Most farms don?t have a mascot.
But at Baugher?s Orchard in Westminster, the Apple Man greets visitors.
“The Apple Man has prestige. He means what he says and stands for quality,” said Allan Baugher, president of Baugher Enterprises.
Baugher?s farm was not always so recognizable. Allan?s grandfather Daniel started a diversified family farm in Carroll County on a 60-acre plot in 1900.
Today, Baugher Enterprises specializes in growing fresh produce on more than 600 acres in addition to being a family-friendly destination for those wanting a taste of country life.
Unlike many farms that sell exclusively to retailers, Baugher?s sells its crop to independent Baltimore-area groceries and the fruit market in downtown Westminster.
The farm location, off Baugher Road, also includes a bakery, managedby Allan?s daughter Lorraine.
All four of Lorraine?s siblings are involved in the family business.
Roughly 60 percent of Baugher?s gross income comes from its retail sales, with the rest coming from its wholesale business.
“We are fortunate to have built that customer base,” Allan said.
Even so, “it?s not easy to make a profit every year because there is nothing dependable about farming, but I have never gone hungry, and I have always been proud of what we do,” said Allan, who lives on the farm with his wife of 45 years, Marjorie.
Since the 1980s, Baugher?s has attracted thousands of families and tourists to their farm with a petting zoo, bakery and wagon rides during the “Pick Your Own Season,” when visitors can ride up to the fields and pick everything from strawberries in May to pumpkins in October.
Baugher?s Enterprises also offers free tours of the farm to Carroll County Public School kindergarten classes.
“We show the children how to pick, take them on tractor and wagon tours of the property, and at the end give them a snack of cider, cookies and apples,” said Marjorie Baugher.
