10 spots in the Hamptons to pick your own pumpkins, apples, vegetables, and fall flowers
The Hamptons conjure up images of long sunny days of waves lapping at your feet and relaxing in the heat with a cool drink in hand. But while it’s a posh summer destination for many New Yorkers, the region is also home to rural communities growing year-round.
“Agriculture (and fishing!) is really at the heart of the East End’s cultural heritage; it’s one of the many reasons so many people flock to this beautiful place,” Meghan Steckowski, director of communications for Amber Waves, a nonprofit organization in Amagansett dedicated to providing educational opportunities in farming, said. “People may not first think of agriculture and soil when they think of the East End, but we have a long history of agricultural production here (potatoes in particular).”
According to Steckowski, the East has some of the country’s best soil (well-drained and largely rock-free). “Our specific soil type on our farm is Bridgehampton Silt Loam, deposited here by the receding Wisconsin glacier more than 11,000 years ago.”
“Because land here is so precious and expensive, farmers have relied on conservation programs to keep prime agricultural land from being developed so it remains open for farming, particularly newer farmers (like us) that don’t have any family land,” she added.
“Farm families that have been farming here for generations have been immensely helpful to us at Amber Waves as we’ve worked to grow our farm over the last 16 years.”
The farm offers pick-your-own flowers; in season for fall are dahlias and snapdragons. In terms of crops, sold through a CSA and at local markets, baby greens like arugula, baby kale, and a house mesclun mix they call “spicy salad” are having an “excellent” year.
“We sow these crops weekly, and our timing on seeding, weeding, and harvest has been great, and the weather has been on our side,” Steckowski said. “And now, we’re entering winter squash and sweet potato season.”
At Seven Ponds Orchard in Water Mill, U-Pick vegetables like string beans, sugar snap peas, eggplant, squash, and, of course, pumpkins. Apple season is also still going through the end of October on the east coast. At Lewin Farm in Calverton, peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes are available in addition to apples and pumpkins through October.
To celebrate the harvest season, here are 10 farms in the Hamptons where you can make a day of picking, enjoying the fall weather, and getting out into nature.
1. Amber Waves
367 Main Street, Amagansett
Pick-your-own flowers
2. Seven Ponds Orchard
65 7 Ponds Road, Water Mill
Pick-your-own pumpkins, apples, vegetables
3. Horton’s Flowers
712 Horton Avenue, Riverhead
Pick-your-own flowers
4. Hank’s Pumpkintown
240 Montauk Hwy, Water Mill
Pick-your-own pumpkins, apples
Corn maze
5. Milk Pail Farm
50 Horsemill Lane, Water Mill
Pick-your-own pumpkins, apples
6. Fairview Farm at Mecox
19 Horsemill Lane, Bridgehampton
Pick-your-own pumpkins
Corn maze and corn cannon
7. Harbes Family Farm
5698 Sound Avenue, Riverhead
Pick-your-own pumpkins, apples
Corn maze, hayrides
8. Stakey’s
270 West Lane, Aquebogue
Pick-your-own pumpkins
Corn maze, hayrides
9. Lewin Farm
812 Sound Avenue, Calverton
Pick-your-own, pumpkins, apples, vegetables
Corn maze
10. Krupski Farms
38030 Route 25, Peconic
Pick-your-own pumpkins
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