Fall Guide

Harvest Season in Rhode Island

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The Corn Maze at Salisbury Farm in Johnston was the first maze of its kind in New England, and has a different theme every year. With over a mile of paths through five acres of corn, it’ll challenge your memory, teamwork and sense of direction. Visit on Sundays in October for Moonlight Maze Nights, where you can wander the maze under the stars from 7 to 9pm. There’s also a pumpkin patch and hayrides for daytime festivities.

Since 1964, Pippin Orchard in Cranston has not only produced crisp, fresh apples, but also educated the Rhode Island community on how our food is harvested and produced. Pick-your-own apples is a true rite of fall for the whole family, and it starts in September. Add something sweet, like a fresh cider donut, candy apple or Giovanna Gelato, in seasonal flavors like Apple Pie and Peach.

Weekends starting September 16, the fun doesn’t end at Confreda Farm’s Fall Fest in Hope. Think hayrides, kiddie rides, farm activities and a corn MAiZE the size of seven (you heard us – seven) football fields, with Flashlight Nights to up the spooky factor. There’s also a food court offering fall and Halloween-themed treats, and a Pumpkin Smash at the end of October.

Have fun getting lost at Dame Farm’s A-Maize-ing corn maze in Johnston. It takes an hour to solve the four-acre maze, with hidden stations inside the maze that add to the challenge. Weekends in the fall, there are also wagon rides and a food truck serving up delicious seasonal treats.

Get a taste of the fall at Steere Orchard in Greenville. They offer a farmer’s market and free hayrides, along with pick-your-own apples at one of the state’s biggest orchards. Steere even grows the RI Greening, which is the state’s official apple.

The Farmer’s Daughter in South Kingstown is a farm stand and garden center that also offers seasonal craft events like fall wreath and terrarium classes. Their Harvest Festival, which happens every weekend from September 23 to October 29, offers tons of fun activities: scavenger hunts, pony rides, pumpkin slingshots and bowling, a corn maze, a barrel train ride and antique tractors, scarecrow making, costume contests and furry friends. Who says life on the farm is hard work? It sounds like all fun and games.

Take a step back in time at Festival Farm in Hope Valley, which promises “family fun like it used to be.” Kids can take a pony ride or a hayride pulled by an antique tractor. After, the petting zoo lets you get up close and personal with alpacas, sheep, pygmy goats, an emu and pheasants. The Yankee Pantry offers jams and jellies, as well as baking mixes and fall decor items. Sip a hot cider while you pick out your fall pumpkins and gourds.

Once you get to Manfredi Farms in Westerly, you might not want to leave. The expansive gardens are gorgeous, the farm stand is lush with seasonal bounty, the baked goods are fresh from the oven. There are animals to pet and maybe slip a veggie to (after you’ve picked your own green vegetables, cut flowers and pumpkins). But what’s going to keep you there? Farmer’s golf. That’s right: a modified ten-hole golf game, played with wooden clubs and larger balls, on farmland itself, meaning that all of the obstacles and hazards – like tall grass, plants, and maybe a cow or two – are part of the game.

Picking pumpkins is one thing, but shooting a corn cannon? That’s on a whole other level. Clark Farms in South Kingstown has fun for days at their Fall Festival, happening weekends in September and October. Think a giant straw maze, hayrides, go-karts, a petting zoo, an Old West ghost town, a treasure mine and a 30-foot mountain slide.

Escobar’s Highland Farm in Portsmouth has different fall fun happening every weekend, from a Harry Potter day to a Super Heroes Day, Grandparents Day and Military Appreciation Weekend. A Pumpkin Festival celebrates the opening of the Pick-your-own pumpkin patch, and there’s an old fashioned Halloween Party on the weekend before the holiday. That’s in addition to hayrides and the giant 8-acre corn maze.

The Pumpkin Palooza at Frerichs Farm in Warren, happening on weekends September 9–October 29, offers lots more fun for kids and grown-ups: pumpkin painting, pumpkin carriage rides, a play-scale Western town, make-your-own scarecrows, a ride-on dragon and witch broom, and a Charlie Brown pumpkin patch. Frerichs also hosts a Good Old Days party, which is a day of good old-fashioned bluegrass music, children’s games, a beer tent and a clam bake, with proceeds going to the Autism Project’s East Bay Support Center.



Coggeshall Farm Museum in Bristol is a living history museum that preserves Early American home, cooking and farmways. September 16 and 17, they’re celebrating their 44th annual Harvest Fair, which will have friendly competitions, live music, dancing, hayrides and pony rides, and handcrafted items from local vendors.

Middletown’s Sweet Berry Farm spans 100 acres. The centerpiece: a farm market and cafe that sells its own seasonal fruits, veggies, cut flowers, premium ice cream, and a selection of gourmet and specialty foods. Though named for its strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries, the farm offers a broader selection of pick-your-own items, including apples, peaches, pumpkins and – later in the season – Christmas trees.

Two words: goat yoga. That’s right, Simmons Organic Farm in Middletown offers this new yoga trend, which is exactly what it sounds like: an outdoor yoga class surrounded by baby goats. The farm, which specializes in growing traditional and heirloom produce, is also known for its farm stand, a community-supported agriculture program (CSA) and a petting zoo, offering visitors a chance to get up close with goats, lambs, a pony and more. Simmons Farm offers fresh eggs, grass-fed beef, pork, and its own cheeses, made fresh daily using the farm’s own goat and cow milk.

Operated by the Mount Hope Trust, Mount Hope Farm is a national historic site housed on 127 acres of land in Bristol and includes a year-round farmers market, a 12-room bed-and-breakfast and a Civil War–era barn you can rent for functions like weddings. Also on the property are hiking trails, an education center, and farm animals (sheep, chickens, goats, donkeys, oh my!).

Salisbury Farm, Pippin Orchard, Confreda Farm’s Fall Fest, Dame Farm, Steere Orchard, The Farmer’s Daughter, Festival Farm, Manfredi Farms, clark farms, Escobar’s Highland Farm, Frerichs Farm, Coggeshall Farm Museum, Sweet Berry Farm, Simmons Organic Farm, mount hope farm

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