Primarily a berry farm that opens for fall apple and pumpkin picking via hayrack ride — a genuine option near Nevada, but apples here are a secondary add-on, not the main event.
Berry Patch Farm sits at 62785 280th Street near Nevada, Story County, and the record is clear about what this operation actually is: primarily a berry farm, growing blueberries, raspberries, tart cherries, gooseberries, and strawberries, with apple and pumpkin picking added on as a fall activity. Hours are confirmed as 8am-6pm, Monday through Saturday — a six-day-a-week schedule that’s more generous than several weekend-only orchards in this research batch, even if the underlying business here isn’t apple-first. Phone is 515-382-5138.
Fall apple and pumpkin picking happens via hayrack ride, per the record, and the farm also runs a country store and sells honey. No apple varieties are named anywhere in the record, and no u-pick pricing is posted.
The most useful thing this record does is set accurate expectations: Berry Patch Farm’s core identity, based on its own site, is a summer berry operation with a genuinely wide crop list — five different berry and stone-fruit types. Apples show up specifically as a fall extension of that business, reached the same way pumpkins are, via a hayrack ride out to the picking area. That’s a meaningfully different setup than a dedicated apple orchard that’s spent the season managing tree varieties for a long fall picking window. It likely means fewer apple trees, a narrower variety spread, and possibly a shorter picking window tied to whatever ripens during the farm’s fall hayrack season — none of which is confirmed one way or the other in the record, but it’s a reasonable inference from how the farm describes itself.
Both apples and pumpkins are reached by hayrack ride here, which suggests a single fall picking excursion covers both crops rather than requiring a separate trip or a different part of the property for each. For a family wanting an efficient one-stop outing that combines apple picking, pumpkin picking, and a stop at a country store selling local honey, that’s a reasonably efficient setup — though again, the record doesn’t specify whether the hayrack runs on a schedule, by request, or continuously through the day.
The clearest gap is apple variety information — nothing is named, so there’s no way to know from this record whether the farm grows early, mid, or late-season apples, or just a small planting of whatever’s convenient alongside the berries. Pricing for u-pick apples (or the hayrack ride itself) isn’t posted. And because no dated 2026 season announcement was found, a visitor planning specifically around apple availability should call ahead to confirm the fall hayrack rides and apple picking are actually running before making the trip, rather than assuming it based on the general fall-activity description.
Berry Patch Farm is a solid option for anyone who wants apple picking as part of a broader farm visit that also includes berries, a hayrack ride, honey, and a country store — but it isn’t the record to check for a wide apple variety selection or confirmed pricing. Anyone whose main goal is apple picking specifically should call 515-382-5138 first to confirm the fall apple program is active and worth the drive, since this farm’s own description frames apples as a secondary, seasonal add-on rather than its primary business.
Not stated in the record with specific dates. No dated 2026 season announcement was found, so confirm current apple-picking status directly before visiting for that purpose.
apples are your main goal and you want a wide variety selection — this is a berry farm first, with apples as a smaller fall addition.
No. The record describes it as primarily a berry farm (blueberries, raspberries, tart cherries, gooseberries, strawberries) that also opens its orchard for fall apple and pumpkin picking via hayrack ride.
8am-6pm, Monday through Saturday.
Not stated in the record. No varieties are named.
Via hayrack ride, per the record, alongside pumpkin picking.
Yes, along with honey sales, per the record.
2026 dates had not been published when we last checked. In past seasons it has run: Mon-Sat. Check with the orchard before driving out.
Pricing was not published when we last checked.
Yes — it's a pick-your-own orchard.
62785 280th Street, Nevada, IA 50201, in Story County. It is one of 3 orchards we track in Central Iowa.
We track 3 orchards in Central Iowa, 3 of which let you pick your own apples. The orchard has not published a starting price, so it cannot be compared on cost — call before you budget.
One caveat worth repeating: this orchard had not published its 2026 dates when we last checked, while 1 of the 3 orchards we track in Central Iowa had. Treat any date you see elsewhere as last year's until the orchard confirms it.
There are 2 other orchards we track in Story County. All Central Iowa orchards →
Map pin is set to the town centre. Navigate to the street address above, not the pin.
berrypatchfarm.com
Checked September 2026.