Ideal Farm and Garden Center At A Glance...
- One low-priced ticket covers the hayride up to the pumpkin patch and the corn maze.
- The farm store is the old bull barn of what was once the world's largest purebred Golden Guernsey herd.
- Apple cider donuts, pies and breads are baked fresh every day.
- The family still raises its own Aberdeen Angus beef, sold in the farm store.
- Todays Sunrise: , Sunset:
- New Jersey Skylands Region Sussex County
About Ideal Farm and Garden Center
Ideal Farm and Garden Center sits at Ross' Corner on Route 15 in Lafayette, across from Wawa and Skylands Stadium, on a 200-acre farm the same family has worked since 1910. It calls itself a four-season farm, and the farm store, set in the old bull barn of the family's famous Guernsey dairy, has something in every season: fresh produce, the farm's own Angus beef and other meats, baked goods, and a curated mix of treats, vintage-inspired finds and seasonal gifts for the home.
The bakery makes apple cider donuts, pies, tea breads and artisan breads fresh daily. The garden center carries field-grown mums, perennials and shrubs, corn stalks and hay and straw bales, plus a gift shop. The farm keeps a Christmas season too; the business itself began with Christmas trees sold on the family's lawn in 1983.
Fall is the busiest season. On fall weekends and Friday afternoons, a hayride carries you up to the pumpkin patch to pick your own, and the same ticket gets you into the corn maze. On weekdays in October the farm hosts school and group field trips, and in early October it holds Maker Fest, a weekend of local makers, artists and crafters.
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Amenities:
- Parking Lot(s)
Farming:- Corn Maze
- Farm Market
- Hay Rides
- Pick Your Own
- Pumpkin Picking
Contact / Location
A Brief History
The family's roots in Sussex County go back to 1910, when Jacob Tanis Sr., a young Dutch immigrant who had started out in Paterson selling extra milk from the family cow, settled in these hills. He went on to build what the farm calls the world's largest purebred Golden Guernsey herd, 2,000 head on more than 3,400 acres, and Ideal Guernsey Cattle became known across the dairy industry. In the 1960s his son, also named Jacob, moved the farm from dairy to a prize-winning Aberdeen Angus herd and beef, which the farm still raises today.
In 1983 Jan Tanis-Jorritsma began selling Christmas trees on her parents' lawn, and the next year she and her husband, Ben Jorritsma, opened the garden center on land inherited from Jacob Tanis. It started as a small produce stand at Ross' Corner and soon moved to its current spot, the old bull barn of the Guernsey operation. Jan and Ben, their sons Benjamin and Kyle, and Kyle's wife, Lindsey, now run the fourth-generation farm.
Special / Seasonal Events
Hayrides and pumpkin picking run each fall from late September through October: a hayride takes you up to the pumpkin patch, where you pick your own, and the ticket also covers the corn maze. For 2026, hayrides began Saturday, September 26, and run Fridays 4 to 6 PM, Saturdays and Sundays 11 AM to 5 PM, and Columbus Day 11 AM to 5 PM.
Maker Fest 2026 brings makers, artists, crafters and creators to the farm on Saturday, October 3 and Sunday, October 4. School and group field trips are offered Monday through Friday in October.
Admission & Guidelines
For 2026, a hayride ticket is $3. It includes the ride up to the pumpkin patch and admission to the corn maze; children 2 and under ride free, and pumpkins are paid for separately. School and group trips run Monday through Friday and cost $12 per person for 2026, covering a hayride and a sugar pumpkin, apple cider, a donut and an apple, and the hay maze. Call 973-579-3893 to reserve a group trip.
Hours / Season of Operation
The farm store is open daily, 9 AM to 5 PM, with hours that change seasonally. Hayrides and pumpkin picking run on fall weekends from late September through October, Fridays 4 to 6 PM and Saturdays and Sundays 11 AM to 5 PM, plus Columbus Day. Group field trips are weekdays in October, by reservation.
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Nearby Places
Skylands Stadium is right across Route 15 at Ross' Corner, and Swartswood State Park and Kittatinny Valley State Park are both a short drive away.
Here are 10 places near Ideal Farm and Garden Center
- Ideal Farm and Garden Center (~0 miles)
- Skylands Stadium (~0 miles)
- Skylands Stadium (Sussex County Miners) (~1 miles)
- Blackburn Garden Center Sunflower Maze (~1 miles)
- Sussex County Fairgrounds (~1 miles)
- Beaver Hill Campground (closed) (~5 miles)
- Kymer's Camping Resort (~5 miles)
- Sussex Branch Trail (~5 miles)
- Harmony Ridge Farm and Campground (~5 miles)
- Lentini Farms (~6 miles)
- Sterling Hill Mining Museum (~6 miles)
- Space Farms Zoo & Museum (~6 miles)
Lafayette, New Jersey 07848