HARRISBURG, S.D. (KELO) — While autumn is technically a few weeks away, fall activities are starting up.
At Country Apple Orchard, staff is excited that the Fall Festival is starting up this weekend.
“Just to see all of our hard work over the past few months or the past year just really come together,” Country Apple Orchard General Manager, Amber Halvorson said.
The Fall Festival has become a staple in the community, offering lots of options for families.
“We’ve got apple canons, we’ve got the Poet corn pit, bouncy pillows, zip lines, the hay bale and corn maze,” Halvorson said.
With one of their most beloved attractions being the funny farm petting zoo.
“What makes our petting zoo special is that you can just get right up and close to them. You can feed them, you can pet them. We’ve named them. You know, we just kind of keep it simple. It’s typically your farm animal that’s out here and kids, you know, city kids sometimes maybe don’t get interaction with that and kind of up close and personal like that,” Halvorson said.
Along with the Fall Festival, while last year’s apple crop struggled, this year there are plenty of apples to pick.
“We got a nice wet spring and we have hardly any insect pressure this year. And you can see our apple trees have really responded well. So we’re loaded,” Country Apple Orchard owner, Greg Jones said.
While people may not think of apple picking until the weather gets cooler, owner Greg Jones suggests picking earlier rather than later.
“If you want to come out and pick apples, definitely don’t wait until last minute or mid to end September because we’re picking some great apples right now and there’s going to be tons ready in the next couple of weeks,” Jones said.
The Country Apple Orchards website will let you know when your favorite variety is ready to pick.
Click here for the Country Apple Orchard website.
The Fall Festival starts August 30 and will run every weekend in September and October.
