Apple U-Pick Orchards in Northwestern Ohio in 2023, by county
Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for apples that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have apples orchards that are open to the public. If you know of any others, please tell us using the add a farm form!
Remember to always check with the farm's own website or Facebook page before you go - or call or email them if they don't have a website or Facebook page. Conditions at the farms and crops can change literally overnight, so if you want to avoid a wasted trip out there - check with the farm directly before you go! If I cannot reach them, I DON'T GO!
PLEASE report closed farms, broken links and incorrect info using the "Report Corrections" form below.
Allen County
- JK Orchard & Farm - apples, wine grapes, grapefruit, pears, peaches, pumpkins, raspberries (red), raspberries (yellow), raspberries (Autumn, black), strawberries,
1345 Lutz Road, Lima, OH 45801. Phone: (419) 604-4145. Email: jkorchardfarm@gmail.com. Open: Click here for current open hours, days and dates. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard.
JK Orchard & Farm Facebook page. . Picking updates: Click here for picking updates. PYO strawberries, Pumpkin Patch, Sunflower Fields, Flower Fields, Farm Tours, Date Nights & more. Strawberries: Starting late May or early June to June 21 - 30th Pumpkins: Starting September 6th to mid October. (ADDED: May 13, 2017) - Sugar Creek Orchard - Apples, corn maze, pumpkins
5395 Sugar Creek Rd, Beaverdam, OH . Phone: . Email: SugarCreekOrchard@gmail.com. Open: See daily from dawn to disk. Directions: See their website for directions. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, only.
Sugar Creek Orchard Facebook page. - Suter Produce - Apples, broccoli, pumpkins, strawberries, pumpkin patch-pick in the field, pumpkin patch- already gathered from the field, corn maze, corn cannon, and prepicked produce, cider mill, snacks and refreshment stand, tractor-pulled hay rides, wagon rides
12200 Pandora Road, Pandora, OH 45877. Phone: 419-384-3331. Email: suterproduce@yahoo.com. Open: Corn Maze and Hayrides - Saturdays 9am - 8 pm; Sundaysfrom 1 pm to 8 pm Strawberries June 5 to June 25 Corn Maze and Hayrides to the pumpkin patch Mid September to October 31. Directions: 2 miles south of the Shell station in Pandora, Ohio . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. . Crops are usually available in June, September, October. Our Strawberry Season typically starts in June. Season updates are posted on our Home page, on Facebook, and through our email list. Summertime is Sweet Corn Time! Fresh picked Mon-Sat by our wonderful family of workers!
Williams County
- Votaw Farms - apples, flowers, pumpkins, Cider mill fresh apple cider made on the premises, U-pick and already picked, concessions \\/ refreshment stand, porta-potties, picnic area, inflatables or bounce houses, petting zoo, birthday parties, school tours, group reservations, events at your location (call for info)
18864 Cr 13, Pioneer, OH 43554. Phone: (419) 737-2207. Email: votawfarms@frontier.com. Open: UPDATE for 2021: They are closed until the 2022 season; varies in variety when the apples are ready. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, AmEx, SFMNP Vouchers.
Votaw Farms Facebook page. . Alternate Phone: (419) 630-6289. . Corn Maze open Labor Day to November 1. Apple orchard 1 mile west and one mile north of Pioneer. We sell cider, apples, popcorn, honey and more. We open after Labor day and stay open until at least Thanksgiving. (ADDED: February 08, 2020)
Apple Picking Tips, Recipes and Information
Apples ripen from the outside of the tree towards the center, so the apples out the outside of the tree will ripen first. Once they are picked, they stop ripening. Picking apples directly from a tree is easy. Roll the apple upwards off the branch and give a little twist; don't pull straight away from the tree. If two apples are joined together at the top, both will come away at the same time. Don't shake the trees or branches. If the apple you are trying to pick drops, (or others on the tree) go ahead and pick it up. They're perfectly fine! But do wash them before you eat them! More info: How to tell when apples are ripe
- Once picked, don't throw the apples into the baskets, place them in gently, or they will bruise and go bad more quickly.
- Don't wash apples until just before using to prevent spoilage.
- For an explanation of why apple slices turn brown and how to stop it, see this page!
-
Keep apples cool after picking to increase shelf life. A cool basement is ideal, but the fruit/vegetable drawer of a refrigerator will work, too. A refrigerator is fine for small
quantities of apples. Boxed apples need to be kept in a cool, dark spot
where they won't freeze. Freezing ruptures all of an apple's cells, turning
it into one large bruise overnight. The usual solution is to store apples in
a root cellar. But root cellars often have potatoes in them: apples and
potatoes should never be stored in the same room because, as they age,
potatoes release an otherwise ethylene gas, which makes apples spoil faster.
If you can keep the gas away from your apples, they will keep just fine.
Just don't store them right next to potatoes.
Prevent contact between apples stored for the winter by wrapping them individually in sheets of newspaper. The easiest way to do this is to unfold a section of newspaper all the way and tear it into quarters. Then stack the wrapped apples . See more here: How to store apples at home - Apples don't improve or "ripen" after being picked - this is an urban myth - see this page for the truth - with references!
Which apple variety is best?
There are tens of thousands of varieties of apples, developed over centuries. They vary in sugar, acoidity, flavors, storing, crispness and many other attributes. See our guides to apple varieties:
- Summary table of many apple varieties and their characteristics
- Detailed descriptions of each apple variety with detailed characteristics
- Apple varieties, sorted by the order in which they typically ripe
- Apple varieties that don't turn brown when they are cut
- Why are some apples brown or spotted inside when you first cut them open?
Canning apples - fully illustrated, with step-by-step instructions
- How to make applesauce
- How to make apple butter
- How to make apple jelly
- How to make apple pie filling (canned)
- How to can apples
- Home canned apple juice
Recipes, illustrated with step by step instructions
- Apple pie recipe and directions and illustrated! I can say, with, ahem, no bias at all, that this is the best apple pie recipe in the world! (Alright, I did have an apple strudel in Vienna once at that place listed in Fodors that was REALLY good, but that wasn't a pie, was it? And since this was the recipe my grandmother used, it must be great!)
- How to make applesauce for a single meal (not canning it) with NO special equipment
- Apple cobbler
- Apple crunch - best of all! Moist, low sugar and using oats!
- Apple crisp - ever-popular, low sugar and using oats!
- Apple, blackberry, cherry, and/or peach cobbler
- Apple-blackberry, crumble - a English favorite (or favourite)
Using fresh apples and miscellaneous
- How to stop cut apples from browning
- Apple festivals - find one near you!
- Apple facts
- Apple seeds and cyanide