Apple U-Pick Orchards in Louisville and western central Kentucky in 2023, by county
Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for apples that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have apples orchards that are open to the public. If you know of any others, please tell us using the add a farm form!
Jefferson County
- Hidden Hollow Orchard and Wildlife Sanctuary - apples, picnic area, farm animals, birthday parties, school tours, events at your location (call for info)
3200 Apple Hill Road, Louisville, KY 40245. Phone: (502) 243-4196. Email: apples@hiddenholloworchard.com. Open: July 1 to September 1 by appointment; September 1 until sold out, 10 am to 5 pm; Repeat customers welcome anytime. Directions: From Louisville, take the Gene Snyder Freeway to Old Henry Road (Exit 29). Go east 2 miles. (Old Henry curves left, then jogs right.) Turn right on Apple Hill Road for 0.7 mile. Where Apple Hill forks, take the middle fork. When you see a red pole gate, . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. . Alternate Phone: (502) 897-0719. . open it up and come on back. Continue along the black rail fences. When you think you are lost, you are almost there. When you see the green umbrella, you have arrived. Many heirloom apples. Watch for date of annual solar cooker cook-out with free eats.
Larue County
- Hinton's Orchard & Farm Market (formerly the Tommy Bennett Orchard) - U-pick strawberries, apples, peaches, pumpkins, Honey from hives on the farm, and prepicked produce, gift shop, snacks and refreshment stand, restrooms, picnic area, birthday parties, school tours
8631 Campbellsville Road, Hodgenville, KY 42748. Phone: 270-325-3854. Email: jeremy@hintonsorchard.com. Open: July-Labor Day: Tues-Saturday from 9 am to 6pm Labor Day-September: Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 6pm October: Monday to Thursday 9 am to 6pm, Friday & Saturday from 9 am to 9pm Corn Maze opens Labor Day weekend. Directions: 7.0 Miles on Hwy 210 from end of Lincoln Parkway in Hodgenville. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Visa, MasterCard. . . Crops are usually available in July, August, September, October.
Shelby County
- Mulberry Orchard - Uses integrated pest management practices, apples, blackberries, pumpkins, Honey from hives on the farm, Fresh eggs, gift shop, concessions \\/ refreshment stand, restrooms, picnic area, petting zoo, farm animals, birthday parties, school tours, group reservations
1330 Mulberry Pike, Shelbyville, KY 40065. Phone: (502) 655-2633. Email: Amanda@MulberryOrchardKY.com. Open: Mid June through early November Tuesday to Saturday 9am to 6pm and Sunday 1pm to 5pm. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, AmEx.
Mulberry Orchard Facebook page. . We use integrated pest management practices. (ADDED: March 17, 2021)
Apple Picking Tips, Recipes and Information
Apples ripen from the outside of the tree towards the center, so the apples out the outside of the tree will ripen first. Once they are picked, they stop ripening. Picking apples directly from a tree is easy. Roll the apple upwards off the branch and give a little twist; don't pull straight away from the tree. If two apples are joined together at the top, both will come away at the same time. Don't shake the trees or branches. If the apple you are trying to pick drops, (or others on the tree) go ahead and pick it up. They're perfectly fine! But do wash them before you eat them! More info: How to tell when apples are ripe
- Once picked, don't throw the apples into the baskets, place them in gently, or they will bruise and go bad more quickly.
- Don't wash apples until just before using to prevent spoilage.
- For an explanation of why apple slices turn brown and how to stop it, see this page!
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Keep apples cool after picking to increase shelf life. A cool basement is ideal, but the fruit/vegetable drawer of a refrigerator will work, too. A refrigerator is fine for small
quantities of apples. Boxed apples need to be kept in a cool, dark spot
where they won't freeze. Freezing ruptures all of an apple's cells, turning
it into one large bruise overnight. The usual solution is to store apples in
a root cellar. But root cellars often have potatoes in them: apples and
potatoes should never be stored in the same room because, as they age,
potatoes release an otherwise ethylene gas, which makes apples spoil faster.
If you can keep the gas away from your apples, they will keep just fine.
Just don't store them right next to potatoes.
Prevent contact between apples stored for the winter by wrapping them individually in sheets of newspaper. The easiest way to do this is to unfold a section of newspaper all the way and tear it into quarters. Then stack the wrapped apples . See more here: How to store apples at home - Apples don't improve or "ripen" after being picked - this is an urban myth - see this page for the truth - with references!
Which apple variety is best?
There are tens of thousands of varieties of apples, developed over centuries. They vary in sugar, acoidity, flavors, storing, crispness and many other attributes. See our guides to apple varieties:
- Summary table of many apple varieties and their characteristics
- Detailed descriptions of each apple variety with detailed characteristics
- Apple varieties, sorted by the order in which they typically ripe
- Apple varieties that don't turn brown when they are cut
- Why are some apples brown or spotted inside when you first cut them open?
Canning apples - fully illustrated, with step-by-step instructions
- How to make applesauce
- How to make apple butter
- How to make apple jelly
- How to make apple pie filling (canned)
- How to can apples
- Home canned apple juice
Recipes, illustrated with step by step instructions
- Apple pie recipe and directions and illustrated! I can say, with, ahem, no bias at all, that this is the best apple pie recipe in the world! (Alright, I did have an apple strudel in Vienna once at that place listed in Fodors that was REALLY good, but that wasn't a pie, was it? And since this was the recipe my grandmother used, it must be great!)
- How to make applesauce for a single meal (not canning it) with NO special equipment
- Apple cobbler
- Apple crunch - best of all! Moist, low sugar and using oats!
- Apple crisp - ever-popular, low sugar and using oats!
- Apple, blackberry, cherry, and/or peach cobbler
- Apple-blackberry, crumble - a English favorite (or favourite)
Using fresh apples and miscellaneous
- How to stop cut apples from browning
- Apple festivals - find one near you!
- Apple facts
- Apple seeds and cyanide