Maryland orchard owner says pickings are slim for pick-your-own apples this season

Maryland Matters · WTOP News · September 4, 2026

Visitors pick apples at Butler's Orchard in 2024, when the pickings were more robust. A late spring freeze this year affected a number of crops, including apples. ( Photo by Christophe Paul/USDA) By Kate Ryan

The effects of April’s catastrophic freeze are showing up at local orchards, where the chance to pick your own apples is slim this year.

In a recent social media post for Butler’s Orchard in Germantown, Tyler Butler offers what he calls an “apple crop update for 2026.” He explains that, thanks to a late spring sudden freeze, with overnight temperatures that hit 24 degrees for a prolonged period of time, some of their apple varieties, like Fuji apples, were nearly wiped out.

That means fewer apples to pick this fall and a shortened window for the opportunity. “Us farmers are working hard,” said Butler, “but we can’t put apples back on the tree.”

Butler explained that while apple-picking season will start Saturday, what’s available on the trees is very limited. Referring to what would typically be a season of apple picking, Butler said, “We don’t expect it to go into Labor Day, on the Monday,” he said. “It’s kind of a first-come-first-served for apple picking.”

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But there won’t be a shortage of “pre-picked” apples, he added.

“We’ve got lots of apples in the farm market, pre-picked for you,” Butler said. Like many other orchards, Butler’s worked with regional farms that were less affected by April’s cold snap, and he said there will be an abundant supply of a variety of apples — though pre-picked — throughout the fall.

Because of the impact on the volume of this year’s apple crop, Butler said customers may find prices for apples have risen.

Butler’s Orchard also owns Doc Waters Cidery, and because the spring freeze limited the orchard’s crop, Butler told WTOP cider prices will rise significantly.

“When you grow your own, it really helps bring the cost down,” but trying to purchase apples so the farm can produce cider drives up the cost.

While apple picking may be limited to this weekend, Butler said, people can “come and enjoy all things fall.”

“There’s going to be your favorite apple cider donuts in our farm market,” he said. “They, of course, were not affected by the frost.”

And he said, another fall draw, pumpkins, will be available. “The pumpkins with all this rain, have had a pretty good growing season, so we’re going to have a great selection” for the upcoming pumpkin festival at the end of the month.

– As part of Maryland Matters’ content sharing agreement with WTOP, we feature this article from Kate Ryan. Click here for the WTOP News website.

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