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    The Berry Farm

    4.0 (1 review)

    The Berry Farm Photos

    Recommended Reviews - The Berry Farm

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    7 years ago

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    The Orchard At Altapass

    The Orchard At Altapass

    4.1(37 reviews)
    38.5 mi

    Absolute five-star experience. Definitely a little bit out there but we went on a Saturday early…read moreSeptember and it wasn't too bad. They do apple picking on the hour most days. It's all listed online and very user-friendly. We showed up around 1130 and wandered around. Picked apples at noon. Then had some live music at one. Very well planned and I'm proud of the way we did it. If you're driving from Asheville, old fort is a great stopping point. We got cinnamon rolls on the way there and Hillman on the way back. It did look like this Orchard had some very affordable barbecue on site. Tons of snacks in the gift shop too. The parking lot was pretty big and they have extra parking. The staff was super kind. I love that it's a nonprofit and there's tons of educational pieces. You will find a bunch of maps and other displays. They have a bee and caterpillar to stay for kids and adults alike. The gift shop. Also both a lot of local crafts like candles, ciders, and honey. No drinking on site. The apple picking is around back. You can get a little bag or two sizes of a basket. We opted for the bag because there is no reason for us to keep a basket around. For eight dollars it's all very affordable. It got us about 12 big apples. The trees are well marked. For picking. It is lots of space for wandering. Definitely not in the shade so it's pretty hot. For me, I really like the extra things that this place had. Cornhole, checkers, Jenga... They usually have bands on the weekend too.

    My husband, our 8 year old daughter and I were excited to head up to the orchard at Alta pass…read moreyesterday! We've been apple picking at a couple of the orchards to the south of Asheville, and wanted to check out this nonprofit orchard near Spruce Pine. When we arrived we were pleasantly surprised to see that the crowd was reasonably sized, and we could walk around without feeling pushed and prodded. But the pleasant surprise ended there. We headed around back where we purchased two buckets for apple picking at $15/each. They were small buckets that could fit, we were told, 4-5 lbs of apples each. Okay, fine. But it was not until after purchasing the buckets that we were placed into a very touristy feeling group, and told that we'd be picking "these small and ugly (..."but delicious!") green apples. Huh? No one is going apple picking for just green apples. Are you kidding? The guide proceeded to inform us that as we walk through the orchard we absolutely, positively, should not pick the red apples because they "aren't ready and will most certainly give you a tummy ache". What?!?! Okay....still on board but feeling a little less excited. Then we start to walk toward the orchard. With a giant group of people. At a veeeerrrryyyy slow pace. And then we have to wait on a few stragglers. Seriously excruciating by this point. Finally, as we get to the orchard, the guide tells us to look for the trees with pink ties on them, an ONLY those trees. In fact, pay no mind to the beautiful red apples surrounding you on all other sides - they are not ready! No matter how they look, do NOT eat those apples! But then we are off and looking for the promised green apples....which I kid you not are almost completely picked over! My 6'5 husband could barely reach the apples, and definitely not me or my eight year old - we can only watch in horror as our husband/father scavenges the tops of the trees for "ugly but delicious green apples" on the trees to our right, while simultaneously trying to ignore the beautiful red apples on the trees to our left. I seriously felt like Eve in the garden of Eden..... And then, we noticed that everyone else in our group was feeling the same way. Then one daring person took a red apple off a tree and took a big, juicy bite from it. Gasp! I thought we'd all be wearing fig leaves and trying to hide from one another in the next instant. But lo and behold....no tummy ache. Just confirmation that the red apples were, in fact, ready to be picked (and further confirmed by the mounds of ripe, red apples also falling from those trees). The whole thing was ridiculous, and by the time we headed out of the orchard it was a big joke. Everyone was picking the red apples and putting them on the bottom of their baskets, and placing a few green apples over the red ones in hopes of looking less guilty. We all concluded that they just wanted to get the ugly but delicious green apples out of the orchard. On the way in/out of the orchard there is a cute little building that is a "cafe". We were excited to try the pulled pork with apple bbq sauce, and some fresh homemade cider! But yet again, when there was an opportunity for this place to shine, it was a huge let down. We ordered an apple cider and a green apple lemonade, which also sounded like it had the potential to be delicious because it MUST be made with ugly but delicious green apples from the orchard! Nope. It was Country Time at best, with a couple shots of Torani Green Apple syrup splashed in the bottom. The pulled pork was gross (though, granted, in this area we have high standards for pulled pork), and not cooked in the bbq sauce but rather placed on the bun and then a little sauce was ladled onto the meat, leaving the bun wet and soggy. The apple cider was apple juice, probably from Ingles. By this point, while we had planned to go purchase some goods inside, we were done. This business has SO MUCH POTENTIAL. The setting is bucolic, and the weather was perfect. I don't know who is running it, but since it's a nonprofit I took a look at their 990 and it seems like they are probably just too dependent on a volunteer board. I don't know, but I think this could be a true gem up in this area. Unfortunately, it just falls short. We'll see how my apple crisp turns out - I'll try to update my review when I find out.

    Photos
    The Orchard At Altapass
    The Orchard At Altapass - Live music and dancing most weekends.

    Live music and dancing most weekends.

    The Orchard At Altapass - Trails are open year round.

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    Trails are open year round.

    Rutherford Farms - Berry haul

    Rutherford Farms

    4.6(10 reviews)
    74.8 mi

    The farmers work very hard to get a good crop of Strawberries out for the community. I asked them…read moreabout if the farm was organic and if they use pesticides. The response was very kind. They said no they're not organic and there is no Farms in this region that are organic. They explained the chemicals is like taking a vitamins and medicine. It helps feed and protect them from pest and diseases. That they follow all practices set by the EPA. I found the farm very clean despite water puddles from the rain last week.

    We called to find out if the strawberries were organic, if not, what are they treated with. We were…read moreresponded to quite rudely with arrogance and a condescending attitude. She kept stating "Why would we want to kill our strawberries? We follow all EPA rules and guidelines. If we didn't treat them, we wouldn't have any berries. I personally researched every single chemical because I don't want to be around harmful chemicals." Neither her nor Steve have any respect or tact when dealing with customers who ask things they do not like. For those who want to know - Ridomil Gold and apparently Clorox according to one of their very own comments on Facebook to another farm - that have now been deleted by the owners but l have screenshots of it. The strawberries are also advertised as 1 gallon, which they specifically said yields 5lbs. Unless your bucket is overflowing, you aren't getting 5lbs. We bought several and upon weighing them at home, only 1 gallon was 5lbs. The rest were right at 4lbs. It adds up. After seeing how they respond to customers who have every right to know what is in their food, we will not be returning. I would sooner just buy from a store and I don't say that lightly as we are a cattle farming family, we prefer to support other local farms. Not this one however.

    Photos
    Rutherford Farms - Strawberries

    Strawberries

    Rutherford Farms - Parking at farm

    Parking at farm

    Rutherford Farms - Pick your own

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    Pick your own

    The Berry Farm - pickyourown - Updated May 2026

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