Best Places for Apple Picking and Pumpkin Picking for October in Illinois and Wisconsin

Oct 3, 2025

October is a month like no other. There’s just something magical about when those leaves start to change, the air begins to take on a crisp chill, and that golden hour sunshine begins to glimmer. It just makes you want to get out there and pick some apples and pumpkins and bake a pie or two…or twenty, who’s counting? There’s just something about fall that makes us feel at home!

It’s fitting that we’re associating the fall with a feeling of home, since farmers right here in Illinois grow more pumpkins than anywhere else in the world! So much so, in fact, that Morton, Illinois is considered the Pumpkin Capital of the World – 85% of the global supply of canned pumpkin is processed there thanks to Libby’s production plant! Illinois makes up to 90-95% of the pumpkin crop that’s used for processing.

Apples run in close second to pumpkins as one of the state’s specialty crops. Fun fact: the GoldRush Apple which is revered for its perfectly balanced sweet-tart flavor and unmatched crisp bite was cultivated right here in partnership with University of Illinois, Rutgers University, and Purdue University. Apples are a distinct part of our agricultural heritage here, especially thanks to farmers and preservationists like Al Westerman, who has amassed an heirloom orchard with more than 120 types of apples!

Today on the blog, we’re sharing our picks for some of the top places you can visit with your friends and family to do a little apple picking and pumpkin picking this season:

Did you know there are also several pumpkin and apple festivals happening across the state as well? Check them out below:

Does your family have a favorite apple orchard or pumpkin picking patch in Illinois or Wisconsin? Let us know in the comments and we may feature your suggestion in a future post!