Shop > Our Producers > Hard To Come By Farm
Hard To Come By Farm specializes in growing apples, but also produces blackberries and raspberries in season. We are located in sunny Mill Bay at the south end of Telegraph Rd. We started the orchard in 1991 when we grafted 1000 trees and have been producing and marketing about 10-14 varieties of apples ever since. Our orchard is small, but with dwarf rootstalk we are able to grow a diversity of apples.
All our apples are tree-ripened and then handpicked and carefully boxed or bagged to avoid bruising. We have some heritage varieties like Gravenstein, Cox Orange Pippin, and Kings; older varieties including Macoun, Greensleeves, Macintosh, Summer Red, Akane, and Discovery; and newer tasty varieties such as Liberty, Elstar, and Jonagold. We pick early varieties starting in August and later season varieties until November, storing our apples on-site in our cold storage facility to keep them crisp and available until January.
You can find us in the orchard most days, mowing, thinning, pruning, fertilizing, and picking. We follow an integrated pest management program. This involves the application of sulfur for control of powdery mildew and apple scab, and use of pheremone strips to disrupt mating of coddling moth insects. These practices combined with careful monitoring of weather patterns and insect pest populations through trapping helps us reduce the need for chemical fungicide and insecticides. We only spray when absolutely necessary; when rain is predicted and therefore apple scab will spread, or when traps indicate a severe insect pest problem that can not be controlled by other means. Sprays (if required) are discontinued in June.
We are excited to be working with Cowichan Milk Company to bring our fruit to you!
-Wayne and Cindy Haddow
Thank you for checking out our products! Below is a list of products we carry - typically you will see "featured products" right away that we have on special, and then a category tree on the side to browse specific products. If you're not logged in yet, clicking "add to order" will cause you to be redirected to a login screen - we require that you setup a customer profile before you can actually order. Once you've setup a customer profile, you can easily add items to either your current week order or your "recurring items" order using the delivery options dropdown - here is a quick overview:
Please take the time to read this, it will make your ordering experience more fun!
- Choosing "one time only" tells the system a couple of things:
- If you already have an order generated for the current week (based on your recurring order) then choosing this option will tell the system you'd like the product this week. (of course, this assumes your delivery date hasn't passed already, and that your cut-off time for order changes hasn't passed already)
How do you tell if you have a current order for this week? When you click view/edit my order tab, you will see the products and table rows either have a white background (current week order) or a green background (recurring order items) - or it will say you have no order at all. The other way to easily tell is the header in the products listing on your order page will either say "Current order for 10/12/08" or it will say "Recurring order".
- If your delivery date has already passed this week, or your cut-off time for editing orders has passed, then choosing this option will add the item to your recurring order. The item will show up on your next week order, and then be dropped automatically from the recurring items you'd like to receive.
- If you already have an order generated for the current week (based on your recurring order) then choosing this option will tell the system you'd like the product this week. (of course, this assumes your delivery date hasn't passed already, and that your cut-off time for order changes hasn't passed already)
- Choosing "every week" tells the system:
- If you already have a current week order, that you'd like to add it to both the current week, and the recurring order items so that you continue to receive the product each week.
- If you do not have a current week order, or your order date or cut-off time has already passed, it simply adds it to your recurring order to be generated the next week, and will remain in your recurring order each week until you take it out.
- Choosing "every other week odd" or even (the current week is highlighted), will tell the system:
- If you already have a current week order, that you'd like to add it to both the current week, and the recurring order items so that you continue to receive the product on the week of your choosing.
- If you do not have a current week order, or your order date or cut-off time has already passed, it simply adds it to your recurring order to be generated the next week (depending on if next week is odd or even of course), and will remain in your recurring order until you take it out.
- Choosing "once per month" option will tell the system:
- If you already have a current week order, that you'd like to add it to both the current week, and the recurring order items so that you continue to receive the product once per month (on the first delivery of each month you will receive the product).
- If you do not have a current week order, or your order date or cut-off time has already passed, it simply adds it to your recurring order to be generated the next week (depending on if next week is the first order for you of the month), and will remain in your recurring order until you take it out.
When you click "add to order" you will get a confirmation that the item was added to your order - you can view the order summary at any time by clicking the "view/edit" order tab. Happy ordering!
Shop > Our Producers > Hard To Come By Farm
Hard To Come By Farm specializes in growing apples, but also produces blackberries and raspberries in season. We are located in sunny Mill Bay at the south end of Telegraph Rd. We started the orchard in 1991 when we grafted 1000 trees and have been producing and marketing about 10-14 varieties of apples ever since. Our orchard is small, but with dwarf rootstalk we are able to grow a diversity of apples.
All our apples are tree-ripened and then handpicked and carefully boxed or bagged to avoid bruising. We have some heritage varieties like Gravenstein, Cox Orange Pippin, and Kings; older varieties including Macoun, Greensleeves, Macintosh, Summer Red, Akane, and Discovery; and newer tasty varieties such as Liberty, Elstar, and Jonagold. We pick early varieties starting in August and later season varieties until November, storing our apples on-site in our cold storage facility to keep them crisp and available until January.
You can find us in the orchard most days, mowing, thinning, pruning, fertilizing, and picking. We follow an integrated pest management program. This involves the application of sulfur for control of powdery mildew and apple scab, and use of pheremone strips to disrupt mating of coddling moth insects. These practices combined with careful monitoring of weather patterns and insect pest populations through trapping helps us reduce the need for chemical fungicide and insecticides. We only spray when absolutely necessary; when rain is predicted and therefore apple scab will spread, or when traps indicate a severe insect pest problem that can not be controlled by other means. Sprays (if required) are discontinued in June.
We are excited to be working with Cowichan Milk Company to bring our fruit to you!
-Wayne and Cindy Haddow
Hard To Come By Farm
Hard To Come By Farm specializes in growing apples, but also produces blackberries and raspberries in season. We are located in sunny Mill Bay at the south end of Telegraph Rd. We started the orchard in 1991 when we grafted 1000 trees and have been producing and marketing about 10-14 varieties of apples ever since. Our orchard is small, but with dwarf rootstalk we are able to grow a diversity of apples.All our apples are tree-ripened and then handpicked and carefully boxed or bagged to avoid bruising. We have some heritage varieties like Gravenstein, Cox Orange Pippin, and Kings; older varieties including Macoun, Greensleeves, Macintosh, Summer Red, Akane, and Discovery; and newer tasty varieties such as Liberty, Elstar, and Jonagold. We pick early varieties starting in August and later season varieties until November, storing our apples on-site in our cold storage facility to keep them crisp and available until January.
You can find us in the orchard most days, mowing, thinning, pruning, fertilizing, and picking. We follow an integrated pest management program. This involves the application of sulfur for control of powdery mildew and apple scab, and use of pheremone strips to disrupt mating of coddling moth insects. These practices combined with careful monitoring of weather patterns and insect pest populations through trapping helps us reduce the need for chemical fungicide and insecticides. We only spray when absolutely necessary; when rain is predicted and therefore apple scab will spread, or when traps indicate a severe insect pest problem that can not be controlled by other means. Sprays (if required) are discontinued in June.
We are excited to be working with Cowichan Milk Company to bring our fruit to you!
-Wayne and Cindy Haddow
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
A full-flavoured, juicy, sweet/tart apple that pairs well with cheese and wine. It maintains its colour and flavour when dried.
Try this one for fresh eating, or spice up all your baking.
3 lbs in plastic or paper bag.
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
A cross between Jonathan and Golden Delicious varieties, these very large apples grown in Mill Bay are crisp, sweet, and juicy - lovely for fresh eating, applesauce, and baking.
Pictured: 5 lbs
Choose your size ⤵
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Small assorted apples, ideal for juicing.
5 lb bag (photo shows 10 lb)
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Hard To Come By Farm
Apples, Liberty ("Lunchbox", plastic bag)
Out of stock
"Lunchbox" sized apples are perfect for snacks and lunch bags.
Liberty has a nice balance of sweet and tart making it a lovely snack apple. It is crisp, juicy, and perfectly sized for children and anyone wanting a smaller apple. It is the Haddows' favourite!
3 lbs in plastic bag.
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Hard To Come By Farm
Apples, Liberty (3lb, paper bag)
Out of stock
Liberty apples are crisp and juicy. They have a nice balance of sweet and tart making them a lovely snacking apple. They are the Haddows' favourite!
3 lb in paper bag.
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Hard To Come By Farm
Apples, Macoun (3 lb, Lunchbox size)
Out of stock
"Lunchbox" sized apples are extra small and perfect for snacks and lunchbags.
Macoun is a crisp and very sweet eating apple with dark red to dark purple skin, packed full of taste.
3 lb. bag.
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Hard To Come By Farm
Apples, Macoun (3 lb, paper bag)
Out of stock
Macoun is a small, crisp, and very sweet eating apple with dark red to dark purple skin, packed full of taste.
3 lbs in paper bag.
IMPORTANT!
We're sorry, this product is only available for the current week and it appears you are either past the cut-off time or have already received your delivery.
Taste the best of the season with this mix of apples grown in Mill Bay. Varieties included will change as season progresses.
3 lbs in plastic or paper bag.