Photo and commentary by WILLIAM MORGAN

A farm house in Berlin, Mass., in the apple-growing country west of Interstate 495 in Worcester County.

Despite the appearance of a thin veneer of wealth created by the odd equestrian stable, towns like Berlin are hardly prospering. Farming in a cold climate  with rocky soil is hard.

Come May, the orchard stock will  wear gorgeous blossoms. But, now in January, the scene is one of bleakness.