All guides
How to pick apples
5 min read
The longest u-pick season in the country and the one with the most varieties, most of them ready on different weeks.
324
farms
19
regions
June to November
picked
When you can pick apples
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Across every region on Pickeria. Darker months are peak somewhere; your own region is narrower, and the table below gives it.
What to look for
- 1
Lift and twist rather than pulling down. The stem should part from the spur cleanly; pulling takes next year's fruit bud with it
- 2
Keep the stem attached. A stemless apple rots from the wound within days
- 3
Ripe apples come away easily when tilted horizontally. If you are fighting the tree, the tree is right
- 4
Look at the ground under the tree. A scatter of sound windfalls usually means that tree is ready, and none at all often means it is early
- 5
Colour is unreliable across varieties. Cut one open: brown pips mean ready, white or pale pips mean wait
What people get wrong
Every one of these is common enough to be worth naming.
- Pulling straight down, which strips the fruiting spur and costs the tree next year's apple in that spot
- Picking without the stem, which opens a wound the apple rots from within days
- Filling a bag from the first tree you reach, when the variety two rows over may be the one you actually want
- Storing them next to anything else, because apples give off ethylene and will over-ripen everything nearby
Varieties worth knowing
Farms post the variety at the gate. This is what the names mean.
Honeycrisp
Bred at the University of Minnesota and released in 1991. Explosively crisp, expensive to grow, and the variety that changed what Americans expect from an apple. Early to mid September.
Zestar and SweeTango
Also Minnesota. Zestar opens the season in late August; SweeTango is a Honeycrisp cross with more flavour and less fame.
McIntosh and Cortland
The northeastern classics. Soft, aromatic, and better in a pie than in a lunchbox. Cortland does not brown when cut.
Gala, Fuji, Braeburn
Late, sweet, keep well, and are what most of the supermarket year is. Worth picking because a fresh Fuji is a different fruit from a stored one.
Northern Spy, Arkansas Black, Rhode Island Greening
Heirlooms that hardly anyone grows. Sharp, complex, superb cooked, and the real reason to visit an old orchard.
Once you are home
Most people pick more than they planned to.
- Refrigerate immediately for keeping. Apples last four to six times longer cold than on a counter
- Sauce is the best use of a glut and freezes better than it cans
- Keep the varieties separate and labelled, because they cook completely differently and you will forget which is which
- A cold garage or basement at just above freezing keeps late varieties into February
Where you can pick apples
324 farms across 19 regions, earliest season first. Every date came from the farm's own words.
Published prices
$1.80 to $2.49 per pound
Live Earth Farm, Gizdich Ranch, The Urban Edge Farm and 4 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
June to November
Detroit, MI19 farms
Blake's Orchard & Cider Mill, Spicer Orchards, Westview Orchards & Winery and 16 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
July to October
New York, NY48 farms
Greig Farm, Ochs Orchard, Soons Orchards and 45 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Boston, MA39 farms
Scooter's Farm of Woodmont, Cider Hill Farm, Tougas Family Farm and 36 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Minneapolis, MN27 farms
Aamodt's Apple Farm, Pine Tree Apple Orchard, Afton Apple Orchard and 24 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
Lyman Orchards, March Farm, Belltown Hill Orchards and 23 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Washington, DC23 farms
Marker-Miller Orchards, Great Country Farms, Baugher's Orchards and Farms and 20 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
Chicago, IL21 farms
Lang's Orchard, Royal Oak Farm Orchard, Stade's Farm & Market and 18 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
Philadelphia, PA20 farms
Weaver's Orchard, Kauffman Orchards, Solebury Orchards and 17 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
Cleveland, OH14 farms
Patterson Fruit Farm, Quarry Hill Orchards, Geig's Orchard and 11 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Rochester, NY13 farms
Whittier Fruit Farm, Hurd Orchards, Fisher's Fruit & Christmas Tree Farm and 10 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Los Angeles, CA10 farms
Los Rios Rancho, Snow-Line Orchard, Parrish Pioneer Ranch and 7 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Milwaukee, WI9 farms
The Little Farmer, Jelli's Market, Appleland Farm Market and 6 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Portland, OR8 farms
Kiyokawa Family Orchards, Pearl's Place Fruit, Pear Bloom Farm and 5 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Atlanta, GA6 farms
B.J. Reece Orchards, Mercier Orchards, R&A Orchards and 3 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
Charlotte, NC4 farms
Perry Lowe Orchards, Carrigan Farms, Apple Hill Orchard and Cider Mill and 1 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to November
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
August to October
Sacramento, CA6 farms
Harris Family Farm, O'Halloran's Apple Trail Ranch, Pine-O-Mine Ranch and 3 more
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
September to November
Farms that publish a price
Taken from the farm's own website, never from a directory. Most publish nothing at all, so these are worth knowing.
