2023 Kern County, California Apple And Pumpkin U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org

Apple And Pumpkin U-Pick Orchards in Kern County, California in 2023, by county

Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for apples and pumpkins that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have apples and pumpkins 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.

Kern County (Bakersfield area)

• Dries Farms - Apples, Raspberries, pumpkins, lavender
  19670 Easy Street, Tehachapi, CA . Phone: 661-444-0835. Email: margaret.dries@gmail.com. Open: Wednesday through Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; Closed Monday and Tuesday; We have always have berries through October. Directions: corner of Easy Street and Loumas Lane. . Click here for a map and directions. . Phone: 661-823-9829. . Click here for a map. U-PICK AND WE-PICK. Apples and pumpkins. We also have U-pick raspberries, lavender, tomatoes, butternut squash. Our apple varieties are mostly yellow delicious and red delicious. Don't wait too late and miss out! Questions? Call or text Margaret at. is a family farm started in 1995 with 7 acres of raspberries. It has evolved into a half acre of raspberries, 500 lavender plants, pumpkins, squash, tomatoes and herbs on 5 acres.
• Murray Family Farms - Certified Organic, apples, apricots, avocados, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries, cherries, figs, flowers, grapefruit, lemons, loganberries, marionberries, melons, nectarines, olallieberries, oranges, other berries, other citrus, pears, peaches, persimmons, plums, pomegranates, pumpkins, raspberries (red), raspberries (Spring, red), raspberries (black), raspberries (Spring, black), raspberries (Autumn, black), tangerines, strawberries, watermelons, Honey from hives on the farm, gift shop, concessions \\/ refreshment stand, porta-potties, restrooms, picnic area, picnic area you may bring your own food, face painting, jumping pillow, petting zoo, farm animals, birthday parties, weddings and wedding parties, school tours, group reservations, events at your location (call for info)
  6700 General Beale, Bakersfield, CA 93307. Phone: (661) 330-0100. Email: t.hargrove@murrayfamilyfarms.com. Open: Monday to Sunday 8 am to 6 pm. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard.
  Murray Family Farms Facebook page. . Alternate Phone: (661) 371-0400. . Picking updates: Click here for picking updates. We are certified organic for some crops. Typical dates for crops (always see current info on our website) areApril - May: Strawberries, Asparagus April - July: Sweet Cherries (17 varieties) May - July: Apricots, Apriums May - Aug: Blueberries, Blackberries May - Oct: Yellow and White Nectarines May - Oct: Plums and Pluots May - Oct: Summer Veggies May - Oct: Sweet Corn, Melons June - Oct: Heirloom Tomatoes September - Nov: Asian Pears September - Jan: Apples October - Nov: Pumpkins and Gourds Nov - April: Winter Veggies Nov - July: Mixed Citrus All Year: Oranges. (UPDATED: April 02, 2018)

Apple picking tips:

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

Pumpkin recipes

• How to prepare cooked pumpkin from a fresh pumpkin (for use in all the recipes)
• Illustrated instructions to make a pumpkin pie from a fresh pumpkin - the best pumpkin pie you will ever taste! (metric version for the UK, Europe, Australia, Japan, etc.)
• How to home-can pumpkin (in a cooked, cubed form) and why you shouldn't home-can the pureed forms.
• Traditional Pumpkin Pie
• Chocolate pumpkin pie
• Pumpkin Spice Muffins
• Pumpkin muffins
• Pumpkin Bread
• Pumpkin Butter!
• Pumpkin cheesecake - INCREDIBLE!!! You have to try this one!
• Pumpkin Cookies
• Pumpkin soup - even if you normally aren't a soup lover; you will love this one.
• Butternut-Chestnut Panchetta-Bacon Soup - Pumpkin or Butternut squash combines with chestnuts and bacon, ham or panchetta in this great soup
• Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
• No Sugar Pumpkin Pie
• Apple Cider Doughnut Recipe (with maple glaze or sugar glaze)

Other Local Farm Products (Honey, Horses, Milk, Meat, Eggs, Etc.)
(NOT pick-your-own, unless they are also listed above)

• Farm markets and roadside stands
• Local Honey Finder
• Local Meat, Milk and Eggs
• Venues: Farms, Wineries, Orchards for your event, wedding or party
• Easter egg hunts
• Children"s consignment sales
• Fruit and vegetable festivals
• Winery tours and wine tastings
• Horse rides, stables, lessons, trails
• Maple Syrup farms and sugarworks
• Bed & Breakfasts on Farms, Wineries, Ranches and Orchards
• Pumpkin patches
• Corn mazes
• Zombie Paintball venues
• Christmas Tree Farms & lots
• Environmental resources
• Consumer fraud information
• Wholesale food sources
• Resources for Farmers