2023 Marin and Sonoma counties in California Apple And Pumpkin U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org

Apple And Pumpkin U-Pick Orchards in Marin and Sonoma counties in 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.

Sonoma County

• Grandmas Pumpkin Patc - apples, pomegranates, pumpkins, summer squash, U-pick and already picked, Grandmas Pumpkin Patch - apples, pomegranates, pumpkins, summer squash, U-pick and already picked, gift shop, concessions \\/ refreshment stand, restrooms, picnic area, picnic area you may bring your own food, face painting, petting zoo, farm animals, school tours, group reservations, events at your location (call for info)
  17740 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg, CA 95448. Phone: 707-431-8058. Email: lastminutejenny@msn.com. Open: daily Monday thru Sunday form 10 am till Dark; September 26th through October 31st. Directions: From Santa Rosa; Highway 101 north to the Lytton Springs Exit. At the exit go right. Go over the railroad tracks and go right. Patch is 2nd house on the left. go down driveway and park in the back to enter patch. From Ukiah; Highway 101 south to the Lytton Springs Exit. At the exit go left. Go over the railroad tracks and go right. Patch is 2nd house on the left. go down driveway and park in the back to enter patch. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard. . Alternate Phone: 707-293-5750. . All groups are welcome. Size does not matter, We are handicap accessible. Music on the week ends from 10am till 4pm. Parking and entrance is of course free. (ADDED: September 24, 2015)
• Hale's Apple Farm - apples (limited U-pick), pumpkins
  1526 Gravenstein Hwy North, Sebastopol, CA 95472. Phone: 707-823-4613. Directions: located right on Gravenstein Hwy in Sebastopol as you head out towards Forestville. They also have tomatoes, squash, gourds and apple cider made from the apples on the farm. . Click here for a map and directions. Hale's Apple Farm Phone number:. daily, 9 am to 5 pm from late September to October; CALL before coming to confirm the availability of u-pick; when they are very busy they cannot accommodate PYO as they won't have staff to show you out to the apples. Hales Apple Farm has a 40 acre orchard with over 30 different varieties of apples that you can pick.

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