We are opening our entire farm for visitors beginning this Saturday, and many varieties of apples are available and ready for harvest such as Macintosh, Royal Gala, Northern Spy, Honeycrisp, Empire, Ida Red, Red and Golden Delicious, Mutsu, Cortland, Aurora Golden Gala, Fuji, Ambrosia, Granny Smith, and Spartan. Some apple varieties we also grow are not quite ready for harvest, such as Jonagold and Pink Lady. If you want to try one and find out for yourself, go ahead! (We also grow Golden Russet apples, but these have all been picked from the trees and are available in our store for purchase.) You will also be able to see the pumpkin patches. We have not yet had time to cut the pumpkins from the vines so we are asking people to take as many pictures as you wish, but please do not treat our fields as a playground. We grew the gourds, pumpkins, squash and other veggies as food for sale and not playthings. If you do not intend to purchase any food you encounter while visiting the farm, please do not touch. We have never charged for admission before but starting this weekend there will be an additional admission charge of $5 per person on top of the cost of apple picking. Sorry folks, but times have changed and we have not kept pace with these changes. We have focused on growing food here this year and it has been a challenging 2024 to say the least. Our intention as always is to sell apples in our store as cheaply as possible. Some of our fruit varieties on display are being sold for 30 percent less than in 2023. For instance, last year we sold certain apples at $1.49/ lb, and they are now .99 / lb. We always remind people it is way cheaper to buy the same apples in our store than picking their own from our trees. YES it costs more to pick your own, mainly due to the tremendous amount of waste (apples dropped on the ground). We also require more staff members. Economic circumstances require this added cost to our visitors. Unfortunately, it is generally a small number of people in society whose behaviour causes the rest of the population to pay more for things. We regret having to charge more but we will not be able to pay our employees, bills and taxes without making this necessary adjustment in our pricing for pick-your-own.
Due to the changing weather patterns in 2024, Apple season has started earlier, and so has the picking. Many types of fruit such as Macintosh are not holding on during the recent weeks of hot temperatures and falling to the ground. Do not wait until later in October to do your annual apple picking excursion with the family, there may not be as many apples left on the trees as you may have experienced in previous years!
