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Pumpkin Harvest Time Is for Everyone
A Guide to Picking Your Own Pumpkins,
Apples & Fall Harvest Foods

Harvesting crops is only hard work if you live on a farm. For city folks and suburban families picking your own apples and pumpkins - along with fall foliage drives - is a rite of Autumn that everyone looks forward to.

While some schools get the whole class out in the fields, most kids get to go apple picking or pumpkin picking with family groups. It's a healthy day out in the fresh air and a great picture taking opportunity...but most of all it's the thrill of getting close to the land and bringing home fruit and vegetables that you actually picked.

Most farms that provide pumpkin patches for city dwellers to wander in also have hot chocolate and plenty of cider and fresh fruits to snack on. You may find a few that offer hay rides or other entertainment for before and after you go to choose your pumpkins.

Apple orchards that let guests harvest the fruit usually have cider, hot and cold, made from the very same apples that you get to bring home. Most also have delicious home baked apple pies to treat yourself with.

Jane Eckert, the inspiration for the Farm Stop listing, understands why the public is so interested in a farm or ranch experience. She is the sixth generation to grow up in Southern Illinois on her family's peach orchard. She is thrilled to have tourists at her farm. She says, "When people come to visit the farm, I see in their eyes the same wonder and enthusiasm of what I experienced growing up."

If your are looking for farms in your area that will open their fields to strangers during harvest season, the Internet is the perfect place to look...

Pick your own.com specializes in agritourism - listing farms all around the world that welcome tourists to harvest their own fruits and vegetables and bring home a crop of fresh picked produce. According to this site, September and October are the big months for apples and pumpkins, but you'll also find plenty of fall raspberries and winter squash! You can also take a look at their State by State Listings of Pumpkin Patches, Corn mazes and other Halloween fun

Farmstop.com lists working farms, ranches and wineries in the United States and Canada that are open to the public for entertainment, family activities and authentic experiences in the country... you can pick your own apples and pumpkins as well as other fruits and vegetables, but many also let you milk cows and goats or take part in stomping some grapes for the vineyard!

North American Blueberry Council also features a growing list of places in the USA featuring pick-your-own blueberry patches.

Apple orchards, pumpkin patches,
corn mazes & more in the U.S.

also see -> U.S. Fall Foliage Coast to Coast

Apples, Apples Everywhere

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