Hi everyone,
The weather finally broke today to be a little more fall-like. It’s been miserable picking (or being outside in general) this last week. I’m sooo happy for some 60s and low 70s!
The heat has kept us ahead of schedule on harvest. The positive (at least for me) is that harvest will be over sooner than normal, and I’ll actually be able to catch my breath pretty soon. The negatives are that it probably means being done with u-pick apples sooner than normal, and without any cool nights, the apples don’t always color as well.
Apples – Starting the day today, we have 23 varieties of apples in our market! We picked several new varieties this week again, including Calville Blanc d’Hiver, Esopus Spitzenburg and Shizuka. And several more should be coming this next week including Golden Delicious, Melrose, and Idared.
Pears – We’re into our Shenandoah European pears and our Olympic Asian pears now.
Squash and Pumpkins – We’ve started harvesting our winter squash. We have acorn and butternut now. We also have started getting some pumpkins around the market, and u-pick will start on them this weekend (see below). It’s been hard getting enough pumpkins picked for the store (with how fast the apples have been ripening, we’ve needed everyone picking apples which are much more time sensitive than pumpkins), but we’re working on it.
U-Pick – Lots of news regarding u-pick again this week. Today and tomorrow, we’ve got Jonagold, Melrose, Red Delicious, and a few Golden Delicious available for picking around the market.
On Saturday and Sunday, we’ll have u-pick on top of the hill from 10am – 5pm on Saturday and from 11:30am – 4:30pm on Sunday. We have Jonagold, Melrose, Golden Delicious, and I think a few Crimson Gold up there. We’ll be picking in the same place as last year (and last weekend), but this year you’ll be driving up. Our wagon just couldn’t keep up with the people. We’ll have a check-in table up there with picking bags and an iPad with Square so we can take cash or credit cards. If you come outside of those hours, you can still pick apples, you’ll just be around the market instead of on top of the hill.
Also during those same weekend hours (and next to the apples on top of the hill and working out of the same tent), we’ll have u-pick pumpkins going. We planted a field of pumpkins there this year so we could have u-pick in an accessible place…since we landscaped around the cidery and have seating outside, we had to move the old field.
Remember to stay current with what we have available in the market and for u-pick with our What’s Ripe page, which I update daily this time of year.
This Weekend’s Fall Festival Activities
Our Fall Festival Weekends will run every Saturday and Sunday from September 23rd through October 15th. They’ll include pick your own, live music, food trucks, and a lot more. The activities at specific times are listed below.
Saturday, September 30th
Noon – 3pm: Music by Restless Root
Noon – 3pm: Origami art by Michael Roy’s Cirque du Papier
Noon – 4 pm: Food by Quite Frank
Noon – 8:30 pm: Scott’s Fire & Ice
6pm: Market and Orchard closes. Bent Ladder remains open until 9pm, but is 21+ after 6pm.
6:30 pm – 9 pm: Music at Bent Ladder by Matthew Maruna (21+ only)
Sunday, October 1st
Noon – 3 pm: Glitter tattoos by 5-Star Talent
Noon – 3 pm: Music by Mark Wade
Noon – 4 pm: Food by Stone Pelican and Up In Smoke BBQ
Amanda’s Market News
We just got in a new order of syrups, glazes and jams from Simple Products. This is a company from Millersburg, Ohio. They have wonderfully unique flavors like Peach Praline, Rhubarb & Wild Ginger and Jalapeno & Lime. Come check them out and try something new!
I would also like to give a quick plug to our other business, Bent Ladder. Our winery and cidery is going great. I enjoy ending my Friday and Saturday nights with delicious food and live music! In addition to these weekly events, we are also hosting monthly theme nights. The last Thursday of every month, we will be hosting a coloring night. Coloring has become huge thing lately and I love to color! Bring your coloring books and utensils to drink a little and enjoy a relaxing night at the winery. The first Thursday of every month, we are hosting a game night! You can bring your own board games or come prepared to learn something new! We hope to see you on some Thursday night in the future! And please note, the winery is 21 and over after 6pm.
