Kentucky's Top Apple Orchards
With the season changing from the heat of summer to the coolness of fall, few things wake up the senses more than the smell of a fresh apple pie baking in the oven. Below are 10 of the best places around Kentucky where you can find orchard-fresh produce like apples, peaches, and pears. Some places listed allow you to pick your own, while others pick for you. Either way, you’ll get to take home your own farm-to-tables choices for great autumn desserts.
Evans Orchard and Cider Mill, Georgetown, KY
Visiting Evans Orchard and Cider Mill, a fifth-generation family farm will allow you to pick your own in-season fruit, see how a working farm operates, and enjoy family-friendly entertainment. Once a tobacco and cattle farm, vegetables and apples were planted as alternative crops, and the farm has grown to over 175 acres, with 15 of them being apple and peach orchards. The other vegetables are sold on-site at the market and other farmers' markets around the area. If you’d like a fun family outing, you can pick your strawberries, blueberries, pears, pumpkins, and apples, but check the picking schedule before you come.
Hinton’s Orchard & Farm Market, Elizabethtown, KY
Drawing from family experience spanning several generations, Hinton's Orchard & Farm Market in Elizabethtown was started in 2006, when the first apple and peach trees were planted. The orchard and farm market has now developed into more than 25 acres of strawberries, pumpkins, melons, and other vegetables, hundreds of apple, peach, and pear trees, and a large greenhouse for flowers and other plants. The orchard celebrates each season with a festival where you can pick your fruit or purchase it in the market.
Bray Orchards, Bedford, KY
It was in the early 1900s that the Bray family started growing fruit and vegetables, and they're still going strong for more than 100 years. In addition to the picked strawberries, tomatoes, peaches, nectarines, and apples, they also grow and sell a variety of herbs, perennials, annuals, hanging baskets, and landscaping trees and shrubs. When you pick out your fruit and vegetables, stop by for homemade ice cream.
Mulberry Orchard, Shelbyville, KY
There's nothing sweeter than biting into a fresh peach right off the tree. That's what you'll find at Mulberry Orchard in Shelbyville. For many years, this family-owned farm has offered the best fresh produce, local honey, eggs, meats, apple cider, and a great selection of jellies and fruit preserves. With a passion for produce and solid farming techniques, owners Matt and Amanda Gajdzik started with 3,000 apple and peach trees and wanted to offer great produce and let others see how a working farm operated. The farm is open five days a week, and they love to have school groups and tours.
Eckert's Orchard, Versailles, KY
You'll want to stop by Eckert's in Versailles if you're looking for a place to find fresh out-of-the-orchard fruit, live music, wine glasses, a haunted hayride, and more. The food, fun, and farm activities are offered year-round, and there are opportunities to pick your strawberries and apples.
Reed Valley Orchard, Paris, KY
Offering u-pick apple varieties that include Gala, McIntosh, Cortland, Mutsu, Stayman Winesap, Granny Smith, and Fuji, Reed Valley Orchard in Paris also has pears, peaches, blueberries, black raspberries, pumpkins, Indian corn, and gourds. This orchard has operated since 1988, when the first fruit trees were planted. They also have a quaint country store that sells candy, apple cider, slushies, and other items. Reed Valley Orchard is perfect for a family outing or a school field trip.
Ayres Family Orchard, Owenton, KY
Ayres Family Orchard in Owenton has served their local community for over 25 years. This beautiful family-owned farm and orchard is well-known for having over 40 different types of apples, and you can take some fresh apple cider home when you visit. Also offering blackberries, white peaches, plums, pears, and fresh jams, this little farm and market is a popular local stop.
Reid’s Orchard, Owensboro, KY
Reid's Orchard in Owensboro has been built on one family's dream and innovative ideas for over 145 years. Always on the alert for new and better techniques for raising crops grown on the farm, like apples and peaches, the Reid family has been on the cutting edge of agricultural technology, and the farm was the first in the state to use high-density apple production that resulted in nearly 1,000 bushels of apples being grown per acre. Today, a dozen apple varieties are grown on the farm, and a special Apple Festival occurs each fall to celebrate the harvest with activities for the entire family.
Jackson’s Orchard, Bowling Green, KY
Providing good food and good memories since 1966, Jackson's Orchard in Bowling Green understands the meaning of family. This 105-acre farm has over 7,000 apple, peach, and cherry trees and is open daily. Besides picking your in-season apples at a per-bag price or by the pound, the orchard is perfect for groups and birthday parties, and tours can be booked to showcase the working farm.
Haney’s Appledale Farm, Nancy, KY
Located along the beautiful sprawling landscape in Nancy, Haney's Appledale Farm has been around since the 1800s. Today, the 450-acre farm has over 25 varieties of apples and 10 kinds of peaches, pears, and nectarines on another 70 acres. The family-owned farm has a Farm Bureau-certified roadside market that offers fresh apple cider, already-picked produce, jams, and jellies, and at certain times of the year, you can pick your own fruit. The market also has delectable pies, caramel apples, baked goods, crafts, flowers, and apparel.
