This isn’t your average day on the farm.
Northeast Pennsylvania boasts many farms, ranches and other agricultural businesses that open to the public and offer events, festivals and activities to immerse your senses in. From tasting fresh food and meeting animals to frolicking through flower fields and picking ripe produce, there’s something for everyone at these agriculture-focused destinations this season.
Most farms’ opening and closing dates depend on their crops, and their hours vary based on weather and ripeness. Check with each farm for daily operating hours and other up-to-date information before you make the trip. Also, remember to follow each venue’s COVID-19 guidelines.
Here are a few spots where you can take in the natural wonder of the region.
Brown Hill Farms
Where: 405 E. Avery Station Road, Tunkhannock
Hours: Seasonal
Details: 570-241-8430, brownhillfarms@gmail.com or brownhillfarms.mazeplay.com
Buy fresh vegetables at its two roadside stands or stop by on Flower Fridays throughout July, which has a different theme each week. Sunflower season begins in August with 15 acres of sunflowers to tour, take photos with or pick and take home. Visitors are welcome during seasons only.
LaCoe’s Berry Nice Farm
Where: 10038 Valley View Drive, Clarks Summit
Hours: Vary by day
Details: 570-561-4031, lacoesberrynicefarm@gmail.com or its Facebook page
Pick your own berries – including strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, black raspberries and blackberries – throughout the summer. The season usually runs from early June until late August. The venue is cash only.
Lakeland Orchard & Cidery
Where: 1649 Lakeland Drive, Scott Twp.
Hours: Thursdays through Sundays, 10a.m. to 6p.m.
Details: 570-254-6038 or lakelandorchard.com
Sample hard cider, snack on food from several stands, try your hand at axe-throwing, listen to live music and more. The Strawberry Festival takes place Saturday, June 19, through Sunday, July 18, and features strawberries for the picking as well as strawberry foods and drinks, including strawberry doughnuts as well as lemonade and hard cider. From Thursday, July 22, through Sunday, July 25, catch a sneak peek of the Lavender Festival with food and drink options featuring the newly planted herb, including lemonade, doughnuts, ice cream, hard cider and more. From Thursday, July 29, through Monday, Sept. 6, experience the Sunflower Festival with food and drink, tours, photo ops and 15 varieties of pickable sunflowers across 6 acres. Then, celebrate late summer with the Zinnia Festival on Saturday, Aug. 1, when guests can snap pictures in the fields and pick flowers to take home.
The Lands at Hillside Farms
Where: 65 Hillside Road, Shavertown
Hours: Mondays through Sundays, 8a.m. to 8p.m.
Details: 570-696-2881 or thelandsathillsidefarms.org
Shop the dairy store and its artisan cheeses, certified organic vegetables, fresh baked goods, jellies, jams, salsas and more. Don’t forget its fresh-made ice cream in dozens of flavors. Attend one of its events, which include guided walks through the pastures to learn about local history, or visit with the dairy barn’s herd.
Manning’s Farm Dairy
Where: 131 Manning Road, Dalton
Hours: Sundays through Saturdays, 10a.m. to 10:30p.m.
Details: 570-563-1702 or manningfarm.com
Visit the cows up close and shop Manning’s milk and its homemade ice cream, milkshakes, sundaes and more. Grab ice cream to-go by the container or take home a fresh pie or ice cream cake. Iced tea also is available seasonally. The venue is cash only.
Miller’s Orchards Farm Market
Where: 1421 Fairview Road, Scott Twp.
Hours: Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10a.m. to 5p.m.
Details: 570-587-3399, yourfarmers@millersorchard.com or millersorchards.com
Take home fresh vegetables, apples, strawberries, blueberries and raspberries as well as pasture-raised eggs, chicken, pork and beef. Visit the farm kitchen and butcher shop to buy fresh or frozen items in the farm market.
Mud Pond Farm
Where: 830 Amasa Road, Dalton
Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 8a.m. to 4p.m., and Saturdays during certain seasons
Details: 570-222-6328 or mudpondfarm.com
Try its humanely sourced meats including wagyu beef, bring your venison to be processed or shop high-quality meat products. Guests also can pick their own strawberries and blueberries and see farm animals on the bustling property.
Pallman Farms
Where: 1511 Summit Lake Road, Clarks Summit
Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 8a.m. to 7p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays, 8a.m. to 6p.m.
Details: 570-587-3258 or pallmanfarms.com
Pick its famous strawberries grown by the family for more than a century or peruse the fresh produce at the farm market. Strawberry picking opens mid-June.
Paupack Blueberry Farm
Where: 184 Gumbletown Road, Palmyra Twp.
Hours: Daily, 8a.m. to 5p.m., when in season
Details: 570-226-9702, info@paupackblueberryfarm.com or paupackblueberryfarm.com
Pick up gifts such as specialty jellies made with the fruits from the farm, T-shirts, soap and cookbooks as well as goodies including blueberry muffins, scones and cookies at the on-site store. The blueberry fields usually open for public picking in late July. Take a break afterward by grabbing some ice cream from the farm’s Hawley shop, Coutts Ice Cream.
Gia Mazur is an award-winning staff writer and beauty obsessive who joined The Times-Tribune’s Lifestyles department in 2015. She’s a product enthusiast who can’t live without an eyelash curler. A proud Virgo, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow Talk is her go-to. Contact: gmazur@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9127; @gmazurTT
