(Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)
The newest apple downloads
Here’s everything you need to know about picking your own
(Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)
As the autumn chill sets in, it’s time to dig out a cozy sweater and apple-picking pail for a trip to the orchard, where rosy-cheeked kids and ripened fruits abound. Those ominous summer showers and cool temps did bring one gift: one of the best apple crops in years. Whether you’re hunting for pie supplies, a treat for your teacher, or simply a fun fall day, catch the crop while it’s still here. Here is a sampling of what local orchards have to offer. When pricing orchards, remember that a peck (roughly 10 pounds) holds about 30 apples and a half bushel (roughly 20 pounds) holds about 50. Be sure to call ahead and ask what varieties are ready for picking.
1. CIDER HILL FARM
45 Fern Ave., Amesbury, 978-388-5525, www.ciderhill.com
Here you can try some of Cider Hill Farm’s award-winning fresh press cider. If you’re lucky, you’ll get to watch (and inhale) the pressing process, or at least the creation of delectable apple cider doughnuts, available in the farm store.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Price: $1.75 per pound
Varieties: Paula Red, Macintosh, Gala, Cortland, Ginger Gold, Macoun
2. RUSSELL ORCHARDS
143 Argilla Road, Ipswich, 978-356-5366, www.russellorchardsma.com
Apple picking is a great family activity, but Russell Orchards has a little something extra for grown-ups. Every weekend the orchard hosts a free tasting of wines from the on-site winery. Sample the homemade Apple-Blueberry or the Dandelion wine. Cheers.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Price: $13 for a peck bag on weekdays, $15 for a peck bag on weekends
Varieties: Ginger Gold, Honeycrisp, Macoun, Empire, Cortland, Gala
3. CONNORS FARM
30 Valley Road, Danvers, 978-777-1245, www.connorsfarm.com
This isn’t your grandmother’s apple orchard. Connors Farm boasts its own pumpkin mountain - an Everest of orange with over 50,000 pounds of pumpkins. The farm also has a 7-acre corn maze that’s inspired by the animated antics of “Family Guy.’’ Hopefully Stewie isn’t hiding in the husks.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily
Price: $7.50 for a half-peck bag, $14 for a peck bag, $25 for a half-bushel bag
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Empire, Honeycrisp
4. BROOKSBY FARM
54 Felton St., Peabody, 978-531-7456, www.brooksbyfarm.org
Brooksby Farm is an Eden in more ways than one. This orchard boasts not only a wide variety of apples but a gaggle of furry friends to meet at the farm’s petting zoo. The residents include emus, llamas, goats, sheep, chickens, and pigs.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily
Price: 3 half-peck bags for $18 on weekdays, $12 for a peck bag on weekends; $7 for a half-peck bag and $22 for a half-bushel bag every day
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Empire
5. BOSTON HILL FARM
1370 Turnpike St., North Andover, 978-681-8556, www.bostonhillfarm.com
The folks at Boston Hill Farm know how to have a good time. While there’s apple picking all week long, the real hoedown comes on the weekends, when they host a live band from 1 to 5 p.m. and barbecue from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (or whenever the food runs out). Throw on your cowboy boots and head to their farm.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily
Price: $18 for a peck, $30 for a half bushel
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Macoun
6. DREW FARMS
31 Tadmuck Road, Westford, 978-807-0719, www.drewfarms.com
Situated on a picturesque hillside, Drew Farms is the perfect place to spend a fall afternoon. At the base of the slope, the farm has a greenhouse from which you can take home an armful of chrysanthemums or a soon-to-be jack-o-lantern.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Price: $6 for a half-peck bag, $12 for a peck bag (two or more peck bags are $10 each), $20 for a half-bushel bag
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland
7. BERLIN ORCHARDS
310 Route 62 and Lower Sawyer Hill Road, Berlin, 978-838-2400, www.berlinorchards.com
After kids enjoy a bumpy hay ride and expedition through the fruit-filled trees of Berlin Orchards, their imaginations will run wild within a whimsical miniature village of Crooked Houses: playhouses with off-kilter roofs and windows.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays; 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekends
Price: $15 for a peck bag, $25 for a half bushel
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Gala, Jonagold, Golden Supreme, Honey Crisp, Red Delicious, Macoun
8. CARVER HILL ORCHARD
Brookside Avenue, Stow, 978-897-6117, www.wiehes.com/carver/carver.html
For a low-key day of rural fun, pack a lunch and a quilt and head to Carver Hill Orchard. It’ll be a peaceful outing with no intolerable crowd - because if the farm gets too packed, they close the gate.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily
Prices: $12 for a peck bag, $20 for a half bushel
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Macoun, Red Delicious, Blushing Golden, Honey Crisp
9. HAWK HILL ORCHARDS
83 Carleton Road, Millbury, 508-865-4037
This family-run orchard has its own toy train for pint-size conductors.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday
Price: $12 for a peck bag, $18 for a half-bushel bag
Varieties: Macintosh, Macoun, Gala, Mutsu
10. BELKIN FAMILY LOOKOUT FARM
89 Pleasant St. South, South Natick, 508-653-0653, www.lookoutfarm.com
Among the closest orchards to Boston, the Belkin Family Lookout Farm is a convenient rural getaway for city dwellers. The farm’s train chugs through the orchard, stopping where fruit is ripe. Grab a few Asian Pears - a hybrid that boasts an apple’s crunch and a pear’s flavor. With paid admission, kids can romp through outdoor attractions like the burlap maze, moon bounce, caterpillar ride, and hay pyramid.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Admission: $8 for everyone on weekdays, $14 for adults and $12 for children on weekends and Columbus Day, children age 2 and under free
Price: $2.50 per pound
Varieties: Cortland, Macoun, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Honey Crisp, Ginger Gold, Macintosh, Gala, Asian Pears, Fuji, and Jonagold
11. DOWSE ORCHARDS
98 North Main St., Sherborn, 508-653-2639, www.dowseorchards.com
The farmers at Dowse Orchards treat everyone like neighbors. At their old-fashioned farmstand you’ll find all the necessities for your fall cornucopia; pick up some pumpkins, fresh flowers, and apples to create the perfect centerpiece.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends
Price: $10 for a half peck, $19 for a peck, $35 for a half bushel
Varieties: Cortland, McIntosh, Macoun, Empire, Red Spy, Ida Red
12. FAIRMOUNT FRUIT FARM
887 Lincoln St., Franklin, 508-533-8737, www.fairmountfruit.com
Enjoy the fruits of somebody else’s labors. Owner Charles Koshivas’s wife, Betty, makes all sorts of baked delights that patrons can purchase. The delicacies include apple pies and fritters, made of course with apples from their orchard.
Hours: 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekends
Price: $15 for a peck bag, $22 for a half-bushel bag
Varieties: Macintosh, Cortland, Empire, Honeycrisp
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
