2025 Hillsdale and Lenawee counties, Michigan Apple U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org

Apple U-Pick Orchards in Hillsdale and Lenawee counties, Michigan in 2025, by county

Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for apples that we know of in this area.

Not all areas of a 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!

Remember to always check with the farm's own website or Facebook page before you go - or call or email them if they don't have a website or Facebook page. Conditions at the farms and crops can change literally overnight, so if you want to avoid a wasted trip out there - check with the farm directly before you go! If I cannot reach them, I DON'T GO!

PLEASE report closed farms, broken links and incorrect info using the "Report Corrections" form below.

New! As inflation remains high, see this page for reliable (tested) brands of generic canning lids at lower costs, and cost-saving measures for getting fruit and vegetables and home canning.
 If you are having a hard time finding canning lids, I've used these, and they're a great price & ship in 2 days.

New! Road tripping and camping is a great way to have a fun, safe and inexpensive family trip. The national and state parks and monuments are open, and campgrounds usually cost between $10 and $40 per night. September to November is the best camping weather.  See our new website Road Tripping and Camping.com for tips, tricks, guides, checklists and info about parks, monuments and other places to visit.

New! We just went live with our latest website, FunFactoryTours.com - As they name implies, you can find a fun factory tour, including chocolate, automobiles, historical forts and sites, famous buildings, Active Federal facilities even fun geology: like fossils and volcanic areas

Hillsdale County

• Meckley's Flavor Fruit Farms - apples, apple cider, corn maze, wagon rides, pumpkin patc
  1069 S Jackson Road, Somerset Center, MI 49282. Phone: 517-688-3455. Email: meckleyevents@gmail.com. Open: call for details & hours. Directions: 127 S to US-12, W 4 mi., Right on Jackson Road, 12 mi. on the right. Apple varieties they have during the season include Braeburn, Empire, Fuji, Gala, Ginger Gold, Golden Delicious, Ida Red, Jonagold, Jonathan, McIntosh, Paula Red, Red Delicious, and Rome. Experience a fun filled day at the farm with the whole family. Fresh baked goods, sweet cider, hand crafted Michigan wines, unique gifts and home December or items are just a few of the treasures that you will find at our farm. Call for specia - truncated. . Click here for a map and directions. , Right on Jackson Road, 1/2 mi. on the right. Apple varieties they have during the season include Braeburn, Empire, Fuji, Gala, Ginger Gold, Golden Delicious, Ida Red, Jonagold, Jonathan, McIntosh, Paula Red, Red Delicious, and Rome. Experience a fun filled day at the farm with the whole family. Fresh baked goods, sweet cider, hand crafted Michigan wines, unique gifts and home December or items are just a few of the treasures that you will find at our farm. Call for special events schedule and seasonal hours. They also a Cidery, Cellars, Bakery and Festivals & Events. The Apple Barn, Cider Mill, Hayrides, The 9-acre corn MAiZE, Pumpkin Patch, Bakery & Gift Shop. Autumn Weekends are jam packed with activities: Wagon Rides, Freshest Produce, a Corn Maze Over 3 miles long of twist and turns; a Pumpkin Patch over a 3 acre patch this year, Bounce House, Fresh Cider Pressing; Fresh cider pressing begins early afternoon, get an up close and personal experience. We do BonFires, a Street Eats ..

Lenawee County

• Brainerd Farms - 2025 permanently closed, peaches, cherries, apples, (U-pick or already picked),
  8430 Groger Road, Onsted, MI . Phone: (517) 467-7793. Email: brainerdfarms@frontiernet.net. Open: permanently closed. Click here for a map and directions. Mid-August until the end of October, daily from 10 am to 6:30 pm. Apple varieties are Paula Reds, Gala, Honeycrisp, McIntosh, Fuji, Spies, Golden & red Delicious) and pears. We have donuts on Friday, Saturday and Sunday during cider season. Our cider is fresh, not pasteurized. (ADDED: June 30, 2016, JBS)
• Kapnick Orchards - PYO cherries, blueberries, peaches, apples, pumpkins
  4245 Rogers Hwy., Britton, MI 49229. Phone: 517-423-7419. Email: kapnicks@tc3net.com. Open: in Spring. Directions: From M-50 turn S onto Rogers Hwy. Farm is 4 miles on left side. Only 15 miles from Cabela\\\\\\\'s. \\\\[ . Click here for a map and directions. m. Sun. 9 am to 5 pm. Farm is 4 miles on left side. Only 15 miles from Cabela's. (UPDATED: June 5, 2025, JBS)
• Keeney Orchards - U-Pick apples
  5300 Monroe Road, Box 134, Tipton, MI 49287. Phone: 517-431-2400. Open: September to October, 9 am to 7pm. Directions: On M-50 1 mi. W on Tipton Hwy. Drive into orchard, bags furnished. . Click here for a map and directions. Visitors report their proiices are very good. (UPDATED: June 5, 2025, JBS)

 

Apple

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!
• 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

New!As inflation remains high, see this page for reliable (tested) brands of generic canning lids at lower costs, and cost-saving measures for getting fruit and vegetables and home canning.
 If you are having a hard time finding canning lids, I've used these, and they're a great price & ship in 2 days.

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

 

Other Local Farm Products (Honey, Horses, Milk, Meat, Eggs, Etc.)
(NOT pick-your-own, unless they are also listed above)

• Farm markets and roadside stands
• Local Honey Finder
• Local Meat, Milk and Eggs
• Venues: Farms, Wineries, Orchards for your event, wedding or party
• Easter egg hunts
• Children"s consignment sales
• Fruit and vegetable festivals
• Winery tours and wine tastings
• Horse rides, stables, lessons, trails
• Maple Syrup farms and sugarworks
• Bed & Breakfasts on Farms, Wineries, Ranches and Orchards
• Pumpkin patches
• Corn mazes
• Zombie Paintball venues
• Christmas Tree Farms & lots
• Environmental resources
• Consumer fraud information
• Wholesale food sources
• Resources for Farmers