2024 Topeka and Northeastern Kansas Tomato U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org
Find a pick-your-own farm near you! Then learn to can and freeze! Since 2002! We update continuously; Beware the copycat websites!
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Tomato U-Pick Orchards in Topeka and Northeastern Kansas in 2024, by county
Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for tomatoes that we know of in this area. Not all areas of any state, nor even every state, have tomatoes 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.
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Douglas County
Wohletz Farm Fresh - strawberries, tomatoes, potatoes, onions 1831 North 1100 Road, Lawrence, KS 66046. Phone: 785-331-3468. Email: jwohl66@aol.com. Open: Call for availability. Directions: From 10 Highway West of Eudora turn South on East 1900 Road \(2.5 miles\). Turn West onto 1100 Road \(.75 miles\)to our farm on the South side of the road. Look for sign. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, SFMNP Vouchers. . Picking updates: Click here for picking updates. From 10 Highway West of Eudora turn South on East 1900 Road (2.5 miles). Turn West onto 1100 Road (.75 miles)to our farm on the South side of the road. Look for sign. Strawberries: Mid-May thru June. U-Pick produce patches are so much fun because you get to be a part of the process. Show your children where the fruits and veggies they see on their dinner plates really come from. They will take pride in eating the healthy produce they helped harvest, and you will feel good knowing it was sustainably and locally grown. Pack a lunch and enjoy eating in the shade in our picnic area overlooking our pond. Take a break from picking to see how we grow the other veggies we take to market, like broccoli, sweet corn, lettuce, beets, onions, tomatoes, and potatoes. Each one is unique and so interesting! A visitor writes on May 25, 2022: "U pick strawberries are $3.75/pound"
Shawnee County
86th Street Orchard - apples, cherries, grapes, pears, peaches, raspberries (black), tomatoes, other vegetables, already-picked produce (of the pyo crops), school tours 5332 Northwest 86th Street, Topeka, KS 66618. Phone: (785) 246-1442. Email: cathy_kenny@yahoo.com. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, only. . . Thursday to Saturday, from 9am to dusk; Other days and times by appointment; Please call or email before stopping by so we can let you know what's ripe and ready. We have changed our fruit to mainly apples, peaches and Honey. We are strictly a u pick orchard with no other activities No groups do to us being a small orchard. We do have over 70 trees . Please call 785-409-3224. We have started growing raspberries in the high tunnel, but they are not at the productive stage yet. (UPDATED: May 18, 2022, JBS)
Arkenberg Farms - beans, corn (sweet), cucumbers, eggplant, flowers, kale, onions, peas, peppers, summer squash, tomatoes, restrooms, events at your location (call for info) 645 Se Tecumseh Rd, Tecumseh, KS 66542. Phone: (785) 969-3346. Email: Arkenberg.Farms@yahoo.com. Open: Mid June to September on Saturday 10am to 3pm and Sunday 12pm to 3pm; Please pre register to ensure time slots are open. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Venmo, PayPal, ApplePay, Debit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, SFMNP Vouchers, SNAP Vouchers. . . We are Certified naturally grown for all crops. (ADDED: June 11, 2021)
Insane Paine Produce - beans, beets, broccoli, carrots, corn (sweet), cucumbers, peppers, pumpkins, summer squash, winter squash, tomatoes, other vegetables, 3734 Ne Seward, Topeka, KS 66616. Phone: (785) 478-6773. Email: insanepaineproduce@gmail.com. Open: See our Facebook page for current hours. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. Insane Paine Produce . (ADDED: May 16, 2018)
Tomato Picking Tips, Recipes and Information
Pick tomatoes that are firm and free of blemishes. Cracking is common in very hot weather, especially after a rain, and if you intend to use the
tomatoes within 1 day, that will be ok.
During hot summer weather, pick the tomatoes when they have a healthy pink/red (or yellow or orange depending on the variety) color and let them
finish the last day or two of ripening indoors. Tomatoes do not need to be in the sunlight in order to ripen. If you have green fruit on the plants in
the fall when frost is approaching, pick the tomatoes and store them in a cool, dark place to ripen.
Tomato Varieties
In general paste or Roma-type tomatoes are the best to using for canning, as they have thicker, meatier walls and far less water. And cherry
tomatoes are the worst to use, as they are mostly water. But you can use any type you can get hold of. You may just have to cook them down
longer to boil off excess water. See our Master list of tomato varieties
Canning, Freezing, Drying, Preserving Tomatoes and more!
Below are links to pages with easy and reliable directions about how to can, preserve, freeze and make other goodies from tomatoes. Some of these require a Pressure Canner to prevent potential spoilage and
food poisoning, due to the low acid content of the food. For others, you
can use a water bath canner OR a Pressure Canner. I've noted what's
required for each, below, following each entry, with
W for water bath,
P for Pressure canner, and
W, P for either may be used!