The fall brings not only beautiful weather but a great chance for us to teach our children about farms as fall harvest begins and it is great exercise to boot. Now that it is almost fall it’s time to relax and grab some fresh produce which can provide some inexpensive family fun at a nearby farm or orchard.
A visit to a local farm at picking time is a budget-friendly way to spend the day with the whole family and enjoy some great food to boot. There are plenty of activities to enjoy including hayrides, corn mazes, apple picking and petting zoos, and more.
Our favorite orchard from our home state of Michigan is Erwin’s Apple Orchard. They have great activities for the kids and delicious fresh made donuts available with homemade cider. You can pick apples, go through a corn maze, they had a petting zoo the last time we were there too!
These small family farms pull out all the stops to ensure that your family feels welcome, has a great time and gets to learn about farming and how all the crops go together. Erwin’s has some great honey too!
Use Google Maps or LocalHarvest.org
You can find farms in your area by going to the website, localharvest.org. They provide a drop-down menu that includes the type of farm you are looking for u-pick farms (farms that you get to pick your own harvest) or farmers markets.
All you need to do is click the option from the drop-down menu, add your city and state and a map will generate with all the options available to you. A Google Search on the maps program may also show you farms nearby.
Find your local farmers market and you can take a trip there to ask some farmers if they have any events or know of some, while you shop for more produce and if you’re lucky maybe your kids will even carry the bags for an orange.
Be Prepared
Planning ahead can save you a lot of headache when going to a farm or orchard for the day, especially when your taking small children for the fun! Check with the farm in advance to find out what kind of activities they have planned for the day. Will the kids be doing anything that might require a change of clothes, such as milking a cow?
It is always a good plan to carry baby wipes and hand sanitizer just in case, I mean if your going to a farm or orchard there is a chance you will want to eat some great fresh produce.
Consider What You’ll Eat
Find out if the farm has food available for sale. Some farms prohibit brining in food, others are glad for you to have a picnic. If you know the options, you can be prepared in case your family is hungry when they get there. A picnic on a farm is something a city kid will not soon forget! Give them farm fresh food and they will have a new appreciation for fruits and vegetables.
Plan for your purchases
If your planning to bring back a bunch of apples, tomatoes or pumpkin make sure you have enough room at home to store the produce while it is waiting to be processed. Canning and preserving can take up a lot of space not to mention the fruit and vegetables while you are prepping them.
Don’t forget to make sure you have plenty of room in your car bringing back your farm fresh food. You won’t want to miss out on all the fresh apples and pumpkins, honey and other goodies. If you do, then you won’t get to take the fun home with you. Heck, who wouldn’t love a fresh apple pie, some homemade applesauce or a pumpkin roll?
Harvest season is relatively short and your kids will have a great time and learn a lot about where food comes from plus you’ll get to spend the day being active and healthy. All this while you build childhood memories that will last a lifetime.
Erwin’s Orchard is not affiliated in anyway, was not involved nor even knows about this post. We just enjoy going there when we are in the area and love the food!
Have a beautiful day!
Jodi.
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