Dries Orchards, Inc. in Northumberland County is a PA Preferred® member offering year-round delights and leading the pack with its sustainability efforts. Dries Orchards is known for its fresh fruit like apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, cherries and grapes grown on-premise. You’ll also find fresh and tasty seasonal items at its store location like berries all summer long, fresh-pressed cider, and homemade jams as well as family-friendly U-pick events that bring the community together.
Dries’ multifaceted approach to sustainability practices are demonstrated through carefully chosen materials, machinery, processes and operations. These ongoing efforts yield significant gains in water conservation and reduction of energy consumption, carbon emissions, soil erosion, chemical sprays, cardboard waste and food waste.
Dries Orchards, Inc. is a proud member of the PA Preferred program. Staff member Christine Bijl says, “PA Preferred means to me that, when people pick up a bottle of cider, they know that we are local, that we take the time to make sure that we are certified, and that we love our state. I take pride in working for a company that wants to continue to cultivate relationships to grow our business and support other local companies and farms.”
Read our Q&A with Bijl to learn more about Dries Orchards, Inc.:
PA Eats: What do you love about what you do?
Christine Bijl: I love the fact that I never arrive at the end of my learning. I’m constantly learning something about the trees, the fruit, the maintenance that I never knew. It’s fascinating for me, someone who did not grow up around an orchard, to have this opportunity and to learn from the owners who have been doing this for decades. Every time I work, I learn something new about a fruit that we grow.
What are your most popular products and produce?
Some of our most popular products are cherries, peaches and apples. In the late spring we have cherries. These cherries are the right mix of tart and sweet and delicious. They are popular for pies. People love the fact that we are one of the few orchards that have donut peaches and, let me tell you, if you’ve never had one, TRY one. Our peaches are juicy and sweet, they have a good peachy flavor. They are a favorite for canning. In the fall our best seller is, of course, apples because that is our main fruit that we grow. We have a wide variety and once people know it’s apple season, they come buying by the bushel.
What sets your orchard apart?
I love the orchards because you get to be a part of something special. We provide fruit, fresh from our trees, directly to the consumer. There’s no processing, waiting or having to ship. We pick it and, the next day, it’s available to the consumer. We hand pick everything! Every fruit is hand picked, knowing that we take pride in picking each fruit and making sure the customer gets the best. We love our jobs and take pride in working with these trees to get the best crop. We love our customers because without them we would not be able to stay afloat. Customers spread the word and then we get to meet new people and learn how they found out about us. It’s amazing to hear stories of how kids move away and, when their parents go down to visit, they have to stop by the orchards to pick up fresh fruit because the child doesn’t have access to where they reside. It’s amazing!
You can find Dries Orchards‘ array of fresh fruit and products at its store location Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 506 W. Mountain Rd., Paxinos; (570) 286-6723.
This series was created in collaboration with PA Preferred.
PA Preferred® is Pennsylvania’s statewide branding program that promotes locally grown and processed food and other agricultural products.
- Feature and apple photos: Dries Orchards, Inc.
- Sign photo: Alexandra Whitney Photography
