Hilltop Hanover Farm's own sign gives its farm stand season as "May – Thanksgiving." That leaves the stand at 1271 Hanover Street only a few Thursday-to-Sunday weekends this November. The Westchester County Parks events calendar points the other way. It lists 17 upcoming programs at the farm, and 14 of them fall in November. One runs in late October and two in December. The produce season is ending just as the farm's busiest month for programs begins.
The stand's last weekends
The farm stand keeps the same posted hours until the season closes: Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It takes cash, card, and Apple Pay, along with SNAP, WIC, FMNP, and FreshConnect. Customers paying with those four benefit programs get 50% off produce and 30% off goods the farm sources from other producers. The stand is wheelchair accessible and has accessible parking.
The stand doesn't post a fixed late-fall inventory. The farm's page says to check there or join the mailing list for "What's at the Stand this week," and adds, "We strive to offer accurate availability info, but we're busy farmers!" In the last weeks before a season closes, that mailing list is the most reliable place to find out what's still on the table.
Once the stand's season ends, the fields stay open and the farm turns them into its classroom. The November calendar shows it.
November, program by program
Every November listing below is on the county's Hilltop Hanover calendar, which notes that all programs are "subject to change without notice." Start times and registration links are on each program's own listing page.
| Date | Program | Listed cost |
|---|---|---|
| Wed., Nov. 4 | Bedford Audubon Society bird walk | Free |
| Fri., Nov. 6 | Trails Without Limits, guided by the Westchester Parks Foundation | Free |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Mid-morning farm animal tea | $15 |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Westchester Children's Museum programs, two listings | Free |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Old Time Music Jam | Free |
| Wed., Nov. 11 | Family cooking class, ages 3 to 18 | $45 |
| Wed., Nov. 11 | Session on the local Indigenous community | $15 |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Stone structures talk with optional hike | $15 |
| Wed., Nov. 18 | Early-evening nature-based mindfulness | Free |
| Thu., Nov. 19 | Bird feeder building | $15 |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | Thanksgiving sides cook-ahead | Free |
| Sun., Nov. 22 | Children's Entrepreneur Market | See listing |
| Sun., Nov. 22 | Head for the Hilltop 5K and Kids' Fun Run | $10 to $40 |
Ten of the thirteen rows are free or cost $15. The most expensive single program is the $45 family cooking class. At those prices, the farm's November costs about as much as a basket from the stand in summer.
What the fields offer after the harvest
The November programs share one idea: most of them use something on the farm other than the crops.
Birds. The Bedford Audubon Society leads a walk at Hilltop on the first Wednesday of every month. Birders of all levels are welcome, and the walk moves through the farm's different habitats. The Nov. 19 program comes at birds from the other direction. Participants build feeders for $15, so the birds come to the backyard.
Stone. On Saturday, Nov. 14, Rob Buchanan, who has spent years identifying the stone structures on the property, leads a session on the walls and structures found on the farm "and in your backyard," followed by an optional hike to see examples. In a town lined with old fieldstone walls, it's a chance to learn what those walls are and how to read them.
Animals and the last of the harvest. The Nov. 7 morning tea pairs "a mid-morning cuppa" with meeting the farm's animals. Participants harvest and make treats for both the people and the animals.
Quiet. The free Nov. 18 mindfulness gathering is a monthly early-evening program among "the fields and woodlands of Hilltop Hanover Farm & Environmental Center."
Access. On Nov. 6, the Westchester Parks Foundation guides Trails Without Limits, a free outing for people with physical disabilities. The listing names conditions including cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury, amputation, paraplegia, arthritis, and cardiac conditions.
History and music. The Nov. 11 session covers "the histories, cultures, traditions, experiences, and contributions of the local Indigenous community" for $15. The Old Time Music Jam on Nov. 7 is a free monthly gathering of local acoustic musicians who play traditional Appalachian fiddle music. The listing invites people to "come to play or just to listen."
Kids. The Westchester Children's Museum has two free listings at the farm on Nov. 7, part of its effort to bring programs, including STEM and STEAM activities, to the River North communities in the county's northern Hudson River towns. Four days later, the $45 family cooking class has children ages 3 to 18 cook a dish from start to finish. Younger kids handle simpler tasks, and older kids and teens work on their own.
That makes November Saturdays crowded. Nov. 7 alone has four listings, from tea with the animals to fiddle tunes.
The Saturday before Thanksgiving goes to someone else's table
Most of the month's programs are about learning something. The Nov. 21 program is about giving something away. The farm invites participants to "cook-ahead some farm-fresh Thanksgiving sides to share with a neighbor, friend, or someone else who may appreciate a home-cooked meal this holiday season," and the event is free.
It falls on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, during the stand's last weeks. Some of the season's last farm-fresh food goes into side dishes meant for other people's tables.
Sunday, Nov. 22: the season's last big gathering
The next morning, the farm hosts its largest gathering of the month. Head for the Hilltop: 5K & Kids' Fun Run is organized by Hilltop Hanover Farm and listed on the county calendar from 8:30 to 11 a.m.
- 9 a.m., Kids' Fun Run. Ages 6 and under, $10. The route runs through the growing fields.
- 9:30 a.m., 5K. Ages 7 and up, $40. The course is a scenic trail run around the farm.
- Registration. Through RunSignup.
The county listing promises runners will "journey past the crop fields, bolt through the trails, and dash over the roaring hills." Anyone who has walked up Hanover Street knows the hills are real.
The Children's Entrepreneur Market is also on Nov. 22. Kids decide what to sell, build their own booths, and solve problems on the spot, and visitors can come to shop or to support them. On the Sunday before Thanksgiving, the youngest people at the farm become the vendors.
December, with greens
After Thanksgiving, the calendar thins out to two listings. On Saturday, Dec. 12, a $25 class teaches participants to forage and harvest evergreens from the farm's fields and forests to make wreaths and garlands. On Saturday, Dec. 19, a $5 program covers the history of Yule and the Winter Solstice and the role agriculture plays in them, with traditions "new & old."
Both programs use what the land offers in December. Evergreens replace vegetables, and the solstice program moves the farm's calendar to the shortest day of the year. From Nov. 4 through Dec. 19, the county calendar lists 16 programs at the farm, and only these last two come after the stand's season ends.
If a Hilltop Hanover weekend is on your November list, or you're curious how Hanover Street fits into life in Yorktown Heights, I'm glad to talk it through. Call or text Robert Mulvey for a free, no‑obligation home valuation and personalized market strategy, or for a few minutes of local perspective on the season ahead.
