Harvest Day supplies family entertainment

For the past 42 years, Pioneer Orchards in Jackson has celebrated the fall harvest with a day filled with activities for the entire family.

Harvest Day, held Saturday at Pioneer Orchards, centers on the apple. From cooking apple butter in copper kettles to using an antique press to make apple cider, the fruit is a centerpiece of the festival. Fresh apple pies were for sale, too, along with the cider and apple butter.

Stanley Beggs, owner of Pioneer Orchards, said Harvest Day has become an event people look forward to as a family event every year. "Now in our 42nd year, we are seeing a lot of third-generation families coming out. People who came here as children now come back to share this experience with their own kids and start their own traditions."

"The kids really enjoy the hay bale maze," Beggs said. The maze of more than 350 round bales was full of twists and turns and kept even the older children interested. A jungle maze was on another part of the

site.

There were other events designed for children, including horse rides, face painting, goats to feed and a king and queen contest.

Many crafts were also on display and available for purchase, from quilts and bags to blacksmith and leathersmith items made on site.

Now in its second year as part of the celebration, the chuck wagon supper event serves barbecue ribs and chicken as well as apple cobbler and Pioneer's own apple butter and Stanley Beggs' homemade bread. Attendees were able to donate to the American Cancer Society and the Shriners Hospital. The money from the king and queen contest earlier in the day also went to these charities. The Jamaican Christian Medical Mission and Job's Daughters were also represented.

"Historically, we see between two and three thousand people here during Harvest Day. We try to have something for everyone, from music and crafts to our traditional elements like the Pick Ur Own pumpkin patch," Beggs said.

The pumpkin hunt is a highlight of the day, where families can ride in either a covered wagon pulled by horses owned by Shannon McCullough or on flatbed trailers pulled by antique tractors out to the pumpkin patch to choose their pumpkins for the season. Families select their pumpkins and bring them back to the barn where they are weighed and purchased. Pumpkins as well as a wide selection of gourds and decorative plants were available at the barn.

"From watching the little ones get their first taste of apple butter to seeing old faces that have been coming since we started this, every year gets better and better," Beggs said. "We have a great crew of people who work hard to make it a success."