On Saturday, Sept. 26, Hopewell Furnace announced that they still have plenty of apples to pick. The public is welcome to come, find their perfect apple among the orchards and pick it themselves.
Many farms in the area open their orchards each year for the public to experience and get a taste of the harvest experience.
The availability of apple picking will last as long as the crop lasts.
This will be the 29th year the National Park Service has invited the public to harvest apples from the park’s trees. The proceeds of apple sales go toward maintaining the orchard and other historic entities of the park.
Hours for picking run from from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day the park is open.
“Hopewell’s orchard has been found to be nearly as old as the iron furnace itself,” said a recent release from Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site. “Mentioned in contemporary accounts as early as 1782, apple trees were planted, pruned and harvested yearly. The orchard was replenished with new trees throughout the 19th Century and provided valuable food for furnace community residents, both man and beast.”
Currently, the orchard includes over 30 varieties of apples – many of which are historic types that may have been found at Hopewell when the furnace was active. Also, Hopewell’s apples are allowed to grow and ripen without the use of applied herbicides or pesticides, allowing them a historic quality and taste.
Persons wishing to pick apples should stop by the park’s visitor center to obtain a list of apple varieties and orchard map before beginning to pick. Picking poles and buckets will be provided by the park. Apples cost $1 per pound regardless of variety.
