Summer is finally here! It's the season for long days, short nights, breaks away from work and hotter weather (well supposedly, is it actually summer yet?). While not all of these can be guaranteed, one thing that's always delightful in the summertime is buying delicious fresh soft fruit from your local farm and even picking your own berries.
Perfect for family days out, we've compiled a list of our favourite Scottish soft fruit farms that you must visit when you Go Rural for your soft fruit fix (warm weather cannot be guaranteed).
Cairnie Fruit Farm, Fife
Cairnie Fruit Farm boasts 45 acres of pure fruit and vegetable picking happiness! Located in Fife, the farm produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, including strawberries, raspberries, cherries, redcurrants, blackcurrants, brambles, and gooseberries, which are all available to pick for yourself. The farm also features a delightful café, offering delicious home-baked goods and pastries, as well as a fantastic farm shop, where you can find an array of fresh local produce, and the exciting Mega Maize Maze, which offers a different challenge each year! A visit to Cairnie Fruit Farm promises a delightful and bountiful experience for all.
🍓 PYO is available at Cairnie Fruit Farm.
Cairnie Fruit Farm and Mega Maze
Black Isle Berries, The Highlands
Conveniently located just a 15-minute drive from Inverness, Black Isle Berries is the perfect Highland destination for picking your own fresh fruit. Nestled amongst the picturesque scenery of the Black Isle, this relatively small farm features several large polytunnels bursting with plump, sumptuous berries. After your fruit-picking, be sure to visit the onsite shop. Here you can browse and purchase more fresh produce directly from the farm, as well as indulge in other delights such as homemade brownies, focaccia, and don’t miss their famous sticky gingerbread.
🍓 PYO is available at Black Isle Berries.
Charleton Fruit Farm, Angus
Situated on the outskirts of Montrose in Aberdeenshire, Charleton Fruit Farm has long been a wonderful destination. It's especially popular for those looking to pick their own fresh fruit and vegetables, offering one of the widest selections around. Throughout the summer and into autumn, visitors can pick a variety of produce, including strawberries, raspberries, pumpkins, peas, asparagus, apples, pears, brambles, cherries, blueberries, redcurrants, plums, blackcurrants, and more! The farm also features a charming onsite café, perfect for breakfast, lunch, or coffee and cake, as well as a fantastic play area for kids.
🍓 PYO is available at Charleton Fruit Farm.
Craigie's Farm, Edinburgh
Every year thousands of visitors flock to Craigie’s Farm to pick their own fresh strawberries, raspberries, cherries, blackcurrants, and gooseberries, plus several types of vegetables throughout the year. Located just outside Edinburgh, near to South Queensferry, the farm is easily accessible for many. The farm features a huge shop and cafe, serving up delicious local produce, and an adventure play barn, which can be booked along with fruit picking, offering a fantastic day out for the whole family. For added convenience, you can also order directly from their website and have a fresh batch of fruit delivered straight to your doorstep!
🍓 PYO is available at Craigie's Farm.
Craigie's Farm Shop and Cafe (1)
Castleton Farm & Shop, Aberdeenshire
Nestled in the stunning Mearns countryside, Castleton Farm & Shop is a family-run farm specialising in growing and supplying a diverse array of berries, alongside a bustling cafe and farm shop. The farm’s berries, which include strawberries, raspberries, cherries, and blueberries, have won many different awards over the years and guarantee a truly irresistible taste. The farm partly credits this to their northerly location, as the combination of long daylight hours and a cooler climate allows the fruit to ripen more slowly, creating more sugars and producing a delicious sweet berry. Why not visit and try it for yourself?
🫐 BUY soft fruit direct at Castleton Farm & Shop.
Broadslap Fruit Farm, Perthshire
Located in the heart of Earn Valley in rural Perthshire, Broadslap Fruit Farm is a great place for all your fruit picking desires. The farm grows some of the best tasting strawberries and raspberries, plus blackcurrants, redcurrants, blackberries, and gooseberries throughout the season. When you visit make sure to also pop into the onsite cafe, which sells some of the tastiest looking burgers and cakes around! Plus, there's a fantastic playbarn and touring site, making it a perfect destination for the whole family!
🍓 PYO is available at Broadslap Fruit Farm.
Briarlands Farm, Stirlingshire
Briarlands Farm is brimming with fun and offers a fantastic day out for the whole family. Fruit picking is, of course, a highlight, and it's the perfect place to gather some of the best-tasting strawberries in Scotland. Grown in polytunnels on waist-high wires, the berries are easy to pick without straining your back and can be picked in any weather - a great bonus in Scotland! While at Briarlands, be sure to check out the other fun activities, including jumping pillows, football golf, tractor rides, and guinea pig and rabbit petting, what’s not to love?
🍓 PYO is available at Briarlands Farm.
The Barrie Box Farm Shop, Perthshire
The Barrie Box is a charming fruit shop that emerged during the COVID pandemic. Initially a small, self-service style shop relying on customers' honesty, it has since expanded in both size and popularity. Today, The Barrie Box offers a wide variety of fresh fruits directly from Colbeggie Farm, as well as other delightful food products like fresh bread, ice cream, and pastries from local suppliers. If you find yourself passing through rural Perthshire, be sure to visit this lovely wee shop - your taste buds will thank you!
🫐 BUY soft fruit direct at The Barrie Box.
Thomas Thomson Blairgowrie, Perthshire
Somewhere that has no shortage of experience in growing fresh fruit is Thomas Thomson Fruit Farm in rural Perthshire. Incredibly, the farm has been growing raspberries for over 100 years! But it’s not just raspberries; the farm also grows cherries, blueberries and aronia, which have been cultivated here for over 50 years.
Full of character, the farm runs various charity picking days and has raised over £22,000 for local community groups and charities, so make sure to follow along on social media so you don’t miss out. There’s also a lovely self-catering property onsite – a perfect spot for a rural escape!
🍓 PYO is available at Thomas Thomson Fruit Farm (set charity picking days).
Boutique Farm Bothies, Aberdeenshire
Looking for a luxury rural escape with the added bonus of fresh fruit deliveries on your doorstep? Well, if you are, Boutique Farm Bothies will be just right for you. Set amongst gorgeous Aberdeenshire scenery, the farm is home to four fantastically appointed unique and quirky ‘bothies’ and its very own strawberry polytunnel. Indulge in fresh strawberries and kick back in pure luxury—what could be better than that?! If you're just passing through the area, make sure to pop into Forbes Raeburn Butcher in Huntly, where you can pick up the farm's fresh strawberries!
🫐 BUY soft fruit direct at Boutique Farm Bothies.
