2024 Charlotte area of North Carolina Tomato U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org

Tomato U-Pick Orchards in Charlotte area of North Carolina in 2024, by county

Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for tomatoes that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have tomatoes orchards 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.

Cabarrus County

• Edward and Lilias Stevens' Quail Run Farm - Strawberries, sweet corn, tomatoes, and some beans.
  Cress Road, Mount Pleasant, NC . Phone: 704-436-6963. Click here for a map and directions. anytime. Picking late April or early May, approximately. Call for crop conditions. Strawberries are 95 cents a pound in furnished 4-quart boxes averaging 6 pounds; ready-picked berries on order. All fields unsprayed. 8 am to 7 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays, 2-7 p.m. Sundays. Restroom, cold water provided. Off N.C. 73 east between Concord and Mount Pleasant on Cress Road, off St. John's Church Road.

Cleveland County

• Clineland Farm - Strawberries, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, cantaloupe.
  2784-4 Clineland Road, Cherryville, NC 28021. Phone: (704) 445-8737. Email: clinelandfarm@yahoo.com. Open: Hours may change due to weather and other factors. Directions: Take I-85 south to U.S. 74 west. Get off at the Moss Lake exit and turn right toward Waco. Go about 7 miles. After you cross N.C. 150 continue approximately 2.25 miles to Clineland Road. Follow the signs to the strawberry field. . Click here for a map and directions. . Phone: 704-477-7104. . Mon.-Fri. 8:30-5:00 Sat. 8:30-5:00 Sun. 12:00-5:00. Strawberries, tomatoes and cantaloupe beginning about April 19. Pick-your-own or ready-picked. Broccoli and cauliflower available mid-May Click here for a map to the farm.

Gaston County

• Linebergers - Blackberries, Corn, Cucumber, Gourds, Greens, Muscadine, scuppernongs, Pumpkins, Raspberries, Squash, Strawberries, Tomatoes, Hay Rides, Tours
  906 Dallas-Stanley Highway #275, Dallas, NC 28034. Phone: 704-922-8688. Email: linebergersfarm@gmail.com. Directions: Located on Hwy 275 one mile east of Dallas and 5 miles west of Stanley. From I-85, take the New Hope Road Exit 20 in Gastonia, go north on New Hope Road 4 miles to Dallas, turn right on the Dallas-Stanley Hwy #275. The farm is a little over one mile on the right. Crop availability: Strawberries - May-early June Blackberries & Raspberries - June-July Pumpkins, Gourds, Muscadine & Greens - September to October Squash, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Sweet corn & Melons pre-picked only in June& July. School tours welcome & hayrides in October. Eight acres of strawberries, beginning last week of April or early May. Take-home containers available. Pumpkins, gourds, greens, muscadines and hayrides in September and October. Restroom, playground, picnic tables available. . Click here for a map and directions.
  Linebergers Facebook page. or Phone: 704-748-1488. May/June hours: 8 am to 7 pm Monday- Saturday,from 1 pm to 6 pm Sunday. Call for hours in other seasons. the farm produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, including strawberries, blackberries, peaches, vegetables, and pumpkins. Our customers enjoy buying fresh produce, picking their own berries, picnicking and letting the kids play. We sell produce at our on-farm stores and the Gastonia, Denver, and Atherton Mill Farmers' Markets. Formerly called Maple Springs Farm. (UPDATED: July 19, 2019, JBS)
  Comments from a visitor on September 11, 2009: "Nice people! Very well run operation. Produce is fresh & market is clean. They have hayrides & farm-oriented play area. Lots of schools & daycares go there in the fall for the pumpkins & hayrides. "

Iredell County

• J & N Farms - Beans, Peach, Peppers, Squash, Strawberries, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Watermelon
  208 Edwards Road, Harmony, NC 28634. Phone: (336) 492-6139. Email: normageorg@aol.com. Open: Sunday to Saturday; May 1 thru October 1. Click here for a map and directions. . Call for hours of operation. I haven't seen any recent information about this one in years (except on the scam website pickyourown.farms, which only copies my information), so I think they may have closed down.

Rowan County

• Fisher Farms - Blackberries, tomatoes
  77789 Stokes Ferry Road, Rockwell, NC . Phone: 704-239-7449. Click here for a map and directions. . Alternate phone: 704-239-1719. Take I-85 North to Exit 68 (China Grove/Rockwell). Go right at the ramp toward Rockwell. Follow N.C. 152 to Rockwell. Call the farm from East Rowan Cafe in Rockwell for further directions. Farm is two miles east of Rockwell. Crop availability: Blackberries in mid-June through late July; picking tomatoes starting July 1. Prices set in season. Other produce available. 8:30 am until dark weekdays, 1-7 p.m. Sunday; closed Saturday.
• Patterson Farm, Inc. - strawberries, pumpkins, tomatoes, and prepicked produce, gift shop, snacks and refreshment stand, restrooms, picnic area, face painting, pony rides, farm animals, birthday parties, school tours, events at your location (call for info)
  10390 Caldwell Road, Mount Ulla, NC 28125. Phone: 704-797-0013. Email: tours@visitpattersonfarm.com. Open: Monday to Saturday 8:30 am to 7 pm, Sunday 10:00 to 6:00; Market hours vary with the season; Please call or see our website for hours. Directions: for a map to our farm, . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Visa, MasterCard. . Fax: 704-636-5009. . Crops are usually available in May, June, July, August, September, October. Strawberries - May Tomatoes - July 1 - October 30 Tours: Spring Pizza Tours - April Strawberry Patch Tours - May Tomato Patch Tours - July Dirt on Dirt Tours - September Pumpkin Patch Tours - October.

Union County

• Southerland Brothers Produce - Uses natural growing practices, cucumbers, summer squash, tomatoes, other vegetables,
  6518 Mcneely Road, Waxhaw, NC 28173. Phone: 704-579-9784. Email: info@northcarolinaproduce.com. Open: UPDATE for 2019, Their website is gone; Does anyone have current information, are they still offering pick your own or are even open? If so, please write me. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. . We use natural practices, but are not yet certified Organic.

 

Tomato Picking Tips, Recipes and Information

Pick tomatoes that are firm and free of blemishes. Cracking is common in very hot weather, especially after a rain, and if you intend to use the tomatoes within 1 day, that will be ok.

During hot summer weather, pick the tomatoes when they have a healthy pink/red (or yellow or orange depending on the variety) color and let them finish the last day or two of ripening indoors. Tomatoes do not need to be in the sunlight in order to ripen. If you have green fruit on the plants in the fall when frost is approaching, pick the tomatoes and store them in a cool, dark place to ripen.

Tomato Varieties

In general paste or Roma-type tomatoes are the best to using for canning, as they have thicker, meatier walls and far less water. And cherry tomatoes are the worst to use, as they are mostly water.  But you can use any type you can get hold of.  You may just have to cook them down longer to boil off excess water.  See our Master list of tomato varieties

Growing tomatoes

• Master list of tomato varieties
• Master List of Heirloom Tomato Varieties
• How to Grow Tomatoes in Your Yard or Patio - Everything you need to know
• Detailed directions to starting tomatoes from seed
• Master List of Roma and Paste Tomato Varieties for the Home Garden
• Master list of disease-resistant tomato varieties
• Tomato plant diseases

Canning, Freezing, Drying, Preserving Tomatoes and more!

Below are links to pages with easy and reliable directions about how to can, preserve, freeze and make other goodies from tomatoes.  Some of these require a Pressure Canner to prevent potential spoilage and food poisoning, due to the low acid content of the food.  For others, you can use a water bath canner OR a Pressure Canner.  I've noted what's required for each, below, following each entry, with
W for water bath,
P for Pressure canner, and
W, P for either may be used!

And don't miss: Answers to common tomato canning problems and see this page about what to do with your unripe green tomatoes!

Prepping tomatoes

• How to quickly and easily remove tomato skins

Canning tomatoes (in water bath canners )

• How to can tomatoes using a water bath canner - W
• Diced, chopped or crushed tomatoes - W
• Bruschetta - W
• Tomato sauce - W
• Tomato paste - W
• Barbecue sauce (BBQ sauce) - W
• Chili sauce from your own tomatoes and peppers - W
• Diced, chopped or crushed tomatoes - W
• Tomato Preserves- W
• Tomato salsa - W
• Spaghetti sauce - without meat - W, P
• Spiced Green tomatoes- W
• Pickled Green Tomatoes - W - another pickled green tomato recipe, this one sweet
• Ketchup.. or if you prefer... How to make catsup - W, P
• NEW! SUPER-EASY homemade ketchup recipe - W
• Salsa from your unripe, GREEN tomatoes! - W
• Tomatillo salsa - W
• How to make roasted tomatoes, boiling water bath canner version - W

Canning Tomatoes in Pressure canners

• Canned tomatoes using a Pressure Canner - P
• Baked  Beans With Tomato or Molasses Sauce - P
• Canning your own chili con carne (with meat) - P
• How to make roasted tomatoes, pressure canner version - P
• Spaghetti sauce - with meat  - P
• Stewed tomatoes - P
• Tomato soup or tomato-basil soup - P
• Tomato sauce - P
• Tomato juice - P
• Tomato juice, like V8 - P

Freezing Tomatoes

• How to freeze tomatoes from you garden or the farm; for that fresh taste this winter!
• Space-saving prepping and freezing extra tomatoes from your garden to can later

Drying tomatoes

• NEW! How to make Sun-Dried Tomatoes
• Food drying basics and principles
• How to dry your own herbs
• Food Dehydrators - models, specs and pricing information

Ripening green tomatoes in your garage or basement

If you want to bring your green tomatoes indoors before a freeze in the Fall, and ripen them, see:

• How to ripen your green garden tomatoes indoors in the Fall and Winter.

And if you'd like to start you own tomatoes from seed (you can save a small fortune and grow the heirloom varieties you like) see this page for easy directions for growing your own tomato plants from seed.

Frequently Asked Questions About Canning, Freezing and Preserving Tomatoes

• See this page for answers to many common questions about tomatoes.

 

Other Local Farm Products (Honey, Horses, Milk, Meat, Eggs, Etc.)
(NOT pick-your-own, unless they are also listed above)

• Farm markets and roadside stands
• Local Honey Finder
• Local Meat, Milk and Eggs
• Venues: Farms, Wineries, Orchards for your event, wedding or party
• Easter egg hunts
• Children"s consignment sales
• Fruit and vegetable festivals
• Winery tours and wine tastings
• Horse rides, stables, lessons, trails
• Maple Syrup farms and sugarworks
• Bed & Breakfasts on Farms, Wineries, Ranches and Orchards
• Pumpkin patches
• Corn mazes
• Zombie Paintball venues
• Christmas Tree Farms & lots
• Environmental resources
• Consumer fraud information
• Wholesale food sources
• Resources for Farmers