When We are Open
Reminder on our days and hours: Open 9 am to 6 pm every day, including holidays. Closed Tuesdays. To call us with an order or a question: 269-244-5690.
Many of you are asking how much longer we will be open for the season. Our last official day will be Sunday, October 31. Starting in November, we will publish a reduced schedule of the days and hours we will be open. And yes, we will have info out soon for Thanksgiving and holiday pies. And what about that fun Holiday market we had last December with Santa here? Yep, that will be back so stay tuned.
Happenings on the Farm
Seriously, could the weather patterns get much stranger? (Sadly, the answer is probably yes!) The lack of normal cool fall weather has not only kept the leaves from coloring, but it has affected the fruit as well. Apples and grapes cannot get what they need to turn their proper color. So please forgive us if your red apple seems pale and the bunch of grapes you picked has several green ones on it.
Please be aware that this weather is preventing fall fruit and vegetables from storing properly. Squash are not holding well with the heat and humidity, and we recommend that you not even buy winter squash to store like you have in the past. Please get what you can cook now, or cook and freeze what you purchase for use later.
Get your Jack o’ Lanterns close to when you need them if you can also. Due to the difficulty in growing pumpkins this year, we will not have U-Pick pumpkins, you will have to “pick” them right from our market display!
Fall Color Tour – Sunday, Oct. 10 from 11 am to 4 pm
Join us this Sunday for the Three Rivers Chamber of Commerce Fall Color Tour. We are one of several stops – see the Chamber’s flyer for more details.
The event at Corey Lake Orchards runs from 11 am to 4 pm.
- Get your face painted by Constantine High School art club students!
- Have a cold hard cider or a glass of wine at the “Onion Barn” at the top of the hill behind the market – perfect for conversing with family and friends and enjoying the festival. (12 to 4)
- Start your holiday shopping by visiting the 21 different arts, crafts, and food vendors.
- Grab a bite at Weenie King or Three Rivers Promise food stops.
- Enjoy toe-tapping music by the Waterbound String Band.
- Pick up some apples from our ‘bag your own’ Red Delicious bin
- Photo opportunities await you – the firetruck, the terrace garden, the old tractors, large pumpkins, and more.
- Check out Spookley in the front yard and take a moment to read (and discuss!) the story with your children.
See our website for a list of vendors and activities at our stop on the tour
Apple Update
Apple Estimate Chart. We have revised our apple forecast on the four varieties left to pick: Cameo, Red Rome, Fuji, and Pink Lady. We have pushed the harvest schedule back one full week to see if they can gain some color. A copy of the estimate is available at the market or find it here.
Apples on the market this weekend
- Braeburn: Sweet with a hint of tart, and a firmness that stores well. These traits plus the fact that they bake well have made them a very versatile apple.
- Cortland: A hint of tartness makes this a great baking variety, a descendent of the McIntosh. This variety is a bit sweeter than its ancestor and juices really well.
- Gala: a great eating and cooking apple. It has a crisp snappy bite over a mellow sweetness
- Golden Delicious: A gingery-smooth, sweet taste under a thin skin. It is the most popular yellow apple, good eaten fresh, baked or cut in salads. Makes a nice apple sauce and many people use for canning pie filling.
- Honeycrisp: This seems to be many people’s favorite. It is crisp with an excellent sweet flavor and a “bite” to it. Great for eating fresh or using in salads.
- Ida Red: Suits your every use! Eat fresh or for cooking. Taste is both tangy and tart. Flesh is white, crisp and juicy. Favored for sauces, pies and desserts. Texture holds up well when baked.
- Jon-A-Mac: This is a good cooking or eating apple. It combines the best qualities of a Jonathan and a MacIntosh. A favorite for apple sauce.
- Jonathan: A medium sized fruit with bright red color. A sweet-tart flavor with a crisp texture which makes it great for baking, old fashioned caramel apples, and adds complexity to cider.
- McIntosh: (limited supply remaining) aromatic, juicy, sweet, and tangy tart. The tender white flesh of the McIntosh makes it an old time favorite.
- Northern Spy: The professional baker’s dream, cooks up well in applesauce, pie and other dishes. Stores well, easy to remember by saying “Spies for pies”.
- Nu-Red: (limited supply remaining) A crisp, tart, hard, crunchy apple. An improved version of a Red Rome.
- Red Delicious: America’s most popular apple, known for the “five little bumps” on the bottom. Best for fresh eating and snacks. Full-flavored sweet taste, yellowish flesh, and crisp texture.
Apple pricing for the year: $30 a bushel, $16 a half-bushel, $11 a peck (1/4 of a bushel), $6.50 a half-peck, and $3.75 a 1/4 peck.
The last few days of picking golden delicious have brought in some strikingly beautiful apples.
60th Anniversary Special on Red Delicious. To help celebrate our 60th year in business, we are having a special on Red Delicious. These apples were one of the original ones on our farm and a “core” part of our apple crop years ago.
Stop by the market and bag your own straight out of the bin from the orchard. The special pricing is: $19.61 a bushel, $10 a half-bushel, $6 a peck (1/4 of a bushel), and $4 a half-peck,
Sale on Galas. Our Gala apples are buy 1, get 1 free right now on half peck bags and larger. They are sweet, good to eat, and great to add to applesauce to minimize or eliminate the need for added sugar.
Apple U-Pick
The U-Pick apple orchard will be open this Saturday and Monday (Columbus Day), by reservation. We will not be open on Sunday due to the Fall Color Tour event at our farm.
The varieties available to pick this weekend are below and there are plenty left to pick yet.
- Golden Delicious: A gingery-smooth, sweet taste under a thin skin. It is the most popular yellow apple, good eaten fresh, baked or cut in salads. Makes a nice apple sauce and many people use for canning pie filling.
- Red Delicious: America’s most popular apple, known for the “five little bumps” on the bottom. Best for fresh eating and snacks. Full-flavored sweet taste, yellowish flesh, and crisp texture.
See our U-Pick Apple page to get more information on making a reservation, times we are open and pricing.
What’s the best part about picking your own apples? Munching on one right after you’re done!
Apple Gleaning. When more of the apple harvest is finished, we will decide on apple gleaning, if there are enough to do so, and when it might be available.
Grape Update
We are so grateful for the many folks who have come and picked grapes this year. We have gone through around 20 acres of Concord so far. Tomorrow we will start picking our last Concord vineyard for the year. This is our largest vineyard, with around 13 acres. There are still plenty of grapes of both colors left. Just a reminder you do need a reservation and we would encourage you to come sooner rather than later due to the warm weather and rains we are experiencing.
U-Pick Reservation times:
- Monday, Thursday, Friday are 8 am to 4:20 pm; everyone must be out by 5:30 pm.
- Wednesday is from 8 am to 5:40 pm; longer picking hours, everyone must be out by the official sunset time that day.
- Saturday and Sunday are 9 am to 4:20 pm; everyone must be out by 5:30 pm.
- Tuesdays – closed
- All times are Eastern time
Reservation System. New this year we are using a reservation system and you will need to schedule a specific date and time. The system is online and accessible from the home page of our website. If you are unable to utilize the reservation system, please contact the market at 269-244-5690.
To Make a Reservation. Click the reservations link below to make a reservation online. There is no fee but there you must pick a minimum of 10 pounds.
https://www.signupgenius.com/
U-Pick Pricing. You must pick a minimum quantity of 10 pounds (about a peck or quarter of a bushel).
- 10 pounds or less: $1 a pound or $10 flat fee
- 20 pounds (1 bucket): 75 cents a pound or $15
- 2 to 4 buckets: 63 cents a pound or $12.50 a bucket
- 100 pounds or more (5 or more buckets): 32.5 cents a pound or $6.50 a bucket
- We sell them by the pound and consider a five-gallon bucket (filled level) or a half bushel basket to be 20 pounds.
Winter Squash and Fall Ornamentals
We grow quite a few varieties of winter squash from traditional to some newer ones. You will find descriptions of the squash located in the squash area or ask any of our staff. The squash can be used as fall decorations until you decide to eat them!
If you are looking for squash to store for the winter, please know that our squash is not keeping well this year. Any squash you buy will need to be used soon after purchase.
We have colorful Fall corn, gourds, mums, and mini pumpkins for your fall decorating as well.
Pie Pumpkins. Have you priced canned pumpkin lately? If so, you might be in for sticker shock. We recommend you buy our fresh ones now, puree/ roast, and freeze them for holiday pies later! It is not difficult to do and there are ‘how to’ instructions available online such as http://thecreeksidecook.com/
Apple Cider
We are making fresh apple cider and you can pick it up in the cider cooler at the market. Each week the blend will be a bit different depending on what apples we have available at the time, but we guarantee you will like it.
Please note that it is not pasteurized and requires refrigeration. If you want 10 or more gallons, please call the market at 269-244-5690 to preorder.
On The Market
Apples
Cider
Fall ornamentals – gourds, colored corn, mums, mini pumpkins, decorative but edible squash
Florals
Garlic
Herbs to pick
Lettuce – regular, spicy, Arugula
Mushrooms
Onions
Pie Pumpkins
Pumpkins
Radishes
Shallots
Squash (hard winter) – an assortment of traditional types and some newer ones
Grocery Items. Assortment of local meat, cheese, eggs, jam, jelly, salsa, maple syrup, honey, chips, tortilla chips, and more.
Gift Items. Assorted greeting cards, pottery, artwork, sculptures, Mad Mats, and more.
In the past week, many days have had a gloomy sky with on and off showers.
Bakery
Donuts. Just a reminder that we only make donuts on Saturdays and Sundays. We are now into our fall flavors – Buttermilk, Apple Cider, and Pumpkin donuts, plain and sugared.
Fruit Pies. This year our pies are frozen “take and bake” only; we no longer offer “ready to eat” pies. Having them frozen allows us to offer a full variety of pies every day the market is open, not just on weekends. If you are driving far, bring a cooler or insulated freezer bag. Baking directions are included on each pie.
Pie Varieties: Apple, Dutch Apple, Blueberry, Cherry, Cherry Berry, Peach, and Strawberry-Rhubarb.
Slushies. With the summer-like weather, enjoy a nice cold slushie! We have Grape, Mango, and Cider.
Baked Goods from Yoder’s
We are offering additional homemade baked goods from Yoder’s Country Store.
- Each day the market is open – cookies and breads.
- Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays only – Amish fry pies and cinnamon rolls
Amish Fry Pies (pocket-sized, half circle pie): Apple, Black Raspberry, Blueberry, Cherry, Lemon, Peach, Red Raspberry, Strawberry-Rhubarb
Breads (pre-sliced, ready to use!) for Fall: English Muffin, Multigrain, Raisin Cinnamon, and Sourdough
Cinnamon Rolls
Cookies: Chocolate Chip, Molasses, Oatmeal Raisin, and Whoopie Pies—both chocolate and pumpkin
Pumpkin Rolls (in the refrigerator section)
Order Ahead! You can always call the market and order you favorite baked goods to ensure that we will have them.
Spirits, Wine, and Hard Ciders
We have a nice selection of alcohol produced on the farm.
- Fruit brandy in 375ml and 750ml sizes
- Wine – an assortment of sweet and dry
- Hard cider in 12-ounce bottles. You can purchase them individually or mix and match them in a discounted 4- or 6-pack.
COVID-19 Guidelines
We are following operational guidance from the CDC as well as State and local health rules. We are an open-air market and masks are optional though we encourage you to wear them if you have not been vaccinated. Our staff has been vaccinated and are not required to wear masks. Please note that we also follow food safety rules that regulate how produce is harvested and packaged.
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We look forward to seeing you soon. Thank you for shopping local.
From everyone at Corey Lake Orchards |