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McDOUGAL ORCHARDS

FAQs

During the week, park in the front parking lot or in one of the areas behind the buildings, then walk to the Farm Store for directions. The Farm Store is located at the front of the large barn with solar panels.

On weekends Follow the signs as you enter the parking lot, and you will be met with an employee who can help you park and send you to the best place for picking! If you do not see an employee, park and walk into the Farm Store. 

Do NOT park on Hanson Ridge Road! Come into the driveway and we will help you find a place to park. 

We charge by the pound for all of our u-pick fruit. All u-pick apples are the same price, so feel free to mix them in the same bag. Do not mix other fruits in with the apples as the prices may be different. 

You’ll learn to make applesauce! Due to food safety regulations, we cannot take back and re-sell any fruit picked by our customers. Whatever you pick is yours to purchase and take home to enjoy. Our employees can help you estimate the cost of different sized containers. If you are looking for less expensive bulk apples, ask us about utilities for sale in the Farm Store.

Yes! Especially if it is a variety that you haven’t tried before. We just ask that you be respectful of our orchards and the hard work that goes into growing the fruit (please don’t leave a trail of half-eaten apples behind you). We also ask that you wash your hands after eating and before picking more fruit. Handwash stations will be provided in each orchard. 

Nope! When you come to visit, you will notice that we do not charge any fees to come onto our property. The maze, fairy village, wagon rides (weekends only starting Labor Day Weekend) and picnic areas are all offered free of charge for our paying customers. We gladly accept donations for these extra features.

As mentioned above, the maze along with fairy village and more are free for our paying customers. If you are only interested in the maze, be sure to drop a few bucks into the donation bin or purchase a jug of cider or a few apples on your way out so we can continue to provide these activities without charging extra. 

We accept cash as well as local checks, major credit cards and EBT/SNAP and WIC Vouchers.

We open as soon as the first apple is ready for picking, usually early to mid August. From that day on, we are open 9AM to 5PM Saturday through Wednesday, and 9AM to 6PM Thursday and Friday until the end of October or early November (depending on when we run out of fruit). Check the home page of this website, our Facebook page, or give us a call to stay updated.

Capt Jack’s Donut Shack is only open weekends and holidays Labor Day weekend through Indigenous Peoples Day weekend and possibly to the end of October from 9:00 – 5:00.

You can find bags of donuts in the farm store during the week unless we sell out.

Come during the week! On Thursdays and Fridays we stay open a little later for "golden hour," so local folks can make it after work. If you come on a weekend, try to get here early to beat the crowds. Our busiest season is the last two weeks in September and the first two weeks in October. Before or after that we shouldn’t have such huge crowds. If you really want the orchards all to yourself, wait for a rainy day and suit up in your ponchos and boots, we’re open rain or shine! 

By visiting us you are supporting a family owned business and small-scale local agriculture. Because of our size and our practices, we can't produce apples at the low cost that other larger producers can.

At our farm you will be able to enjoy a beautiful Fall day in our meticulously groomed orchards and when you leave our orchard, you are taking home more than just fruit, you are taking memories.

Pets are NOT allowed in the buildings or in the orchards for food safety reasons. If you bring your pup they will have to stay in the car if you enter one of our orchards, so for their comfort it’s best to leave them home.

Yes, we do! Please see Activities for more information.

The whitish film you may find on some apples is called bloom. It is made up of various natural yeasts and waxes. You should always shine your apple before eating to wipe off dust or other environmental residues that may have settled on it. 

We practice Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which is an environmentally sensitive, common sense approach to controlling and preventing damage from pests such as insects, plant diseases, weeds and more.

IPM focuses on identifying and monitoring pests and applying an appropriate control method, which can be mechanical (pulling weeds by hand), cultural (rotating crops for soil health) or chemical (spraying organic or synthetic pesticides). We spend a lot of time walking around the orchards to identify pests and determine if they meet a threshold that merits a response.

We raised our family in these orchards, so we are extremely conscious about what we use and always look for the option with the least possible hazard to people, property and the environment. We do not want to cause any damage to the bees or other beneficials that share our orchards. If you have specific allergies or further questions about our practices, feel free to come in and talk with us!

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Pick Your Own

  • Apples
  • Peaches
  • Nectarines
  • Plums
  • Pears
  • Fall Raspberries

Farm Store

  • Apples
  • Apple Cider (hand pressed)
  • Veggies
  • Flowers
  • Local Honey and Maple Syrup
  • Jams and Jellies
  • Capt. Jack's Cider Donuts
  • Pumpkins and Gourds
  • Winter Squash
  • Mums
  • Fall Decor

Location

  • 20 min. off the ME Tpke
  • 90 min. from Boston MA
  • 90 min. from Manchester NH
  • 45 min. from Portland ME
  • 45 min. from Portsmouth NH

Services

  • Cash
  • Credit / Debit
  • Local Checks
  • EBT, WIC
  • Mixed Fruit CSA

Our Partners

Maine Farmland Trust logo
New England Apples logo
Real Maine Foods & Farms, Fresh & Local logo
Seacoast Eat Local logo
Sanford Farmer's Market logo
Sanford Springvale Chamber of Commerce logo
Orange Pippin Logo
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