A Warren County farm operating since 1906, but its own site states plainly there is no apple picking for fall 2026 due to crop conditions — visit for the farm market and other activities this year, not the apples.
Donaldson Farms has operated in Hackettstown, in Warren County, since 1906, and in a typical year it’s known for pick-your-own apples alongside strawberries and raspberries. This year is different. The farm’s own website states directly: “Due to crop conditions there will be no apple picking for fall 2026.” That’s about as unambiguous a statement as a farm can make, and it means anyone planning a trip specifically to pick apples here this season needs to look elsewhere.
The record doesn’t spell out the exact cause beyond the phrase “crop conditions,” but the timing and geography line up closely with a documented April 2026 cold snap that damaged fruit crops across New Jersey, serious enough that the state declared an agricultural emergency. Several other orchards in this same research — Battleview Orchards in Freehold and Johnson’s Corner Farm in Medford among them — have made similar public statements this year, specifically citing spring frost as the reason apple picking isn’t available. Donaldson Farms’ own wording is more general, but the pattern across the state makes it a reasonable inference, clearly labeled here as an inference rather than something the farm’s own page states outright.
It’s worth being precise about what this record is actually reporting: Donaldson Farms as a business is still operating. Its farm market keeps regular hours, Monday through Saturday 9am to 6pm and Sunday 9am to 5pm, and the farm normally runs strawberry and raspberry picking, farm tours, and other events beyond the apple orchard specifically. This is a case where documenting the season honestly means saying plainly that a well-known, long-established U-pick orchard has nothing to offer for one particular crop this year, rather than glossing over it or describing a typical season as if it were happening now.
If apple picking is the specific goal, Donaldson Farms should be crossed off the list for 2026 and revisited for the 2027 season, when crop conditions may have recovered. If a general farm-market stop is still of interest — for produce, for the farm’s history, or for whatever other seasonal activities might be running — the market itself remains open on its regular schedule. Calling 908-852-9122 ahead of a visit is still worthwhile to confirm what’s currently available, since a record like this one can capture a single statement from a farm’s website but can’t track every detail of day-to-day operations.
Donaldson Farms is at 358 Allen Road in Hackettstown, in Warren County’s Skylands region. The coordinates on file are Hackettstown town-center estimates rather than a geocode of the Allen Road address.
This is one of the clearer examples in this research of a well-established orchard being directly upfront about a bad year: Donaldson Farms says outright there’s no apple picking in 2026 because of crop conditions, almost certainly tied to the spring frost that hit orchards across New Jersey. The farm market itself remains open on its usual schedule, but anyone hoping to pick apples here this fall should plan on a different orchard this season and check back for 2027.
Not applicable for apple picking in 2026. The farm market itself keeps regular hours: Monday-Saturday 9am-6pm, Sunday 9am-5pm.
You're specifically planning a trip to pick apples in 2026 — this farm's own site says that isn't happening this year.
No. The farm's own site states, 'Due to crop conditions there will be no apple picking for fall 2026.'
The record attributes this to crop conditions, which is almost certainly connected to the April 2026 frost that damaged fruit crops across New Jersey and prompted a statewide agricultural emergency declaration. The farm's own statement doesn't spell out the specific cause beyond 'crop conditions.'
Monday through Saturday, 9am-6pm, and Sunday 9am-5pm.
Yes — the research notes describe a long-running operation normally offering pick-your-own strawberries and raspberries alongside apples, plus farm tours and events, so the farm itself isn't closed, just without apple picking this season.
Given that this is described as a 2026-specific crop-condition issue rather than a permanent closure of the PYO program, it's reasonable to check again for the 2027 season.
2026 dates had not been published when we last checked. In past seasons it has run: Mon-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9am-5pm (farm market hours). Check with the orchard before driving out.
Pricing was not published when we last checked.
The orchard hadn't stated this clearly when we last checked — confirm before driving out.
358 Allen Road, Hackettstown, NJ 07840, in Warren County. It is one of 4 orchards we track in Skylands.
We track 4 orchards in Skylands, 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 4 orchards we track in Skylands had. Treat any date you see elsewhere as last year's until the orchard confirms it.
There are 3 other orchards we track in Warren County. All Skylands orchards →
Map pin is set to the town centre. Navigate to the street address above, not the pin.
donaldsonfarms.net
Checked September 2026.