`Apple-picking” no longer means the simple act of climbing a ladder, grabbing hold of an apple a certain way and plucking it from a tree. These days, people can amuse themselves for hours at almost any Chicagoland orchard on non-apple activities — donut-eating, wine-tasting, craft-making, tractor-riding and llama-watching.
For years, orchard owners have been supplementing basic apple-picking with food, drink and entertainment. They need the extra stuff to stay alive.
“The winery makes money. Apples do not make money,” says Dave Lundstrom, owner of Anderson’s Orchard and Winery in Valparaiso, Ind. “The world’s filled with apples.”
At Anderson’s, apple enthusiasts can buy bottles of wine as part of a package deal. At the Country Cabin Orchard, northwest of Woodstock, they can tour a small wildlife preserve to see horses, peacocks, sheep and llamas. Cider, of course, is everywhere, and donuts are an old standby because, says Kathy Bock, co-owner of the Honey Hill Orchard in Waterman, the chefs bake cider into the batter.
Without the diversions, growers say, they’d have to rely exclusively on nature to run their businesses. This year, that would have been difficult: After two consecutive late springs, the apple trees bloomed in early April. So at most area orchards, picking seasons start early — Jonathans, for example, should arrive in early September, two weeks sooner than usual.
It’s an unusual year for apple-picking. Many venerable orchards, notably the popular Bell’s in Barrington, have closed. Norman Wolff, owner of the Country Cabin Orchard, says land developers have been approaching the orchards with sweet buyout deals, so running an orchard is getting harder to justify. Wolff, whose orchard includes a 120-acre “family entertainment farm,” says he has no plans to sell out.
It’s possible, though, for purists to find an apple-picking spot without the frills. Aside from an annual crop of peaches, the LaPorte, Ind.-based Williams Orchard has focused exclusively on apples for 60 years. “Some people have a lot of fun things,” owner Ken Williams says. “We just have an old barn here.”
Here are some Chicagoland orchards open to the public for apple-picking:
Anderson’s Orchard and Winery, U.S. Hwy. 6, 3 miles east of Ind. Hwy. 49, Valparaiso, Ind.; 219-464-4936. Market open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sundays; “you pick,” 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Open through Oct. 19, depending how fast apples are picked. Prices: “you pick,” $7.99 per bushel (with purchase bottle of wine); $10.99 per bushel (without wine); already picked, $10.99 (with purchase bottle of wine), $14.99 (without wine). Also free wine-tasting.
Country Cabin Orchard, Nursery and Deer Park, 4820 Alden Rd., 4 miles northwest of Woodstock, 4 miles west of Ill. Hwy. 47; 815-338-3348. Market open 10 a.m.-5 p.m., seven days. Price: In-store, 60 cents per pound. Also animals (including steer, goats, sheep, llamas, horses and peacocks), bakery, wildlife preserve.
County Line Orchard, 200 S. County Line Rd., 1 mile south of U.S. Hwy. 6, Hobart, Ind.; 219-947-4477. Orchard market open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week; “you pick” open 2 to 5:30 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Price: 50 cents per pound. Also retail store, donut shops, caramel apples, cider, crafts, animals, horse-drawn rides on weekends, tractor-drawn rides (same as “you pick” hours) every day.
Garwood Orchard, 5911 W. County Road 50 South, LaPorte, Ind.; 219-362-4385. Market open 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m. daily. “You pick,” 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Price: $16 per bushel. Also pumpkins, cider, donuts, jams, jellies, fall squash, Indian corn.
Honey Hill Orchard, on Elm Street 2 miles north of U.S. Hwy. 30 in Waterman; 815-264-3337. Open 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays through Sept. 15; after that, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., seven days, through late October. Price: 60 to 70 cents per pound. Also peaches, raspberries, donuts, pies and cider.
Paddy’s Apple Patch, 15211 St. Patrick’s Rd., about 4 miles northwest of Woodstock; 815-337-0141. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., weekends. Price: 40 cents per pound. Also cider, donuts, jarred goods. Open Sept. 5 or 12, call to find out when season begins.
Quig’s Orchard, 300 S. Ill. Hwy. 83, a quarter mile west of Midlothian Road, Mundelein; 847-566-4520. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Price: 69 cents per pound, minimum 20 pounds. Hayrides weekends, Halloween haunted house in mid-October, restaurant, bakery.
Wauconda Orchard, 1201 Gossell Rd., Wauconda; 800-362-7753. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m., seven days. Price: “You pick,” $9 per 10-pound bag, $16 per half-bushel, $2 per car. Restaurant open at 7 a.m., donuts, bread, turnovers, pie.
Williams Orchard, 9456 N. 500 East, 1 mile south of the Michigan-Indiana border near LaPorte, Ind.; 219-778-2839. Open 8 a.m.-6 p.m., seven days. “You pick,” 9 a.m.-4 p.m., weekdays only. Price: $8 per half-bushel bag, $7 per Jonathan bag, $8 per red and golden delicious bag. Starting Sept. 1, “you pick” around Labor Day.
Ziegler’s Orchard, 32363 N. Bacon Rd., Grayslake, 2 miles west of Hainesville; 847-546-1228. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Price: 60 cents per pound.
