Picking pumpkins!

So, northern PA has grapes, Adams County is the apple capital of the world, and the entire state has a big corn and soybean crop. Name one other big PA cash crop?...Pumpkins!

This is the 13th year in a row we've picked and sold them (and, unfortunately, probably the last. Too much work for Dad to do himself, and too hard for me to commit to getting back home enough to help out!). It's fun! The first year, we figured we'd do all the sales roadside...and guess what?...Roadside sales were horrible! I averaged about 1 pumpkin per hour on a good day. Flea market selling didn't work, either.

Well, that year, we had over 500 pumpkins. How to sell them? I made some signs and put them along the roads near my parent's home. My dad thought I was nuts "No one will drive out here to buy pumpkins!" he said. Well, fortunately, he was wrong!

People came from everywhere, and we sold them all, even the pair I had put away for myself. Every year, we got a little bigger. A few years, we got stuck with some, but most times, it was a complete sell-out!

Picking them is difficult! Some of them buggers are heavy! Selling them, though, is fun! We have repeat customers who come out year after year looking for them. People bring their kids along to take pictures, and it is awesome.

Fall harvest time is my favorite time of the year! I just hate what comes next!...Winter, and the retail Christmas season!

By the way, a big thanks goes out to my cousins Ronnie and Guy. They both were a very big help with the picking this year. We couldn't have done it without them!