Pick your own apples and pumpkins at tristate area orchards

Fruitful fun in the five boroughs

Too busy to get out of town? Little ones can do more than pick a pumpkin at these festive city events—they'll decorate and embellish it, too.

Breukelen Country Fair
Take the family on a tour of the oldest building in New York City—originally part of a farm used by the Dutch West India Company—and enjoy cider pressing, quilting workshops, live music and old-fashioned games. Sat Sept 22 1–6pm. Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum. $5, children ages 3 to 12 $3, children under 3 free.

Pick Your Own Pumpkin
The gourds up for purchase at the Farm Museum's annual sale don't rival the Great Pumpkin, but they'll make some darn good jack-o'-lanterns for your little trick-or-treater. While there, take the kids through the three-acre Amazing Maize Maze ($9, children ages 4–11 $5, children under 4 free). Just be sure to leave a trail of pumpkin seeds so you can find your way out. The farm also hosts a haunted house ($4) on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Oct 26–28; the blowout Fall Festival on the 28th also features hayrides, magic shows costumed characters, mulled cider and other seasonal delights. Sat, Sun Oct 6–28 11am–4:30pm. Queens County Farm Museum.

Sunnyside Gardens Park Oktoberfest and Pumpkin Patch
Step into the members-only Sunnyside Gardens Park; it's open to the public for one day only. Once inside, you and your kids can make sand art, hang out in the Storytime Tent, participate in a sidewalk chalk art contest, get their faces painted, nosh on German food, listen to live music by kids' performer Richard Younger and, of course, pick out the perfect pumpkin. All ages. Sat Oct 6 noon–dusk, rain date Oct 7. Sunnyside Gardens Park. Free with pumpkin purchase.

Apple Festival
Fresh apples, fritters, doughnuts and freshly pressed cider will be served at this fruitfest. But we're pretty sure the kids will be eyeing the world's biggest apple cobbler, being baked on-site. They'll sure work up an appetite at the hayrides, cider-pressing demonstrations and games taking place all day. Sun Oct 7 11am–4pm. Queens County Farm Museum. Free.

Jefferson Market Garden Harvest Festival for Children
After scooping up free mini pumpkins, little ones head to a decorating table to adorn their finds with stickers and crafting supplies. Sat Oct 20 11am–2pm. Jefferson Market Garden. Free. Ages 3 to 8.

Brownstone Halloween Fair
At this fund-raiser, kids can dress up in costumes, decorate pumpkins, make candy necklaces, play tons of fun games, grab some cotton candy while parents have the option to sift through a rummage same of children's books and toys. And that's not all—kids can also decorate cupcakes, hop into a bouncy castle and take on an obstacle course. Sat Oct 20 11am–5pm. 44 Playground, Columbus Ave at 77th St (646-522-3050, brownstoneschool.com). Rain location: Holy Trinity Church, 213 W 82nd St between Amsterdam Ave and Broadway. Subway: 1 to 79th St. Admission free, decorating $2–$4.All ages.

New York City Pickle Day
Although this Orchard Street event has hosted an apple-themed day for the past four years, event organizers LES BID will instead honor everything pickle in 2012. At the fest, tots can keep busy with coloring books, face painting, and even participate in a Halloween costume contest. Sun Oct 28 noon–5pm. Orchard St between E Delancey and Houston Sts (212-226-9010, lowereastsideny.com). B, D to Grand St; F, J, M, Z to Delancey St. Free.