The pumpkin patch story
Short Story - Pumpkin Patch Skills
October 19, 2019 – DeKalb, Illinois, USA.
“This is such a long way to go for a pumpkin,” said Gabi, who was behind the wheel of her Kia Santa Fe.
“All I’ve seen is corn for like an hour,” added Max, who was sitting up front next to Gabi.
“It hasn’t been that long,” replied Lena, from the backseat. “And, like I’ve told you a hundred times already, it’s the best pumpkin patch on TripAdvisor. They’ve been doing this, for like, fifty years.”
“These pumpkins better be perfect,” said Max. “And have gold sparkles inside when we cut them open.”
“Yeah, that would be cool,” agreed Gabi. “I definitely want a pumpkin with gold sprinkles inside.”
“If anyone’s going to have them, it’s this place,” said Lena. “But it’s not all about the pumpkins. We’ve got to do the corn mazes too.”
“Yeah, for sure. I’m totally down for some corn mazes,” said Gabi.
“Why? All you do is walk around inside a corn field,” said Max. “It’s not like you could actually get lost in one. They build them so that even little kids can find their way out.”
“Not at the place we’re going,” said Lena. “Some people actually get stuck and have to be rescued.”
“Yeah, right,” replied Max skeptically. “Not that if matters. This drive is taking so long, it’ll probably be dark by the time we get there.”
Lena did not say anything in return, but she wanted to remind her friends how they were supposed to have left two hours earlier. Gabi and Max kept texting her, saying they were running late. Lena knew that nothing but procrastination and laziness had held them up. It was the same story every time they planned something on a weekend.
Max acted like they had driven 300 miles instead of 30 when they finally pulled into the pumpkin patch’s dirt parking lot. Walls of hay were stacked around the property to prevent new arrivals from wandering inside without paying the entrance fee.
Lena, Gabi, and Max followed the hand-painted signs toward a little shed labeled “Entry.” A line of people was waiting to get in and the friends took their place at the back.
“This is my favorite part of fall and Halloween,” Lena said excitedly. “I feel like I’m in 3rd grade or something. Like we’re at a school carnival.”
“Waiting in line is your favorite part of Halloween?” Max replied sarcastically.
Lena rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean.”
An older couple standing in front of the three friends turned around and smiled brightly. “You here to pick out a pumpkin?” asked a woman dressed in an orange, Halloween-themed sweater.
“No, we’re here to burn the place to the ground,” Max muttered under his breath.
“Yeah, we hear this place has good ones,” said Lena loudly, trying to sound friendly in case the woman heard Max.
“Oh they do,” said the woman.
“My husband and I have been coming here for twenty years. This is Doug and I’m Janet.”
Lena introduced Max and Gabi and then did the small talking with Doug and Janet as the line moved closer to the Entry building. When they were almost to the front, Lena pulled up the confirmation code on her phone that showed she had already paid to get in. Janet pulled out several pieces of paper from her purse and presented them to the girl handling admissions.
“I printed off the email I got after I paid,” Janet said to the girl.
“Do you have the code on your phone?” the girl said in reply.
“My phone? How is that supposed to work?” replied Janet in a bewildered voice.
Gabi and Max sighed and rolled their eyes as Janet and Doug tried to convince the admissions girl that they had already paid.
“Can you imagine being alive right now and not knowing how a phone works?” Gabi said to Max, in a not too quiet whisper.
“Can you say ‘helpless’?” Max whispered back.
“They should have separate days and times for old people. Anyone over, like 40,” added Gabi.
“Try more like over 30,” replied Max.
Doug and Janet were eventually allowed through the entry gate. Lena then presented her phone and she and her friends were waved through.
Directly in front of the entrance, sat tables piled with different colored pumpkins for sale. The biggest table contained orange pumpkins, but customers could also choose green pumpkins, white pumpkins, tan pumpkins, and pumpkins which had grotesque looking bumps and nodules growing on their skin.
“I thought you said we get to pick our pumpkin, like out in the field,” said Gabi, after seeing the piles.
“You can,” replied Lena. “These must be for people who don’t want to go to the trouble.”
“Imagine going to a pumpkin patch just to pick your pumpkin from a big stack.
You might as well go to the supermarket,” said Max.
“Well, let’s not worry about getting pumpkins yet. Let’s first do the mazes,” said Lena. “That way, we’re not carrying pumpkins around.”
“Yeah, good call,” said Gabi. “We’ll follow you.”
Large signs pointed either left toward the fields of pumpkins or right toward the corn mazes. It became obvious on the way to the mazes that there were three to choose from, classified as hard, medium, and easy. The hard one required the longest walk.
“Oh, we gotta do the hard one,” said Gabi.
“Agreed,” said Max.
“Okay, but let’s hurry. We’ve gotta save some time for picking pumpkins,” said Lena, who had been trying to get her friends to move at something faster than a stroll.
“Don’t worry about it,” replied Max. “It’ll only take us a few minutes and then we’ll be rolling around in pumpkins.”
When the threesome reached the starting point for the hard maze, a teenage boy was handing out paper maps and providing instructions.
“What are these for?” asked Gabi, taking one of the maps.
“They’re an overhead picture of the maze. They help you find your way out,” answered the teenager.
“You think we really need one?” asked Max in mock seriousness.
“Probably,” the teenager replied matter-of-factly. “If you get stuck and it gets dark, turn on your phone’s flashlights and wave them around. We’ll come get you.”
Max laughed like the teenager was making a joke. Then he took a selfie with Gabi in front of the entrance to the maze. He refused to go any farther until Lena joined them for another shot.
Navigation in a Corn Maze During Halloween SeasonOnce all the necessary pictures had been taken, the threesome marched along the walking path that had been cut into the rows of cornstalks. They were immediately confronted with the choice of continuing to the right or the left.
“I’ve been through a million of these things,” said Gabi.
“If you always go right, it’ll take you around the edge and out.”
“Are you sure?” asked Lena.
“Trust me, they’re all the same,” said Gabi.
Max appeared to agree with Gabi and they took off toward the right, now laughing and moving at almost a jog. Lena had no choice but to follow behind them.
Navigation of a Corn Maze at a Pumpkin Patch Before HalloweenFor the first ten minutes, the “go right” plan seemed to be working. Each time the path curved or reached a T-junction, there was always a right turn to follow. Max and Gabi stopped to take more selfies along the way. The pictures showed them surrounded by tall, dried cornstalks in every direction. They ripped cobs of bright orange corn from the stalks and threw them at each other.
“If you get hungry, you can have all the corn you want,” yelled Gabi.
Max gingerly took a bite of the hard orange kernels and spit them out. “Yuck.
What kind of corn is this?” he said in disgust.
The walk through the corn was fun and carefree until the path they were following simply stopped. In front of them was a wall of cornstalks.
“Uh, Gabi. There’s no right turn,” said Max.
“Hmm. We must have gone the wrong way at that last turn,” said Gabi.
“We’ve always gone to the right,” said Lena. “Like you said.”
“Maybe this maze is a little different. Let’s just backtrack. We’ll take a left and then a right again,” said Gabi.
“Wait, are you sure?” asked Max.
“The basic idea is to keep heading toward the right so it takes you in a circle.” Gabi did not sound very confident in her explanation, but she began walking and Max and Lena followed.
After backtracking to their last turn at a T-junction, they took the alternate direction and then two more right turns. Again, they hit a dead end.
“I don’t think this is working,” said Max.
“You got any better ideas?” demanded Gabi, in frustration.
“Maybe we should have taken all left turns,” replied Max.
“I don’t think it’s that simple,” said Lena. “This is supposed to be the hard maze, remember?”
“I say we go back where we came from and try the left turn thing,” said Max.
“Fine. Go ahead. You lead the way,” replied Gabi.
Max backtracked and took a few left turns with Gabi and Lena following. They reached a point they thought they recognized. It was a four-way junction and they could go straight, left or right. They began to argue about their next move and even the direction from which they had come.
“I’m going this way,” insisted Max. “You can follow me or not.” He walked away in an angry huff.
“We shouldn’t separate,” called Lena. “Max, you can’t go off on your own!”
He kept walking and Lena and Gabi felt obligated to follow.
They trudged along in silence making one random turn after another. Max finally stopped at another dead end. He buried his head in his chest regretfully.
“I’m sorry. I have no idea where we are or what to do next,” Max said, pitifully.
Lena looked up trying to spot some kind of landmark, but eight-foot-tall cornstalks grew in every direction. It was like they had been swallowed up into a world where corn ruled and all other humans had disappeared.
“What about the sun?” suggested Lena, with a sudden burst of inspiration. “We can still see the sun. We could follow it.”
Gabi and Max looked up discouragingly at the rapidly setting sun. “What if that takes us in the totally wrong direction?” said Gabi. “Maybe I should find us on Google Maps.” She pulled out her phone and tried to find a view of their location. “It shows us in a cornfield,” she said bitterly. “Just a regular cornfield without any maze. Thanks Google, that’s real helpful.
”
“They should have some sort of app that leads you out,” said Max. “It knows where you are and tells you to turn left or right. Did you see anything like that when you bought the tickets?”
“No,” replied Lena. “But we’ve got this.” She pulled out the paper map the teenager handed them at the maze’s entrance.
The trio stared down at the overhead picture of the maze and wondered where they might be standing.
“I think we’re right here,” said Gabi, pointing to a spot on the map. “Look, if we go back and then make a turn, we’ll almost be in the center. We might as well try.”
Gabi pulled the map out of Lena’s hands and held it in front of her as she again led the way down the open paths among the cornstalks. When a turn she was expecting was not there, she flipped the map upside down and tried a different direction. After five more frustrating intersections, she threw the map to the ground and stomped on it.
“This is useless. How is anyone supposed to follow it?” cried Gabi. She dropped to the ground next to the map in a defeated lump. “What are we gonna do, you guys?”
“It’s definitely getting darker,” said Lena. “Pretty soon we’re not going to be able to see anything.”
Max dropped into the dirt next to Gabi. “We’re never getting out of here. We’re seriously going to die in this maze. We don’t have any water and nothing but this hard corn to eat.”
Lena could not help laughing a little at Max’s dramatics. “I guess we could always call 911,” she suggested.
“The cops would probably arrest us for being stupid,” said Gabi.
“That kid did say we could hold up our phone lights and they’d rescue us,” said Lena.
Max immediately grabbed his phone, turned on its light, and held it over his head. “We’re here! Over here! Come get us!” he called.
Gabi did not hold up her phone, but she began calling like Max.
“Help! We’re over here! Help us!”
“Shush! Shut up!” yelled Lena. “I think I hear someone.”
There were unmistakable calls of “Hello?” and “Who’s there?” from somewhere out in the corn. Gabi and Max yelled louder until the voices got closer and closer. Emerging from a row of cornstalks, Doug and Janet appeared.
“Well, hello there!” called Janet. “You folks need some help?”
“We’re lost!” cried Max and Gabi, like they have been abandoned in the woods by their parents.
“Do you guys know how to get out?” called Lena.
“Yep, I think so,” replied Doug, holding up his paper map. “We’re right here and the exit is over there.” Doug pointed to two different spots on the map.
“Can we follow you?” asked Lena.
“Well sure,” replied Doug. “Glad to help.”
The trio watched in amazement as Doug and Janet held out the map and predicted which turns were coming and then charted a course out of the maze.
Doug spoke confidently about where they were and how much longer it would take. Max, Gabi, and Lena mostly stayed quiet and made sure the older people did not leave their sight.
All five explorers exited the maze after the sun had set. Doug joked about getting out just in time. The younger trio were too mentally exhausted to find anything funny as they trudged along the path that led to civilization.
When they came in sight of the little shed used for admissions, Doug said with a grin, “I think you can probably find your way out from here.”
“What about pumpkins?” cried Lena. “Janet, aren’t you and Doug getting pumpkins?”
“We already picked ours out and took them to the car,” replied Janet. “We saved the maze for last. But I think they have pumpkins you can choose from near the exit.”
“Oh yeah, those,” said Lena, with a disappointed voice.
She and her friends ended up sifting through the table of orange pumpkins, using their phone lights to pick out the best ones.
When they paid for them and carried them out to their car, the parking lot was practically empty.
“At least we never had to call the police,” said Lena, trying to look for something positive to say.
“My pumpkin better have gold sparkles inside,” said Max.
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Headline – Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze
Headline – Pumpkin Patch and Halloween
Headline – Navigation When Lost in Corn Maze
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Books about pumpkins for kids: Great read aloud books for fall and Halloween
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Sometime around the beginning of October, pumpkins start to appear. In grocery stores, at the hardware store, and, of course, at the pumpkin patch, pumpkins are everywhere in early fall!
While pumpkins may be most prized for their ability to be carved into jack-o-lanterns, they are actually rather fascinating fruits to study in and of themselves.
If you or your children will be learning about pumpkins this fall, check out my review below of 19 books about pumpkins for kids. These children’s books about pumpkins include both non-fiction and fiction selections.
Non-fiction books about pumpkins
Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden by George Levenson
This book uses captivating photography to show the life cycle of pumpkin from seed to plant to flower to plump orange fruit. This book celebrates the beauty of the pumpkin vine, including its twisty tendrils and the sunlit bowls of its flowers. The book’s stunning photography of insects coming to enjoy the pumpkin flower’s nectar and hopping along the large leaves will impress.
The rhyming text that accompanies the stunning photographs makes this a very fun and educational read for kids in preschool through early elementary school. The back of the book includes tips on growing pumpkins.
From Seed to Pumpkin by Wendy Pfeffer
This is a wonderful early science book that explains the pumpkin growth process from seed to mature pumpkin in a friendly way that is easy for kids in preschool through 1st grade to understand.
The Pumpkin Book by Gail Gibbons
This book comes from the Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out-Science series, which I just adore. This book provides a detailed description of the process by which a pumpkin seed is planted, a vine grows, pumpkins grow large, and pumpkins are harvested to be used as jack-o-lanterns or pumpkin pies. The book provides lots of scientific facts about this process, albeit at a level that is appropriate for kids in preschool through grade 3. For example, the book discusses how plants make food using sunlight, water, and air (but doesn’t mention big words like photosynthesis or chlorophyl).
The lovely illustrations that accompany the text make this book a wonderful way to introduce children to the life cycle of a pumpkin. The back of the book includes additional facts about pumpkins, directions for roasting pumpkin seeds, and an experiment (very similar to this one) to show kids how plants drink water.
This book provides a wealth of fun and factual information about pumpkins. From the fact that pumpkins are part of the squash family to information about how to grow pumpkins to how they came to be associated with holidays like Thanksgiving and Halloween, this book covers a lot of information! Colorful illustrations accompany the text. This book will be a delightful read for preschoolers through 3rd grade.
Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie by Jill Esbaum
This book from National Geographic Kids briefly covers the pumpkin life cycle from seed to sprout to full grown pumpkin fruit. It explains how pumpkins come in many colors and sizes. Kids may particularly enjoy the photograph of people rowing boats made from gigantic, hollowed-out pumpkins! Pumpkin make delicious bread, wonderful pies, and fantastic jack-o-lanterns! The photographs in this book are striking and the language is short and simple.
This book will be most enjoyed by kids ages 3 to 7.
Fiction books about pumpkins
How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara
This is a truly lovely book that explores important social themes while mixing in some math and science lessons as well. Charlie is the smallest person in his class, a fact that does not make him very happy. One day his teacher brings in three pumpkins: a large one, a medium one, and a small one. The class has to figure out which pumpkin has the most seeds. The children guess that the largest pumpkin will have the most seeds and the smallest pumpkin will have the fewest seeds. But after opening their pumpkins and counting the seeds by twos, fives, or tens, the students learn that the smallest pumpkin actually had the most! Some wonderful scientific facts about pumpkins are included in the story as well as on the last spread of the book.
How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow? by Wendell Minor
Inspired by the giant pumpkins that win awards at pumpkin festivals each year, the author of this beautifully illustrated book lets his creativity take over.
The premise of this book is to imagine all sorts of fun things you could do with a really, really, REALLY big pumpkin. For example, could you carve an enormous pumpkin into a boat and race in a regatta? Can you carve it into a jack-o-lantern that beams as bright at a lighthouse? Could your pumpkin be so large as to fill the Grand Canyon?
Pumpkins by Mary Lyn Ray
An old man lives across from big field. One day he notices a for sale sign on the field. Fearing that the field will get sold to a developer, the old man decides to buy the field to save it. He sells all his possessions, but still does not have enough to buy the field. Considering his options, the man decides to buy a packet of seeds. He sows the seeds in the field, and grows thousands and thousands and thousands of pumpkins. When the pumpkins are ready to harvest, he rents trucks, boats, airplanes, and flying carpets to deliver his pumpkins. He attaches a tag to each pumpkin with instructions for how to make a jack-o-lantern.
And he sends his pumpkins to countries all around the world. People from all the different countries purchase his pumpkins in order to carve jack-o-lanterns, bake pumpkin pies, and make pumpkin muffins. Finally, the man has enough money to buy the field next to his house.
The Biggest Pumpkin Ever by Steven Kroll
This is an adorable little story of two mice who both find and fall in love with the same little pumpkin growing in the vegetable garden. Both decide to nurture the little pumpkin and grow it into the biggest pumpkin ever, and both have big plans for the big pumpkin they hope to grow. Over several months, one little mouse cares for the pumpkin during the day and the other little mouse cares for the pumpkin during the evening. Neither mouse knows about the other until one night when both come out to put blankets on the pumpkin to protect it from the bitter cold. Both mice discover that the other one has a plan for the pumpkin, and I love the way the two mice compromise so that each can make their dream come true.
Ready for Pumpkins by Kate Duke
Hercules is the class guinea pig in Miss MacGuffey’s first grade classroom. When he goes to the country for summer vacation, he decides to grow his own pumpkin garden. He enlists the help of a rabbit named Daisy, and together they plant some pumpkin seeds. But to Hercules’s dismay, the seeds take a long time to sprout. Neither yelling nor jumping up and down nor digging them up makes them grow faster. The only thing that works is. . . patience!
The Runaway Pumpkin by Kevin Lewis
This story takes place on Halloween day, although Halloween is only a backdrop for the story and not the main focus. In this story, three siblings climb a hill where they find a gigantic pumpkin. The siblings pluck the pumpkin from its stem and begin to roll it down the hill. But no sooner do they start when one hears a “thumping’ bumpin’ sound” as the pumpkin runs away! The runway pumpkin busts through Momma Baxter’s pig sty.
It knocks Grampa Baxter to the ground. Finally, at the bottom of the hill, Poppa Baxter sees the pumpkin barreling toward him and quickly creates a soft landing spot for the runaway pumpkin. The family then brings the runaway pumpkin inside where Granny stirs and stews and bakes it into a delicious meal for all.
Sixteen Runaway Pumpkins by Dianne Ochiltree
It is harvest time in the pumpkin patch, and Sam sets out to pick lots of pumpkins for her Gramps. She picks and picks pumpkins until 16 have filled up her wagon. She begins to haul them back to the house when – whoops! The wagon wobbles and the 16 pumpkins tumble out and start rolling down the hill! Some of the pumpkins roll right through Gramps’s front door, smashing on his clean floor. But Gramps isn’t worried – he knows just what to do! And soon the family has baked up several pumpkin pies to enjoy.
The Ugly Pumpkin by Dave Horowitz
This book uses rhyming text to tell the story of a pumpkin that doesn’t look like all the other Halloween pumpkins.
He never gets picked like the other pumpkins and because of this, he feels ugly. The ugly pumpkin survives into November where he eventually meets up with some Thanksgiving squash that look just like him. And in the end he learns there’s a perfect place for him at a Thanksgiving table. This book would be appropriate for either Halloween or Thanksgiving. My kids really enjoyed it as a Halloween book, and were so intrigued by why the pumpkin was ugly.
Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman
A witch plants a pumpkin seed in the hopes of harvesting a pumpkin for pumpkin pie. By the time Halloween rolls around, the pumpkin has grown so large that she cannot pluck it from its vine to make her Halloween pumpkin pie. So she enlists the help of other creatures including a ghost, a vampire, a mummy, and a bat. Along the way, young readers will learn the importance of recognizing that everyone – no matter their size – has something to contribute. The text includes rhythmic text and a repetitive storyline that will draw in young readers.
Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper
Cat, Squirrel, and Duck like to make pumpkin soup together. For as long as they can remember, Cat has sliced the pumpkin, Squirrel has stirred the water, and Duck as added the salt. But one day Duck decides he wants to be the one to stir the soup, and a fight erupts among these three friends. When Duck storms off, Cat and Squirrel decide they can make the soup by themselves. However, it doesn’t taste right, and they realize it was a mistake to not give Duck a turn at stirring. Eventually, the three animals are reunited and they cook up the best pumpkin soup they’ve ever made by doing it together. This book touches upon themes of sharing and turn taking with friends. The delightful illustrations vividly portray the emotions of the animals in the story.
Pumpkin Day, Pumpkin Night by Anne Rockwell
The protagonist in this tale knows it is pumpkin time when the leaves turn colors in the fall. That is when his mom takes him to the pumpkin patch to select the perfect pumpkin to take home.
His mom also buys 10 small pumpkins to make pie. Mom and son ride home with their 11 pumpkins – one big one and 10 small ones. Once home, they carve the big pumpkin and bake the small ones. The evening ends with a carved pumpkin grinning at the moon and little pumpkins in the oven turning to pie.
Pumpkin Jack by Will Hubbell
This is a fantastic book to read if you plan to do a pumpkin decomposition activity. This book tells the story of a boy who carves a jack-o-lantern for Halloween, and then leaves it to rot in the backyard when Halloween is over. By springtime, little is left of the jack-o-lantern, as it has mostly decomposed. The boy kicks some dirt over it and forgets about it. But a few weeks later, the boy notices a small spout growing where he left his jack-o-lantern. He cares for the sprout, and eventually it grows into a large vine bursting with pumpkins. The boy harvests his pumpkins and uses one to create a new jack-o-lantern for Halloween. In this way, he completes the cycle from jack-o-lantern to seed to pumpkin to jack-o-lantern once again.
The Very Best Pumpkin by Mark Kimball Moulton
Peter lives on a farm with his grandparents. In the fall, his grandparents’ farm produces wonderful pumpkins of every shape and size. One day Peter notices a long vine that extends well beyond the edge of his grandparents’ field. He follows the vine into a nearby meadow where he discovers a tiny pumpkin growing at the end. From that day on, Peter takes care of the little pumpkin. One day his new neighbor, a girl named Meg, sees Peter caring for his pumpkin. Meg does not disturb Peter, but she continues to watch him care for the growing pumpkin day after day. In the fall, people begin arriving at Peter’s grandparents’ farm to select their pumpkins. Peter helps everyone select just the right pumpkin. Then Meg arrives, but she has difficulty finding just the right pumpkin to take home. Just as she is about to leave, Peter approaches her and suggests that they look somewhere new to find her the perfect pumpkin. He leads Meg to his special pumpkin and offers it to her.
She admits that she has been watching him care for the pumpkin, and he admits that he knew she was watching, which is why he wants her to have it. From that day forward, Meg and Peter become best friends. The following year, the two work side by side to prepare the next crop of pumpkins.
Too Many Pumpkins by Linda White
Rebecca Estelle is a grown woman who has sworn to never even look at a pumpkin after spending much of her childhood eating nothing by pumpkin. But one day a pumpkin truck drives by her house, and a pumpkin falls out and lands splat in her yard. She covers it with dirt and vows to never think about the pumpkin again. But several months later, sprouts begin to grow where the pumpkin landed in her yard. However, Rebecca Estelle vows not to water it so that will die. But several weeks later, she notices that the vines have grown. Eventually, despite ignoring the plant completely, Rebecca Estelle’s entire front yard is covered in pumpkins! But how to get rid of them? She devises a plan that brings the whole community together and also erases her negative association with pumpkins for good!
The Itsy Bitsy Pumpkin by Sonali Fry
This board book is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers.
It features bright illustrations and a rhyming story that can be sung to the tune of “The Itsy Bitsy Spider.” However, in this story we follow an “itsy bitsy pumpkin” as it rolls down a street and past a variety of Halloween frights including a ghoulish ghost and a pair of stinky goblin feet.
The Roll-Away Pumpkin by Junia Wonders
On a windy autumn day, Marla Little’s pumpkin starts to roll away. “Help!” she calls as she chases her pumpkin all over town after the roll-away pumpkin, past the farmer, baker, milkman, and so on. How will Marla finally get her pumpkin to stop? This tale is whimsical and engaging with repeated phrases throughout that kids will love to recite along with the book.
More pumpkin resources for kids
More pumpkin posts from Gift of Curiosity:
- Describe a pumpkin using all 5 senses
- Pumpkin decomposition demonstration
- Pumpkin decomposition experiment
- Pumpkin math: Measuring the circumference of a pumpkin
- Pumpkin arts and crafts
- Pumpkin do-a-dot printables
- Printable pumpkin outlines
In pumpkin patches | Pulse UK
It must be admitted that Halloween will not be the same this year, because the most fun and favorite traditions of its children (trick-o-treating or carols) are impossible for obvious reasons.
However, one tradition can be preserved - a family trip to the pumpkin beds for their pumpkin. Of course, you can buy it in the supermarket, but it’s much more pleasant and interesting to choose and take your own from the garden. You won't find anything fresher or prettier. Half an hour from London there are a number of farms offering this kind of family fun. Often, in addition to pumpkins, it is allowed to collect other vegetables or fruits on the farm.
Many farms have cafes, their own shops and even playgrounds. But not all of them will be open due to the pandemic. The rules for booking your visit have also changed. The maximum number of groups is now limited to 6 people and advance booking is required.
Foxes Farm
The farm is located 40 minutes by car from Stratford, near the town of Basildon. Here you can choose your pumpkin or buy from already collected ones. From entertainment - "climbing" on a huge haystack and riding garden wheelbarrows.
Family Ticket (for 4 people) £5.00.
Foxes Farm Produce, Watch House Farm Wash Road Laindon SS15 4ER
www.foxesfarmproduce.co.uk
Stanhill Farm
Half an hour from Peckham South London. Here, throughout October, you will find a large selection of pumpkins of all sizes and different types - both in the beds and already cut. Plus - gorgeous autumn landscapes for your social networks.
Open: Tuesday - Sunday.
Birchwood Road, Wilmington, Dartford, DA2 7HD
www.stanhillfarm.co.uk
Tulleys Farm
There is also an option for evening pumpkin picking - for fans of the Halloween atmosphere (darker and scarier).
Tulleys Farm, Turners Hill Road, Turners Hill, Crawley, West Sussex
tulleyspyopumpkins.digitickets.co.uk
Priory Farm
They generally specialize in Halloween themes.
Unlike other farms, you can get to the pumpkin patches on a real tractor, and then try to unravel some mysterious incident (Discovery Walk trail) and get to Pumpkin Palace as a result.
Priory Farm, Sandy Lane, South Nutfield, Redhill, Rh2 4EJ
tickettailor.com
Bocketts
A great choice for animal lovers because it's a 2-in-1 pumpkin farm and mini zoo. With pony and tractor rides, the opportunity to feed piglets, kids, as well as a special soft play area, this is a real children's paradise. No wonder this place is so popular with elementary schools who often bring their students here. On the eve of Halloween, the farm will host an entertaining and educational festival called Wizards & Witches Week, where children will be able to get to know real reptiles, “do” practical magic in the style of characters from the Harry Potter books, and take part in solving mysterious “crimes” (adapted for children, of course).
) and - without this, in any way - cut your own pumpkin.
Bocketts Farm, Young Street, Fetcham, Leatherhead KT22 9BS
www.bockettsfarm.co.uk
Crockford Bridge Farm
This farm has not canceled its annual Pumpkin Festival this year.
Crockford Bridge Farm, New Haw Road, Addlestone, Nr. Weybridge KT15 2BU
Pumpkin Moon
The farm has branches in Maidstone, Bapchild and Rainham and grows about 80 types of pumpkins and other close relatives. Reinem also has a corn maze, and all three farms have free parking and hot food stalls.
Open days in October: 10 and 11, 17 and 18, 23, 31. From 10 to 16 hours.
www.pumpkinmoon.uk
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How to grow a pumpkin in the garden?
Contents:
- Soil Requirements
- How to arrange a pumpkin in the garden?
- Landing dates
- Cucurbit care
- Bed preparation
- Seeds for future plantings
Pumpkin is a heat-loving crop rich in vitamins.
It contains carotene, which helps restore vision, potassium, which maintains the tone of the heart muscle, and many other useful substances. The healthiest part of a pumpkin is the seeds. They are rich in vitamins E, B1 and B2, they are used in the fight against parasites in the body, the oil obtained from pumpkin seeds is used to treat skin diseases and muscular dystrophy.
Soil requirements
The highest yields are harvested from fertile chernozem and loamy soil, into which organic fertilizers are applied. It is best to plant a pumpkin in place of vegetable crops that were previously fertilized with manure, such as cabbage. It is better to plant a pumpkin in its past place no earlier than four years later.
How to arrange the pumpkin in the garden?
For full growth and development, each plant will need an area of \u200b\u200b3 square meters. Rows of pumpkins are planted at a distance of 2 m from another row, and at least 1.5 meters are left between plants in a row.
Pumpkin culture is quite photophilous, so it is planted in open, lit places. A bucket of compost or rotted manure is introduced into the soil under the holes. Additionally, the earth is fertilized with ash (2 cups) and superphosphate (50 g).
Planting dates
If in the southern regions the pumpkin is planted immediately in open ground, then in the northern regions the crop is usually grown using seedlings. Pumpkin seedlings are allowed to form for 20-25 days until the true leaves mature. After the frost has passed, the seedlings can be planted in the ground. If the pumpkin is kept for longer than 25 days, then it becomes a fairly mature plant, and takes root much worse in the garden. To get good seedlings by the time of planting in the beds, pumpkins are sown in the middle lane in early May. After the plant germinates, the strongest shoots are left, and the weaker shoots are pinched so as not to damage the root system of the neighboring sprout.
If it was not possible to grow seedlings, the seeds are planted in open ground.
In this case, the timing of planting should be calculated so that seedlings appear immediately after the end of spring frosts.
Please note!
Pumpkin seedlings die even at low sub-zero temperatures (-0.5 ° C). For pumpkin sprouts, a long decrease in temperature to 5-7 ° C during the week is detrimental. In order to protect seedlings from frost, they are covered with plastic wrap to maintain soil temperature. The root system of a young pumpkin is very sensitive to low temperatures, unlike its vegetative part.
Cucurbit care
The main thing when caring for a pumpkin is weeding and loosening. The plant likes moderate watering. To facilitate the work, you can buy automatic watering, which will irrigate the plants at a given interval. In the initial period of growth, the pumpkin is occasionally watered in dry weather. During the fruiting period, it is recommended to moderately water the plant. When in contact with moist soil, gourd stems give rise to adventitious roots, which then grow deep into the soil.
These roots provide the plant with additional nutrition. With abundant soil moisture, the pumpkin ripening process can be delayed. If the fruits are poorly formed, they are fed with manure solution and chicken droppings.
Please note!
To make the pumpkin ripen faster, leave 3 to 4 fruits. If you leave less, then the fruits will be very large. The main stem of the pumpkin is pinched over 3-4 leaves. The tops of the lashes are also pinched, leaving 3 to 5 leaves above the pumpkin ovary. All excess side shoots are removed.
Bed preparation
Soil preparation for pumpkins begins with the arrival of autumn. The earth is insulated: beds are dug 1.2 meters wide and 1 meter high. A great option is to buy metal beds. With the advent of spring, they dig a trench, two spades deep. Cover the earthen recess with organic fertilizers, mix them with manure, add compost and wood ash. A layer of earth excavated from the trench is poured on top, and compost is poured on top.
