Agritourism & Farm Experiences near Winterset, IA

Winterset

The Pumpkin Ranch sits on Hiatt Apple Trail in Winterset, the Madison County seat famous for its covered bridges and as John Wayne's birthplace. Its address alone suggests an apple orchard alongside the fall pumpkin patch.

Adel

Patch's Pumpkins & Honey Farm combines a fall pumpkin patch with honey production on L Lane outside Adel, in the Raccoon River valley west of Des Moines. The pairing of pumpkins and hives is uncommon among Iowa's agritourism farms.

Earlham

TimberPine is an employee-owned landscaping company and plant nursery that's served the Des Moines area from its Earlham grounds for more than 20 years. The business covers landscape design, tree and turf care, irrigation installation, and retaining walls rather than u-pick or farm-stand sales — a nursery and contracting operation, not a seasonal attraction, despite showing up on agritourism lists.

Winterset

Burr Oak Farms runs a u-pick orchard outside Winterset — Madison County's covered-bridge country — growing apples, pears, cherries, blackberries, and stone fruit like peaches, plums, and nectarines across a summer-through-fall season. An on-site bakery rounds out the visit for families making the drive from Des Moines.

Cumming

Howell's Greenhouse and Pumpkin Patch sits 25 miles south of Des Moines off I-35, with an 8-acre corn maze as the anchor and a long list of add-ons: wagon rides, a paintball range, pedal go-karts, a corn cannon, and goat cuddling during the season's first few weekends. The farm stand sells kettle corn, caramel apples, and cider donuts. It runs daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through the end of October.

Saint Charles

Two Saints Winery & Vineyards is a winery and vineyard operation in Saint Charles, south of Des Moines in Madison County's rolling hill country.

Prole

Eden Ridge Acres sells raw milk and honey from A2/A2 registered Jersey cows, grass-fed on pasture and supplemented with GMO-free sprouted grain. The family farm near Prole has run since 2017, adding chemical-free produce, pastured poultry and eggs, and farm-made teas and jams alongside the dairy program. Milk moves through cow-share arrangements rather than a retail counter, standard practice for raw milk in Iowa.

Adel

Penoach Winery is a small vineyard and winery west of Des Moines in Adel, growing cold-hardy grape varieties bred for Iowa winters.

Cumming

Ted's Garden Center is on Cumming Avenue in Cumming, a small Warren County town just south of Des Moines along the Raccoon River Valley Trail. It's a garden center serving the metro's southern suburbs.

Adel

Berry Fresh Farms grows raspberries and strawberries for u-pick visitors just outside Adel, west of Des Moines. The farm is described in regional directories as focused on sustainable growing and getting fruit from the row to the customer the same day it's picked. No confirmed hours or contact channel turned up, so check locally before visiting.

Urbandale

Spread across 500 acres in the Des Moines suburb of Urbandale, Living History Farms walks visitors through three centuries of Iowa agriculture — an 1700 Ioway farm, an 1850 pioneer farm, and a 1900 horse-powered farm — plus a reconstructed 1875 townsite, all staffed by costumed interpreters.

Indianola

The Garden Barn sells plants as its main focus out of a post-and-beam barn built in 1886 on Highway G24 outside Indianola, rounding out the inventory with gifts, antiques, garden art, wreaths, and wind chimes. A display garden and gazebo sit alongside the shop. It's open seasonally, April through December, and welcomes groups by arrangement.

Osceola

Harvest Barn sits along U.S. Highway 34 outside Osceola, in Clarke County south of Des Moines. No independent listing describes current products or hours, so a call ahead is the surest way to confirm what's on offer.

Des Moines

Quilted Gardens and Nursery in Des Moines carries both common bedding plants and less typical varieties, backed by landscape design and installation services. The nursery's inventory changes throughout the season, and they keep a Facebook page updated as new stock arrives. Customers can also order through an online store for local pickup, in addition to shopping the retail lot in person.

Des Moines

The Iowa State Fair runs each August at the fairgrounds on East Grand Avenue in Des Moines, drawing more than a million visitors over eleven days. It's one of the oldest and largest agricultural and industrial expositions in the country, built around livestock competitions, commodity displays, and the state's 4-H and FFA programs alongside midway rides and concerts.