store and surrounding areas looked very unkept with piles of old metal junk around, but we wanted our kid to have some fun picking the apples so we purchased a overpriced $20 bag. While leaving my husband grabbed one string of grape from a bush not thinking anything of it, the lady came flying accusing him of stealing and demanded $4 for what he picked!!!!! During which she called the caps saying he is stealing her product. I tried to give her the 4 bucks but she would not take it and wated for the cops, haha seriously! We work 6 days a week and really needed some quiet time with our child she ruined our mood for the entire day. If you looking for a peacefull place to pick apples do not go to charlton orchad. All that my kid remembers now is not the apples but the cops that came over one string of grape. read more

We went there thinking that apple picking and wine tasting together would be fun. But we had worst experience. I would never like to go back there. Its too expensive. They charge $20 for a bag for 2 adults. I have never come across this kind of condition. Usually either they charge entry fee (sometimes its free) and you have to pay according to the weight of fruits. We were 5 members from the family including my nephew (5 years old). Owner asked us to purchase atleast 2 bags. We paid $40 thinking that we'll get the rest of the money back after weighing the apples. We started picking. It was complete mess there. Dozens of apples were lying on the farm in creepy condition. Apples were tasteless. We picked just 15 apples because of its taste. When we told the landlady that we don't need the other bag and want our money back. She started screaming and blamed us that she has told us about this "RULE" already. We requested her to allow us to buy one bag for $20 and permit us to buy other fruits. She just refused it. After arguing for almost 40 minutes her husband was convinced and allowed us to buy few other fruits for $20. So we bought 15 apples for $ 20 and few other fruits for $20. We didn't even think about tasting wine after this drama. The farm's condition was horrifying. We have really good farms than this one in NJ. If you want to waste your money, please go ahead for apple picking at charlton orchards.. read more

I went to charlton orchards today with a friend and all of our kids to pick blueberries. We picked buckets full and tasted them along the way. I happened to squeeze one and a maggot came out. I then grabbed a few more and all were infested. The youngest child with us (18 months) was eating them by the handful. Needless to say we all felt sick after realizing the blueberries were infested with maggots. While I realize they are supposed to be organic, this is not acceptable that they are allowing people to pick these. A worker came to where we were picking to say the farm has closed and we told her about what we found. She did not seem surprised and when asked if she knew about this she said her father (owner) had "said something about it". I am obviously worried about my kids getting sick and also that the farm is continuing to let people pick infested blueberries. The owner examined the blueberries and told us "it's not maggots like you think of maggots" what?? Of course they are! He offered to give us the blueberries for free. No thank you. I am not feeding my kids blueberries with live crawling warms inside! I will never return. read more