A small, no-spray family farm about 20 miles north of Tucson selling u-pick apples by the pound at $2.99/lb — genuinely local-scale, so a given morning's fruit can sell out before the posted closing time.
u-pick apples sold by the pound, $2.99/lb
Howard’s Orchard is listed at 4101 E Pinal St, with a Tucson, AZ 85739 mailing address, in the Catalina area of Pima County about 20 miles north of downtown Tucson. The record describes it as a small, no-spray family farm — closer to a local tradition for nearby apple picking than a big agritourism destination. There’s no corn maze, no festival, no bakery mentioned; the research notes describe it plainly as orchard rows plus a few ducks, chickens, and horses.
Hours on file are Thursday through Saturday, 7am to 1pm — a tighter and earlier window than most orchards in this file, which tend to run later into the afternoon. U-pick apples are sold by the pound at $2.99/lb, which is the only confirmed price anywhere in this record. That per-pound structure is worth noting on its own: it means the cost scales directly with however much you pick, rather than a flat bag or basket fee some other orchards charge.
The research notes are specific about a real risk here: because the farm operates at genuinely small scale, a given morning’s apples can sell out before the posted 1pm closing time. That’s a different kind of warning than the generic “hours may vary” language common elsewhere in this file — it’s a direct statement that showing up late in the window carries real odds of finding picked-over or empty rows. The standard local advice, per the record, is to check the farm’s Facebook page or call 520-276-6979 the same week you’re planning to visit, rather than relying on the posted hours alone.
No season_start or season_end date appears in the record, so there’s nothing here to tell you which months the apples are actually available within that Thursday-Saturday window. Given the sell-out pattern described, timing your visit for earlier in the week’s run (Thursday morning rather than Saturday afternoon) may improve your odds, though that’s inference on top of the record rather than something it states directly.
Howard’s Orchard also grows peaches, pears, grapefruit, and pecans according to the research notes, and keeps farm animals — ducks, chickens, and horses are named specifically. That mix suggests a diversified small farm rather than a single-crop apple operation, which may make it worth a stop even outside peak apple weeks if other produce happens to be ready. None of that secondary produce has pricing attached in the record, though, so treat it as available-but-unpriced information.
Payment is flexible: the record confirms cash, check, or card are all accepted, which is a small but genuinely useful detail for a small farm where card readers aren’t always guaranteed.
No apple variety names made it into this record — the field is empty. No accessibility, parking, or crowd information is included either, and no website could be read directly (howardsorchard.com exists but returned no readable content during research), so nothing here carries site-level confirmation. Everything is sourced from TikTok posts, Yelp, and a u-pick farm directory rather than the orchard’s own current materials.
Howard’s Orchard is a real, small-scale, no-spray farm north of Tucson with a genuinely narrow window — three mornings a week, 7am to 1pm — and a straightforward per-pound u-pick price of $2.99/lb. The record’s own research notes flag the sell-out risk plainly, so the honest plan is to check Facebook or call 520-276-6979 close to your visit date rather than assuming the posted hours guarantee apples will still be on the trees when you arrive.
The record gives no season_start or season_end date. Hours are listed as Thursday through Saturday, 7am-1pm, but because it's small-batch, checking their Facebook page or calling the same week you plan to visit is the standard local advice in the record's research notes.
you're planning to arrive right at closing time — the record notes apples can sell out fast on a given morning.
The record lists $2.99 per pound for u-pick apples, which is the only pricing on file.
Thursday through Saturday, 7am to 1pm, per the record — no Sunday through Wednesday hours are listed.
Not stated in the record — no variety list was found, only that u-pick apples are the primary listed product.
Yes — the record's research notes list peaches, pears, grapefruit, and pecans, alongside farm animals including ducks, chickens, and horses.
The record describes it as a 'no-spray' farm, per its tags and research notes, though no formal organic certification is mentioned.
2026 dates had not been published when we last checked. In past seasons it has run: Thu-Sat. Check with the orchard before driving out.
Prices start at $2.99. u-pick apples sold by the pound, $2.99/lb
Yes — it's a pick-your-own orchard.
4101 E Pinal St, Tucson, AZ 85739, in Pima County. It is one of 1 orchards we track in Tucson / Catalina.
Map pin is set to the town centre. Navigate to the street address above, not the pin.
howardsorchard.com
Checked September 2026.