Virginia's Charming Family-Owned Berry Farm Near Richmond Promises Picturesque Pick-Your-Own Adventures

Strawberries: the go-to fruit for jellies, jams, and shortcake. And, in many East Coast communities, they also represent the beginning of summer. That's certainly the case at Chesterfield Berry Farm in Moseley, Virginia, a rural outpost about 30 miles outside downtown Richmond and 40 miles from the city's international airport. Here, June means pick-your-own strawberry season. The family-owned business got its start back in the early 1980s, and it's been going strong ever since. Over the years, the picturesque landscape has grown (like the fruit on its grounds) into a popular destination for photographs, typically everything from baby pics to professionally-taken senior and graduation portraits.

The Chesterfield Berry Farm's website boasts that their berries are "the juiciest strawberries around." The fields are open on weekends between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. throughout June and early July, but hours are subject to change depending on weather and overall demand. Pick-your-own buckets cost $6 per pound, but it's common to spot kids snacking as they go. Just prepare for sticky hands, red faces, and a little bit of clean up in the car on the way back to the city.

Later in the summer, Chesterfield Berry Farm switches gears to sunflowers and sweet corn. Flowers are $2 a bloom, and a dozen ears are $5. In late July — and sometimes early August depending on the season — stop by for the annual Sunflower & Sweet Corn Harvest Festival, a day-long event with hay rides, food vendors, and inflatable playhouses for kids.

There's also a Fall Festival weekend during pick-your-own pumpkin season. Day passes include hay slides (and rides), pig races, and a fun zone for kids. Visitors also look forward to the corn maze. With an area of about eight acres, it's far from the world's longest corn maze, but it's still an adventure for families. 

Although Chesterfield Berry Farm doesn't have any peach, pears, or apple orchards, there are plenty of other idyllic destinations for apple picking on the East Coast, many of which are also in Virginia. The state's fertile soil and day-to-night temperature fluctuations make it the ideal climate for fruit trees, and it's common to spot fritters and fresh-made pies at local farmers' markets. 

If you still have energy after picking strawberries or pumpkins in the fall, make sure to swing by the Metro Richmond Zoo. It's just 15 minutes away from Moseley's pick-your-own fields, and it's home to everything from cheetahs to chimpanzees. There's also a children's petting zoo, a safari sky lift over exhibits, and open-air train rides. Admission is $27 for adults and $20 for children. There's no charge for infants.

Back in the city, there are plenty more destinations to choose from. Nestled in a picturesque residential neighborhood, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (better known as the "VMFA" by locals) contains works by Degas, Warhol, Van Gogh, and plenty of others. It's one of the country's top art museums, and — best of all — admission is free for all. Hungry visitors can stop for soup, sandwiches, and hot slices of pizza at the museum cafe and eat outside in the sculpture garden on sunny southern days.

Or walk to Carrytown, a popular business district less than half a mile from the museum. Cary Street has everything from Vietnamese pho to French crepes, a 1920s-era movie theater called the Byrd, vintage stores, and even a spice shop. Although Richmond is only a fraction of the size of nearby cities like D.C., which has the largest natural history collection in the world and millions of annual visitors less than two hours away, it still holds its own when it comes to adventures, both pick-your-own and otherwise.