If you’re looking for a delightful way to spend time outdoors, consider harvesting your own fresh, seasonal vegetables and fruits. This activity not only offers a memorable experience but also allows you to buy locally grown produce at affordable prices.
Farms throughout the country provide opportunities for pick-your-own adventures, offering a variety of options such as strawberries, rhubarb, peas, blueberries, peaches, apples, and more. As someone who has enjoyed U-pick activities for a long time, I’ve gathered garlic scapes, harvested asparagus spears, and even dug up my own potatoes, albeit a messy endeavor.
Many farms enhance the experience with additional attractions suitable for all ages. From corn mazes and playgrounds to petting zoos and wagon rides, these farms offer a range of entertainment options to turn a simple outing into a full day of countryside fun.
It’s important to note that the harvest timing for each crop can vary from year to year and region to region. Therefore, it is recommended to check the local harvest calendar and contact farms through phone or social media to verify availability before planning your visit.
Here are 15 Canadian U-pick farms worth exploring this year:
1. **Maan Farms** – Abbotsford, B.C.
– Offers raspberry, blueberry, and strawberry picking, with strawberries grown at standing height for easy picking. The farm also produces wine from its berries and features the Barnyard Adventureland with farm animals and a zipline.
2. **Taves Family Farms** – Abbotsford, B.C.
– Visitors can pick strawberries, apples, goji berries, pears, plums, and pumpkins. The farm also offers attractions like a petting barn, sunflower garden, pumpkin patch, and hay rides.
3. **Twin Oaks Organic Orchard** – Kelowna, B.C.
– This organic orchard provides U-pick options for apples, cherries, apricots, peaches, and pears, along with a shop selling honey, eggs, and fresh hazelnuts.
4. **The Saskatoon Farm** – Foothills County, Alta.
– A family-run farm near Calgary offering a farmers’ market, garden center, restaurant, and bakery. Visitors can pick saskatoon berries, sour cherries, apples, and blackcurrants.
5. **Eagle Creek Farms** – Red Deer County, Alta.
– Located north of Calgary, this farm offers U-pick gardens for a variety of vegetables and fresh flowers, including a sunflower maze opening in mid-August.
6. **Rhodes’ Raspberries and Blackcurrants** – Saskatoon
– A family-owned farm featuring a selection of berries for picking and sale, including raspberries, blackcurrants, and saskatoon berries, with additional products like frozen berries, juice, jams, and sorbet.
7. **Riverbend Orchards** – Portage la Prairie, Man.
– An eight-hectare farm west of Winnipeg offering U-pick options for cherries, saskatoon berries, haskap berries, gooseberries, and apples later in the summer. Pre-order pies, plants, and berries are also available.
8. **Andrews Farm Market and Winery** – Milton, Ont.
– Situated west of Toronto, this farm market offers U-pick opportunities for various crops like rhubarb, strawberries, currants, raspberries, blueberries, apples, and pumpkins. The property also features U-pick flowers and family-friendly attractions.
9. **Dutchyn Farms** – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.
– A third-generation farm near Niagara Falls where visitors can pick peaches, nectarines, plums, and seedless grapes. The farm provides a tractor-drawn wagon for orchard tours and a market with pre-picked fruits.
10. **Pingle’s Farm Market** – Hampton, Ont.
– A family-friendly farm market east of Toronto offering U-pick options for strawberries, blueberries, peas, beans, corn, peppers, and apples. Visitors can enjoy farm activities, wagon rides, corn mazes, and a pumpkin patch.
11. **Quinn Farm** – Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.
– Located near Montreal, this farm boasts a vast orchard with apple trees, along with U-pick options for strawberries, blueberries, corn, pumpkins, potatoes, and Christmas trees. The farm also features a play yard, animal barn, and farm shop.
12. **Trueman Blueberry Farms** – Sackville, N.B.
– A family-owned farm near Moncton offering pick-your-own high-bush and wild blueberries, as well as other crops like tulips, rhubarb, raspberries, and pumpkins. The farm’s retail store