It’s pumpkin time! Pick your own fruit and veggies at these 5 Colorado farms

It’s harvest time, and that means “U-Pick” season is here.

Normally, when it comes to putting fresh produce on the table the scene is this: Enter grocery store sliding doors, get hit by a cooling blast of AC, head to the crowded produce section, pick the best-looking fruits and veggies …you get the idea.

Now picture this: Enter a beautiful sunlit orchard or garden, walk down lines of dirt, admire a ladybug or two, and then, pick your own fresh fruits and veggies — right off the tree or vine.

If this little taste of the farm life is what you’re looking for, keep reading.

We’ve put together a list of 5 places where you can pick your own peaches, plums, pears, okra, apples, flowers and more this season.

[Click on the farm’s name below to view their website or Facebook page.]


Thursday, August 12, 2004-photo by Jerilee Bennett-This summer’s rains have created a bumper crop of apples in Penrose, Colorado. At the Happy Apple Orchard patrons can wander through the orchards and pick their own apples. (Jerilee Bennett)
Thursday, August 12, 2004-photo by Jerilee Bennett-This summer’s rains have created a bumper crop of apples in Penrose, Colorado. At the Happy Apple Orchard patrons can wander through the orchards and pick their own apples. (Jerilee Bennett)

Adam’s Apple Orchard & Country Store

Location: ​42135 County Road 43, Ault

According to an update on their Facebook page, the orchard will be open this weekend on Saturday, September 23 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There is a $10 parking fee. They anticipate several more weekends of picking to come later this fall. The Country Store is open Wednesday-Sunday from 10 p.m. to 6 p.m. where you can find apple cider, breads, jams, jellies, salsas, pickles, local honey and more.


Orchard Valley Farms

Orchard Valley Farm sign, as seen on Google Maps Street View on October of 2021. (Google Maps — Street View)
Orchard Valley Farm sign, as seen on Google Maps Street View on October of 2021. (Google Maps — Street View)

Location: 15836 Black Bridge Road, Paonia

Orchard Valley opened for the season in May and has been producing cherries, peaches, berries and more throughout the summer. For picking in September, they have peaches, apples, nectarines, winter squash and cantaloupe, according to their website. Their estimated “U-pick” hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily but give them a call at 970-527-6838 for more detailed information. Their season ends November 5.


The Ferrara family has been opening their orchards and produce to visitors since the 1980s at the Happy Apple Farm in Penrose. Kent and Zory Homchick and their collie, Zirka, came from Denver to spend time at the farm. (Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette)
The Ferrara family has been opening their orchards and produce to visitors since the 1980s at the Happy Apple Farm in Penrose. Kent and Zory Homchick and their collie, Zirka, came from Denver to spend time at the farm. (Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette)


Happy Apple Farm

Location: 1190 1st Street, Penrose

Don’t let the name fool you; Happy Apple Farm grows more than apples. Unfortunately this season, the farm lost its apple crop to a late freeze in April and then a hailstorm in July, according to its website. However, they have “Colorado Western Slope Apples” in their Country Store in addition to “U-Pick” pumpkins that began on Saturday, September 16. Also check out their free hayrides to the pumpkin patch, fresh-pressed apple cider and BBQ on the weekends. Their hours are Friday-Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with new information about Happy Apple Farm.


In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017, photo, Tyler Wegmeyer, owner of Wegmeyer Farms, picks strawberries in the pick-your-own strawberry patch at Wegmeyer Farms in Hamilton, Va. Hiring summer workers is one of Wegmeyer’s biggest problems. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (Carolyn Kaster)
In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017, photo, Tyler Wegmeyer, owner of Wegmeyer Farms, picks strawberries in the pick-your-own strawberry patch at Wegmeyer Farms in Hamilton, Va. Hiring summer workers is one of Wegmeyer’s biggest problems. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (Carolyn Kaster)

Berry Patch Farms

Location: 13785 Potomac Street, Brighton

Although there are no strawberries to pick this season, there are red and gold raspberries available for light picking on Saturdays, according to their website. Their Saturday hours are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and no reservations are required. Berry Patch Farms also offers flower picking at 85 cents per stem as well as pickling cucumbers and basil. The only other day Berry Patch Farms is open is Tuesday from 9 a.m. to noon.


Heckmann Hollow Orchards & Gardens

Location: 65295 US Highway 50, Fowler

According to an update on their website, Heckmann Hollow is out of apples for this year. However, they still offer peaches, plums and pears. For vegetables, they have three-thousand square feet of organic garden beds. Some vegetables they offer include peppers, squashes and lettuce. Heckmann Hollow is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Visitors take a hayride through the orchards to the pumpkin patch. The Ferrara family has been opening their orchards to visitors since the 1980s at the Happy Apple Farm in Penrose. (JERILEE BENNETT, THE GAZETTE)
Visitors take a hayride through the orchards to the pumpkin patch. The Ferrara family has been opening their orchards to visitors since the 1980s at the Happy Apple Farm in Penrose. (JERILEE BENNETT, THE GAZETTE)

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