2024 Topeka and Northeastern Kansas Raspberry U-Pick Farms and Orchards - PickYourOwn.org
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Raspberry U-Pick Orchards in Topeka and Northeastern Kansas in 2024, by county
Below are the U-Pick orchards and farms for raspberries that we know of in this area.
Not all areas of a state have raspberries 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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Atchison County
St. Andre Orchard - apples, blackberries, cherries, nectarines, peaches, plums, raspberries (red), 5443 Rawlins Rd, Atchison, KS 66002. Phone: (913) 360-2592. Email: standreorchard16@gmail.com. Open: By Appointment. Directions: . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Visa, MasterCard, Discover. St. Andre Orchard Facebook page. Picking updates: Click here for picking updatesBlackberry season is typically July 1 pm to 15 Peach season is typically July 1 pm to 31(ADDED: June 21, 2017)
Brown County
Grimm's Gardens - blueberries, cherries, apples, peaches, apricots, raspberries, persimmons, aronia, chesnuts, plums, elderberries, Honey from hives on the farm, prepicked produce, restrooms 2991 Goldfinch Road, Hiawatha, KS 66434. Phone: 785-459-2586. Email: info@grimmsgardens.com. Open: dawn to dusk on picking days; Normal hours are Monday to Friday 8 to 6 and Saturday 8 to 4. Directions: 4 miles west of Hiawatha on highway 36 and 6.5 miles north on Goldfinch Rd. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check, Visa, MasterCard. Fax: Crops are usually available in July, August, September. Opening blueberry patch July 4 Thursday, raspberries are ready also; Always call ahead for specifics Comments from a visitor on June 29, 2011: "My 3 year old and I went to Grimm's Garden near Hiawatha KS on Monday. It was everything the website said it would be and more. The staff was friendly and helpful, even looking up questions that they did not know the answer too. Raspberry picking was awesome and a quick relax in a shaded hammock was well earned. I was very excited to find a HUGE assortment of water plants for the pond I am building. " Comments from a visitor on July 22, 2008: "My husband and I visited this morning and picked 30lbs of blueberries. They're beautiful, a lot of them are the size of grapes. This farm is really something to see. I will be returning many times I'm sure. They have peaches, raspberries, black raspberries, apples and wonderful flowers and landscaping. The best I've seen."
Douglas County
Lawson Brothers Farm - blackberries, raspberries (Spring, red), strawberries, PUMPKINS, picnic area 1862 N. 700 Road, Baldwin City, KS 66006. Phone: (785) 594-3936. Email: info@lawsonbrothersfarm.com. Open: See our Web site for current hours. Directions: From Kansas Highway 10, take the Douglas County Road 1057 exit; drive south on E. 1900 Road for seven miles; turn right on N. 700 Road and drive west for 14 mile; our farm is on the right \(north side of the highway\). . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. From Kansas Highway 10, take the Douglas County Road 1057 exit; drive south on E. 1900 Road for seven miles; turn right on N. 700 Road and drive west for 1/4 mile; our farm is on the right (north side of the highway)
Franklin County
Innisfree Fruit Farm - blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, 2309 Riley Road, Ottawa, KS 66067. Phone: 785-242-8313. Email: berrygood@innisfree-farm.com. Open: Picking times are 8am to 7pm Monday through Friday, and 8am to 1pm on Saturday; Closed Sundays; Open Memorial Day. Directions: Exit #187 off of I 35. Go west into Ottawa on highway 68. From the intersection of highways 59 and 68, go 4 miles north to Riley Road, then 2 miles west. From Lawrence, Riley Road is 17 miles south of highway 10 on highway 59. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Check. Innisfree Fruit Farm Facebook page. Crops are usually available in May, June, July Note: formerly called Berry Good Farm Comments from a visitor on May 30, 2009: "WOW!!! The owner's of Berry Good Farm are KID friendly! Selling Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries! The owners have parking in the shade and a beautiful pond. The kids could go play on the playground while I picked fruit. Restroom and cold drinks were available for purchase. I would take a lunch and eat in the back of my car!They provide bug spray-but I brought my own!They provide the buckets and give you a ride in the golf cart if you can't make it back to the car! Clean berries-NO PESTICIDES!!! Tasty! I would highly recommmend! I highly liked it and would tell all my friends to go! Free eating of the berries is encouraged from the owners! Make sure to get there early-they sell out of blueberries FAST! Take cash or checks They have two dogs-friendly just BIG!"
Wellsberry Farm - Uses natural growing practices, raspberries (black), U-pick and already picked 416 E. 7th Street, Wellsville, KS 66092. Phone: 316-708-3737. Email: wellsberryfarm@gmail.com. Open: Sunday to Saturday 7 days a week, from 8am to 8pm. Directions: We are located just west of Highway 33 on Seventh Street, at the intersection of Seventh and Pine in Wellsville. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, only. Sunday to Saturday (7 days a week), from 8am to 8pmWe use natural practices, but are not yet certified Organic
Leavenworth County
Oregon Trail Farm - Uses natural growing practices, blackberries, blueberries, other berries, raspberries (red), raspberries (Spring, red), raspberries (Autumn, red), raspberries (black), raspberries (Spring, black), raspberries (Autumn, black), Honey from hives on the farm 18962 Santa Fe Trail, Leavenworth, KS 66048. Phone: 520-249-0480. Email: oregon.trail.farm@gmail.com. Open: June through August Tues - Sunday 1008 am to 1900 when berries are ripe. Directions: 4.9 miles from Fort Leavenworth KS back gate along the Santa Fe Trail. . Click here for a map and directions. Payment: Cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover. Oregon Trail Farm Facebook page. June through August (Tues - Sunday 1008 am to 1900 when berries are ripe)Picking updates: Click here for picking updatesBerries Mid-June through August. We use natural practices, but are not yet certified OrganicWe began amending the already fertile soil by incorporating horse manure from local stables and over 10,000 pounds of coffee grounds and coffee chaff in the first year alone. Working with numerous local tree trimming services more than 70 tons of wood chips were saved from landfills and aid in weed control and water conservation. (ADDED: May 21, 2015)
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. 86th Street Orchard Facebook page. 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)
Raspberry
Raspberry Picking Tips, Recipes and Information
Raspberries can produce an early summer crop or a late summer and Fall
crop.
In
the U.S. Spring / Summer raspberries (called florocanes) typically peak during June in the South, and in July in
the North. The primocane varieties, which produce raspberries on shoots that
come up each Spring are typically read from August until frost.
And for those of you from the upper midwest through the west and up
to Canada, if you are interested in
Thimbleberries, see this
page.
Before you leave to go to the farm:
Always call before you go to the farm - And when they are in season, a large
turnout can pick a field clean before noon, so CALL first!
Leave
early. On weekends, then fields may be picked clean by NOON!
Most growers furnish picking containers designed for raspberries, but they
may charge you for them; be sure to call before you go to see if you need to
bring
containers.
If you use your own containers, remember that heaping raspberries more than
5 inches deep will bruise the lower berries.
Plastic dishpans, metal oven pans with 3 inch tall sides and large
pots make good containers. I like the Glad storage containers like the one
at right.
Bring
something to drink and a few snacks; you'd be surprised how you can work up
a thirst and appetite! And don't forget hats and sunscreen for the sun. Bugs
usually aren't a problem, but some deet might be good to bring along if it
has been rainy.
Tips on how to pick raspberries
Raspberry bushes don't have thorns, but they are a pick prickly, so if you
want to hold the stem while picking, a pair of lightweight gloves is
helpful.
A ripe raspberry is deep color with a
plump, soft but firm feel. It will pull free from the plant with only a slight tug. The
center will remain on the plant. Keep in mind, raspberries come in many
colors: red, yellow, black, purple, so you want to pick the darker shade of
whichever it is.
Pick only the berries that are fully ripe. Reach in between the stems to
grab for hidden berries ready for harvest. Bend down and look up into the
plant and you will find loads of berries that other people missed!
I find it helps to hold the stem with one hand, while picking with the
other.
Repeat these
operations using both hands until each holds 3 or 4 berries. Repeat the picking process with both hands.
Don't overfill
your containers or try to pack the berries down. Ideally, the collection
containers should be wide so the pberries aren't more than a few deep.
Pick berries into a shallow container. If they get piled too
deep they will crush each other.
Avoid placing the picked berries in the sunlight any longer than necessary.
It is better to put them in the shade of a tree or shed than in the car
trunk or on the car seat. Cool them as soon as possible after picking.
When you get home
DON'T
wash the berries until you are ready to use them or freeze them. Washing
makes them more prone to spoiling.
DO refrigerate! Right after picking, place raspberries in
the fridge. If your fridge tends to dry out produce, lightly cover the
container.
Raspberries don't store for very long, usually just a few days. The reason
the ones from the grocery store last longer is they are covered with
fungicides!
Pour them out into shallow pans and remove any mushed, soft or rotting
berries
Put a couple of days supply into the fridge, wash off the others, drain
them and freeze them up! (Unless you're going to make jam right away)
raspberries are less perishable than blueberries or strawberries, but
refrigerate them as soon as possible after picking. Temperatures between 34
F and 38 F are best, but, be careful not to freeze the raspberries (while
they are in the fridge)!
Even under ideal conditions raspberries will only keep for a week in a
refrigerator, so for best flavor and texture, use them as soon as possible
after purchase
Raspberries are a very healthy food;
packed with anthocyanins!
Raspberries contain more vitamin C than oranges, are super high in fibre,
lhave a good amount of folic acid, are high in potassium, vitamin A and
calcium.
The USDA says 1 cup of raspberries has about 62 calories.
11 cup of raspberries, not packed down weighs about 140 grams.
An average raspberry has 100 to 120 seeds.
Select plump, firm, fully raspberries. Unripe berries will not
ripen once picked.
Raspberries belong to a large group of fruits known as brambles, such as
blackberries, in the plant genus Rubus.
Raspberries come in red, yellow, orange, purple and black colors.
Yellow raspberries are red raspberries that don't make red pigment.)
In most areas, raspberries begin to bloom in late May or early June.
Bumblebees, honeybees, and other wild bees love to visit brambles.
60-70 pints of fruits can be
harvested from 100 feet row. Raspberries can be harvested from early
summer through fall, usually right up until a freeze
The United States is the world's third-largest
producer of raspberries (FAOSTAT, 2013).
Production occurs across
much of the country, although most of it is concentrated in California,
Oregon and Washington. California leads the nation in both black and red
raspberry production (NASS, 2015).
According to the most recent Census of Agriculture, the United States
has 8,052 raspberry farms totaling 23,104 acres (Census of Ag, USDA, 2012).
U-pick raspberry farms typically sell berries by the pound. A quart
equals 1 and 1/4 pounds of fresh berries.
Do the math and be careful not to over-purchase as raspberries quickly
mold when left at room temperature, and only last a couple of days in the
refrigerator.
You can easily freeze berries that you cannot use right away - just
wash, cut the hulls off and pop them into a ziplock bag, removing as much
air as possible. Those vacuum food sealers REALLY do a good job of this!
The berries will keep for many months frozen without air.