Bergen County's Two Biggest Orchards Escaped This Year's Frost. Some Farms on the Same Day-Trip List Didn't.

Check one of the regional roundups of orchards near Bergen County this fall and you'll likely find Ripple Hill Farm on it, a small family farm in Basking Ridge that's been growing apples and peaches for more than fifty years. This year the farm posted a different kind of update than usual. It will not be open for apple picking in 2026 at all, after a hard frost hit right after the blossoms opened this spring and wiped out a large share of the crop.

Ripple Hill isn't in Bergen County. It sits in Somerset County, far enough away that it only shows up on Bergen-area lists because those guides sort by driving distance, not county lines. That distinction matters more than usual this fall. A frost that hits hard in one place doesn't respect the borders a roundup draws around "nearby," and a farm carrying a closure notice this year can sit right next to two fully open Bergen County farms on the same list. Check each farm's seasonal update before heading out.

What the Frost Actually Hit

The damage wasn't limited to Ripple Hill. Ochs Orchard, just over the state line in Orange County, New York, reported that fruit would be limited this season because of a damaging freeze during blossom season, and told visitors to check for daily picking updates before making the drive. Battleview Orchards in Freehold, down in Monmouth County, lost its entire 2026 apple crop to the same stretch of extreme spring temperatures, though it kept its pumpkin picking on schedule starting around September 19.

Three orchards, three different counties, none of them in Bergen, all carrying some version of the same spring story. A regional day-trip list can span very different growing conditions from one county to the next.

The Two Farms Actually In Bergen County

Demarest Farms in Hillsdale opened for its full 2026 season with no crop-loss notice attached, running daily from 8am to 5pm. Its lineup for the fall includes a drive-through Halloween Light Show alongside the usual apple and pumpkin picking, and reservations are recommended if you want to fold that into the same visit.

Abma's Farm in Wyckoff came through the season intact too. Its pumpkin patch and tractor-pulled hayrides are running as usual, and the Tomasello Winery tasting room built into its market is pouring wine, cider, and wine creams alongside charcuterie boxes and platters. On weekends the farm adds live music and its Farm House Grill, stretching what used to be a quick pick-your-own stop into an afternoon.

Neither farm reported anything close to what hit Ripple Hill, Ochs, or Battleview. If your fall plans haven't left Bergen County yet, both of the county's default orchard options are running the way they always have.

The Fixed-Date Calendar Kept Moving

The fixed-date events that have taken place landed exactly when they were supposed to. The 111th Annual St. Joseph Festival returned to Lodi over Labor Day weekend, September 4 through 7, the same century-plus tradition it's always been. The Bergen County Fall Harvest Festival took over Overpeck County Park in Ridgefield Park September 18 through 20, with the free admission and parking it's known for, plus the 4-H and Master Gardener displays that Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Bergen County runs there every year. The Ridgewood Fall Craft & Art Street Fair filled Ridgewood's downtown on September 20, and Leonia closed out its Oktoberfest at Wood Park on September 26.

None of that depended on how a blossom held up in April. Two more dates on that same built calendar are still ahead. Bergen County Players opened its 94th season with Mel Brooks' The Producers at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Oradell on September 19, and performances continue through October 10. Fair Lawn's Street Fair & Craft Show is set for October 18, a few weeks out from now.

What This Means for Your Next Weekend

If you're staying inside Bergen County for apple or pumpkin picking, Demarest Farms and Abma's Farm are both running full programs. Check each farm's updates before you load the car. If you're pulling a farm from a wider multi-county guide instead, the county it's actually in is worth a second look this year before you drive out expecting a full orchard. Ripple Hill is closed for picking entirely, Ochs Orchard is telling visitors to check daily, and Battleview swapped apples for pumpkins around the third week of September. The farm-specific updates are on each farm's own page.

The theater run, the street fairs, and the harvest festival are the part of the season built around fixed dates. This year, the events already held landed on schedule, while the remaining dates are still ahead.

If you're the kind of person who checks which county a farm actually sits in before planning a Saturday, you already have the instinct that makes for a sharp home search too: look past the label on the list and confirm the specific place. When you're ready to put that same instinct toward a house in one of these towns, BLGRV Estates is set up to help you do exactly that.