About Us
Hidden Gem Orchard is a no-frills apple orchard located in the Purchase section of Southbury, CT. Established in 2017 on land formerly part of the Southbury Training School farm, the orchard currently consists of 4,000 apple trees planted across six acres. Approximately 3,000 of those trees were planted between 2017 and 2018, with additional plantings in the years that followed.
Today, the orchard grows 38 apple varieties, with more added each year. Some are familiar favorites—Honeycrisp, McIntosh, Gala, Cortland, and Fuji—while others are uncommon or antique varieties rarely found in modern markets. Notable examples include Esopus Spitzenburg (Thomas Jefferson’s favorite apple grown at Monticello), Pink Pearl (a red-fleshed variety), Hudson Golden Gem (an apple that looks and tastes like a pear), and historic cider apples such as Porters Perfection and Golden Russet. The orchard also grows two new releases from Cornell’s Apple Breeding Program—Cordera and Firecracker—named in 2020. Additional plantings in 2021 include Calville Blanc, a 16th-century French variety prized for baking, and Wickson, which produces intensely flavored miniature apples. Altogether, Hidden Gem Orchard offers a one-of-a-kind collection of apples whose story is still unfolding.
All trees are grafted onto dwarfing rootstock, which limits tree size and allows for high-density planting. They are trained on the Vertical Axe system, a method developed in France in the 1970s by J.M. Lespinasse. In this system, each tree consists of a 10–12 ft vertical trunk with short fruiting branches arranged along it, forming a tall, narrow, Christmas-tree-shaped canopy. Trees are spaced closely to create a continuous row, maximizing sunlight exposure for efficient photosynthesis—the process by which plants produce their energy and food.
Trees planted in 2017 produced their first crop in 2019, with production increasing annually as more trees begin to bear fruit. Apples were sold directly to the public for the first time in 2021 at the on-site farm stand, which operates from September through November.
As of 2023, the orchard is open for pick-your-own apples during harvest season. We offer a simple, non-commercial country experience at HGO. There are no agritainment attractions—aside from a scenic hay-wagon ride to and from the orchard. If you’re looking for a quiet, bucolic setting with an exceptional range of great-tasting apples, Hidden Gem Orchard might be just the place for you.
The orchard began diversifying in 2021 with the addition of a vineyard for table-grape production. Four seedless grape varieties and Concord grapes (a seeded variety) can be purchased at the farm stand starting in mid September.
Hidden Gem Orchard is owned by James Wargo of Woodbury, CT. A Woodbury native, James earned a B.S. in Horticulture from the University of Connecticut, followed by a Master of Science in Pomology (fruit science) from Cornell University. He started his career as an Extension Agent for Cornell Cooperative Extension based in the Western NY fruit growing region situated along the shores of Lake Ontario. Since then, he has continued to work in the fruit industry primarily in applied field research and product development. James is a co-author of two patents and has authored or co-authored six peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts published in horticultural journals. He now works full-time in a technical role for a California-based agricultural products company. In addition, he serves on the Connecticut Apple Marketing Advisory Board. After living outside Connecticut for nearly two decades, James returned home in 2017 to pursue his lifelong dream of owning and operating a fruit farm. He is proud to say that dream has now been realized.