Afton Apple Orchard is a “family owned and operated orchard of over 250 acres in the heart of the St. Croix Valley.  We are proud to serve our community with fresh apples, raspberries, black raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, pumpkins and more, picked right at the peak of perfection! 
 
Families and friends of all ages enjoy our 15-acre corn maze, sunflowers, hayrides, playground, petting farm and other adventures that you’ll find only at our farm! 

We are picking Haralson, Regent and Honey Gold apples! We have those varieties plus Honey Crisp, Cortland and Paula Red apples available in our retail store. We have LOTS of pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, textures and colors!

We also have our usual fall activities including hayrides, huge playground, petting farm, Retread Hill, Johnny Combine, Straw Mountain, giant swing, giant rocking chair and more!”

Afton Apple Orchard

Apple Jack Orchards began in “1983 with an initial planting of only 250 trees.  We have added more each year and now boast an astonishing 10,000 trees, including 29 different Minnesota apple varieties! We started selling our crop on a railroad cart on the side of the road which we still use outside our large apple barn to this day.

U-Pick is one of our most popular activities at Apple Jack’s!  Families have enjoyed picking their own fruits and decorative pumpkins for decades, come and see for yourself.

Varieties change weekly and are limited depending on crowds so check back often!  Our U-Pick pumpkin fields are usually available for picking in late September through Halloween.”

Gorgeous sunflower patch and corn maze in the fall.

Apple Jack Orchards

Brand Farms is a “small family farm. Originally purchased by Anton and Marie Brand, German immigrants, and has been passed down through four generations. Currently, Aaron Brand is the fourth generation who farms with his father, John. His 89 year old grandfather, Richard, still has a daily presence on the farm.

When Aaron graduated from college he choose to expand the farm, not by increasing the dairy herd, but by choosing to produce products they’ve never had before. He began with a few hens for their eggs and slowly expanded to 2000 that he has now. At the same time, he heard about a defunct apple orchard whose owner was looking to lease it.

He also planted a few apple trees on the farm building site, which has expanded over the years to the current 20 acres and 7,000 trees. Most of the trees are Minnesota varieties, apples that were developed here in Minnesota.

We are primarily a dairy farm in Farmington, MN. We also sell eggs, apples, raspberries, honey and apple products. Check back with us for new products this fall!”

In the fall they have a sunflower field, pick-your-own apples and pumpkins, as well as hay rides and some scheduled hay ride tours. 

Brand Farms

Fresh Acres “was founded in 2016 when two crazy corporate-types decided to take a leap into farming.  Our mission was, and remains, to produce healthy, locally grown food to feed your family, as well as our own.  In that vein, we purchase non-GMO seeds from carefully sourced seed companies, and we do not use harsh fertilizers and chemicals - we are not certified organic, but we grow in an organic manner. 

We also raise animals on the farm, closer to the way God intended them to be raised - they are free-range / pasture-raised, and we supplement with soy-free, transitional-organic feed.

In 2018, we added to our mission by sharing the farm with others through a corn maze.  We have all the usual things expected at a corn maze such as additional activities (pumpkin patch, petting zoo, inflatables, combine slide, yard games, corn cannon, bale mountain, and more), as well as vendors to provide food.”

Fresh Acres Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch

At Knapton’s, most things that are grown are available as pick-your-own.  “Raspberries in mid June - July, August - October. (There is a transition between summer and fall varieties.) There is never a day without raspberries in the field during summer and fall. However, each variety has its peak of production. The 4th of July and a week or two before the state fair are generally good dates to remember for berry picking bliss. But that is not to say other times of the year aren’t really good too. The slowest time is right at the end of July or August 1st. Give us a call before you head out. Every year is different. These are average ripening times.

Cherries in late June - mid July.

Tomatoes in late July - October.

Sweet corn late July - August.

Miscellaneous vegetables throughout the summer and fall. Zucchini, cucumbers, green beans and yellow (wax) beans, peppers, peas, kohlrabi, carrots, onion, garlic, beets, herbs, etc.

Cut flowers mid July - October.

Pumpkins, Squash early September - October.

Pears August - September

Plums in late August.

Apples ripen late August - October depending on variety. Honeycrisp, SweeTango, Haralson, Zestar!, Honeygold, Connell Red / Fireside, Prairie Spy, Cortland, Sweet Sixteen, Pristine, State Fair, Chestnut, Keepsake, N.W. Greening, Regent, Macoun, Frostbite, SnowSweet, Wealthy, Centennial, and other popular Minnesota apples.

Honey, Homemade jams and raspberry vinegar.

In the fall you can roam acres of pumpkin fields and pick your own perfect pumpkin from the vine where it grew. Specializing in growing large orange carving pumpkins with large stems. Also multi-colored, multi-textured heirloom gourds, squashes and pumpkins from around the world. Wholesale pumpkins.

100+ varieties of multi-colored pumpkins, large and small gourds and squashes.

Corn shocks, bales, ornamental corn, birdhouse gourds and unique fall decorations.”

Knapton’s Raspberries, Pumpkins & Orchard

LuceLine Orchard is a sprawling 155-acre property located in Watertown, MN on the Luce Line Trail. The orchard started in 2004 with a dream and 300 apple trees.

Today the orchard is just shy of 10,000 trees, 4,500 grape vines, and 10 acres of pumpkins. Their vision combined with hard work from family and friends has allowed them to open to the public.

We have seven different varieties of apples, loads of pumpkins, gourds, squash and a variety of foods with our own unique apple twist. With 80 acres of woods and wetland, walkers, runners, bikers, horse riders, bird watchers and dogs on leash will have plenty to do and see. Everything available for purchase at the orchard is Minnesota made. Come on out and experience the friendly small town farm feeling of LuceLine Orchard.”

LuceLine Orchard

After “years of requests to take photos in the sunflower fields of Treasured Haven Farm, the Johnson Family began opening up the farm each blooming season to the public to view the up to a million sunflowers planted each year on the farm.

Our goal is to provide you and your family a safe, genuine farm experience to enjoy the successive blooming sunflower fields and the woodland trails of this century family farm. For Treasured Haven Farm’s Sunflower Days, we plant many fields of sunflowers in succession for continual blooms so you have a longer time to enjoy bright smiling sunflowers.

Visit multiple times over the season to see the life cycle of a sunflower, from those just starting to form buds, to those in peak bloom, the saddened past primes, and those drying down getting ready for harvest later in the season. We added a much larger gift shop amongst the sunflowers adjacent to the parking for a Sunflowers Lovers Paradise!

Sunflower Days will be around late July through mid September as determined by the weather and sunflower plantings.”

Treasured Haven Farm

Pick Your Own at Waldoch Farm.  “Come pick your own vegetables, whether it is enough for a batch of salsa, just enough for dinner, or a sampling of our wide variety of crops for an authentic farm experience. Venture out to Waldoch Farm and see where food is grown while it is growing.

Sunflower Festival at Waldoch Farm is a U-Pick Sunflower Field and Walk.  The sunflower field is an additional activity for Joyer Adventure Farm.

We have planted the sunflower field to bloom in late July ending on in September.”

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