Terhune Orchards

Terhune Orchards At A Glance...

• More than 30 fall activities come with Fall Family Fun Weekends admission, from the corn maze and hay bale maze to wagon rides, pedal tractors and duck races.
• Sip a glass of wine made from the farm's own grapes and fruit in a 100-year-old apple orchard.
• Pick your own from April tulips through strawberries, blueberries and peaches to October pumpkins.
• A mile-long Farm Trail winds past the cherry orchard and the pond and into the woods, where turtles and blue herons are regulars.
• Sheep, goats, donkeys, ducks, geese and chickens live in the barnyard all year.
• Todays Sunrise: 7:11 am,   Sunset: 6:16 pm  
• New Jersey Delaware River Region Mercer County

• Activities:

  • Walking

  Amenities:

  • Restrooms/Bathrooms
  • Parking Lot(s)

  Trails:

  • Self Guided / Nature trail

  Farming:

  • Apple Picking
  • Blueberry Picking
  • Corn Maze
  • Farm Market
  • Hay Rides
  • Pick Your Own
  • Pumpkin Picking
  • Strawberry Picking

  Wining & Dining:

  • Winery / Vineyard

  Attractions:

  • Zoo / Aquarium / Petting Zoo / Animals
  • Animals

  Rules/Regulations:

  • Dogs Not Permitted

Contact / Location

A Brief History

Gary and Pam Mount bought Terhune Orchards in 1975, after three years in the Peace Corps in Micronesia. The farm was then 55 acres of apple and peach trees, a few pear trees and a 1930s farm store called The Apple House, where apples and cider were sold in September and October. The Terhune family had owned it for two generations, and the Mounts, new to farming, kept the established Terhune name.

In 1985 they bought the Van Kirk Road orchard and planted apple trees with pick your own in mind. Over the following decades the farm grew into a diversified 250-acre operation with dozens of crops, an expanded farm store, education programs and a winery: the vineyard was first planted in 2003, opened to the public in 2010, and has grown to almost 10 acres of vines. Gary was named National Apple Grower of the Year in 2005 by American Fruit Grower magazine, the family was honored as Vegetable Grower of the Year in 2018, and Terhune's Blueberry Wine won the Governor's Cup for best fruit wine at the New Jersey Wine Competition. Gary Mount died in December 2025, and the Mount family continues to run the farm.

Programs / Education

Read and Pick pairs stories for young children with a hands-on farm activity, and Read and Explore carries the idea into the winter months; both need registration. Children ages 7 to 12 can spend a week at summer camp on the working farm, harvesting crops and doing crafts and games. The farm also hosts school field trips, guided farm tours, birthday parties and corporate and private events.

Trail & Path Info

The Farm Trail Discovery Walk starts at the hay barn next to the pasture and meanders for about one mile, past the cherry orchard and the large pond, along the edge of a meadow and then through evergreen and deciduous forest. Different wildflowers bloom every few weeks. Watch for painted, snapping and box turtles, blue herons, frogs, pond fish and waterfowl, under beech, shagbark hickory, sweet gum, red maple, pin oak and white pine. The trail is open all year, whenever the farm store is open.

On fall weekends there is also a Wildflower Patch and a Pollinator Trail planted to support pollinators and the farm's soils.

Special / Seasonal Events

Fall Fun!

Celebrate fall at Terhune Orchards on Fall Family Fun Weekends, every Saturday and Sunday from mid-September through the first weekend of November, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., rain or shine. Admission covers more than 30 activities: the corn maze (expanded for 2026, with clues to find along the way), a hay bale maze and hay bale pyramid, wagon rides from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the barnyard of farm animals, pedal tractors, the hands-on discovery barn, the little tots farm store and junior mechanics shop, Barnyard Sports, duck races, a scavenger hunt and apple tastings. Children can paint their own pumpkin to bring home, and pony rides cost extra. Live music plays from noon to 4 p.m., by some of the most talented local artists in the area.

All Year

You will find many great events going on throughout the year, from Wassailing the Apple Trees and the Bunny Trail Spring Festival to Kite Day, the Strawberry Festival, the Blueberry Bash, the Flower Festival and Summer Fest, plus live music and wine tastings at the winery on weekends. To find specific events, please visit the Terhune Orchards calendar.

Tips and Tricks

Buy Fall Family Fun Weekend tickets online ahead of time: advance tickets cost $5 less than tickets bought on the day. Pets are not permitted at the farm or the pick-your-own apple orchard, picnics are not allowed and the whole farm is smoke free. Check the Pick Your Own schedule on the farm's site or call 609-924-2310 before a picking trip, and note that the apple orchard is on Van Kirk Road, not at the farm store.

Picnics / Lunches / Eating

Picnics are not allowed on the farm. On Fall Family Fun Weekends, Pam's Food Pavilion serves country fare such as pork sandwiches, hamburgers, homemade chili, cider donuts and fresh pie, along with apple cider slush and hand-scooped ice cream. The farm store has baked goods, cider and cider donuts all year.

Admission & Guidelines

Fall Family Fun Weekends are ticketed for the whole farm, the winery included. For 2026, general admission is $19.95 in advance or $24.95 on the day for anyone 3 and older, and children under 3 are free. Admission covers the music, wagon rides, barnyard, corn maze, hay bale maze, pumpkin painting, the nature, flower and pollinator trails, the Barnyard Sports barn, the pedal tractors and the children's games. It does not include picking, and pony rides, pumpkins, rubber duckies and food cost extra. Weekend picking of flowers, pumpkins and vegetables also needs an admission ticket. Parking is free.

Hours / Season of Operation

The farm store is open all year, every day, from 9 a.m., closing at 6 p.m. on weekdays. It closes early on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and is closed on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. The farm animals and the Farm Trail can be visited whenever the farm store is open. The winery is open Friday to Sunday afternoons from noon, and bottles are sold daily in the farm store.

Pick your own runs from April to October, crop by crop. Pumpkins and gourds are picked at the main farm on Cold Soil Road, while the pick-your-own apple orchard is a separate site at 13 Van Kirk Road, open in apple season only. Fall Family Fun Weekends run Saturdays and Sundays from mid-September through the first weekend of November, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; for 2026 that is September 12 through November 1. Weather changes what is ready to pick, so call the farm store at 609-924-2310 before you go.

Stay in the Princeton area for more: Princeton Battlefield State Park, Herrontown Woods Arboretum and Carnegie Lake are all in Princeton. For a second farm day, Howell Living History Farm is also in Mercer County.

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