By AnnaBelle Boone / The Jambar
Even though temperatures are still in the 80s and 90s, Youngstown State University students and the community can enjoy fall activities at White House Fruit Farm’s Fall Harvest Weekends.
The festival runs every Saturday and Sunday from Sept. 7 until Oct. 27. The farm will then close until Nov. 4, before reopening for various Christmas and winter-related activities. Some of these activities include the Gift Barn being changed into the Winter Gift Barn, bonfires and taking a horse-drawn wagon through the orchard.
Other fall-related activities students and families can enjoy include horse-drawn wagons, fresh-picked apples and a newly renovated children’s play area that includes pony rides and a gift barn. The farm also has pumpkins, mums and doughnuts for sale.
Typically on Sundays, there are estimated to be over 500 cars in the parking lot, according to a parking attendant, Cole Barber. Sundays are usually the most crowded day to attend.
Karen Sisco, a member of the White House team, confirmed that the Fall Harvest Fest is a large draw for the community.
“For our fall activities on Saturday and Sunday, we typically have thousands of people,” Sisco said.
Sisco is the manager of the Gift Barn. The Gift Barn, according to whitehousefruitfarm.com, has 7,000 square feet of curated gifts and items. Most of the items currently in the store are fall themed, such as pumpkins, cornstalks, straw or Halloween decorations.
“We’ve been doing Fall Fest as long as we’ve had the farm,” Sisco said. “When we saw the harvest was coming in, we saw that as a way to share with the community.”
Sisco said that as a family-owned farm, White House prides itself on community interaction.
“We love to see that extended to our community…People love to come out as the weather gets cooler…it gives the community a place to come and gather with open air, enjoying the harvest,” Sisco said.
One of the major attractions for White House is its doughnuts. During fall weekends, the demand is so high for doughnuts that the normal menu of 36 flavors is cut to eight.
The Express Donut Sales store is located in a renovated cold storage building. On Saturdays and Sundays until Oct. 27, customers can buy doughnuts at the store until it’s sold out.
Another unique attraction that White House offers is the Budgie Barn. Open Friday, Saturday and Sunday during the fall season, guests can feed parakeets, also known as budgies.
Another fun activity at Fall Fest is being able to pick your own apples or flowers. This activity is offered every day, from Sunday through Saturday, barring weather. Fall Harvest weekends also offer music on the lawn on Saturdays and Sundays.
Even as temperatures remain warm, don’t miss out on all the fall fun at White House Farms, from now until Oct. 27.