There’s nothing to get you in the autumn spirit quite like picking apples. Whether it’s a fun way to spend a Saturday with your kids, an excuse to hang out with your friends or the key to making that perfect apple pie, going to an orchard to pick your own apples is a beloved tradition. Apple picking season typically starts in late August and extends into late October.
Here are some options in the Baltimore area.
Larriland Farm – Woodbine
Larriland Farm’s apple orchard is populated with 26 different types of apples, and the kind available for picking depends on the time of the season — with each ripe for about two weeks. The farm also has flowers and herbs, including basil and parsley, available for picking in its flower garden. If you miss apple-picking season, the farm offers several other crops throughout the year, including tomatoes, raspberries, sweet and sour cherries and onions.
Outside of its harvesting options, Larriland Farm also offers hayrides and hosts a straw maze and a not-too-scary haunted house for children at an extra cost. pickyourown.com
Baugher’s Orchards and Farms – Westminster
Locals might be more familiar with Baugher’s because of its retail location in Westminster, with a fruit market, bakery and restaurant. But the farm itself also has a variety of pick-your-own crops, including apples, pumpkins and sunflowers in September.
Younger children and animal lovers can visit the on-site petting zoo, which is completely free and features cows, rabbits, peacocks and more. It’s a fairly large area with plenty to explore, and the farm also sells food for anyone who wants to feed the livestock.
In the mood for a sweet treat? Visit Mrs. B’s Ice Cream Window, which sells slushies, ice cream and apple cider donuts, all made with farm-grown fruit. baughers.com
Weber’s Cider Mill Farm Inc. – PeachBerry Farm – Glen Arm
Weber’s Cider Mill Farm is the most well-known for its cider, but it also operates a completely separate orchard for fruit picking. PeachBerry Farm offers strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, black raspberries, peaches, apples and flowers throughout the year, with the latter two available in autumn.
The main market location on Proctor Road in Parkville also hosts Fall Harvest Day festivals throughout the season, featuring live music, food trucks, slides and duck races. These occur daily from Sept. 14 through Nov. 3, though weekends include additional activities.
If you’re at the farm later in the season, pick up a farm-fresh turkeys for Thanksgiving. weberscidermillfarm.com
Lohr’s Orchard – Churchville, MD
Lohr’s Orchard has been a popular spot for apple picking in Harford County for nearly a century — with its 100th anniversary coming up in 2028. In addition to the orchard’s pick-your-own apples, it’s also well-known for the apple cider sold at its barn store and the farmers markets, at which its owners have a table in the fall and winter.
While Lohr’s doesn’t offer children’s rides or big community events, if you’re just looking for good, old-fashioned apple picking, you’re sure to find it at this celebrated farm. lohrsorchard.com
Shaw Orchards – White Hall
Variety is the spice of life, and Shaw Orchards has plenty of variety. The farm has at least one pick-your-own crop growing at a time throughout most of the year. Apple season begins in late August and extends to late November, with 21 different varieties available at different times. The orchard’s farmers market also sells fresh-pressed apple cider and jams, jellies and fruit butters made with fruits grown on the property.
On the weekends in late September and October, the farm offers hayrides through its fields. Each ride comes with a free pumpkin that visitors can pick out from the farm’s pumpkin patches. If you’re looking for a Halloween decoration or need a pumpkin for a recipe, it’s a good way to kill two birds with one stone. shaworchards.com
