This week Tam Andersen is planting pumpkin seeds in her greenhouse.
If they’re seeded now, the plants will be ready for customers in May. She’ll also transplant several acres of pumpkin plants in her Bon Accord, Alta., market garden.
By October, weather permitting, the pumpkins will draw Edmonton customers to her farm for the Haunted Pumpkin Festival.
The pumpkins and the festival are one more way for Andersen to attract people to her farm, Prairie Gardens and Greenhouses, a 25-minute drive north of Edmonton.
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“We hope it will be a profitable farm diversification project some day,” said Andersen, who started growing pumpkins three years ago after attending farm diversification workshops.
“We were looking for something to do in the fall.”
Last year, more than 10,000 people came to the Haunted Pumpkin Festival, held each weekend in October.
“It’s been terrific exposure so far,” said Andersen, who also hosts a Strawberry Festival in July.
Like many new ventures, Andersen’s effort involved a lot of work with little return so far.
“As a money maker it’s not there yet,” she said.
The first time, it took almost a year of planning to get ready for the weekends.
An old farmhouse was renovated into a Haunted House, complete with professional stage theatre props.
Actors give the visitors a scare and the local ambulance personnel “rescue” the victims from the haunted house.
Crop and bale mazes were designed and built. For smaller children, there is a fairy tale walk with friendly witches.
There’s decorations, traffic control, drinks and snacks.
“It takes an incredible amount of manpower,” said Andersen, a mother of a one-year-old child and a three-year-old.
“We try to balance our family with our business. We’re growers learning how to be entertainment farmers.”
It was the heavy workload that convinced another farmer, Eldon Galloway, to grow pumpkins for sale to stores rather than enticing customers to the farm.
“I wasn’t prepared to put out the time or money,” said Galloway, who has a U-pick strawberry farm, Everlasting Treasures, at Fort Saskatchewan, east of Edmonton.
“It takes a great deal of labor to market them. There’s only one guy here.”
Galloway said it wasn’t easy to convince local grocery stores to stock his fresh, local pumpkins.
Some store managers were willing to try it, but others were tied up with wholesale contracts and could not take on any more.
Like Andersen, Galloway became interested in pumpkins as a possible farm tourist draw four years ago while attending Alberta Agriculture workshops.
The idea of pumpkin festivals, hay rides and apple cider days was enticing.
First, he needed to know if he could grow pumpkins on the number one soil outside Edmonton.
The answer is maybe.
On good years they grow great. But last year, the summer was cool and the crop was a failure. Pumpkins need heat.
Galloway had planned to harvest 90,000 kilograms of pumpkins on four acres and ended up with 2,300 kg. “It’s a real kick. I had virtually nothing last year.”
Galloway will plant his leftover pumpkin seed this year.
“I was hoping for some good returns. I got a lot of pumpkins, but they were all green.”
Unstable October weather could be the reason that pumpkin festivals haven’t caught on in Western Canada like they have in Eastern Canada and the United States, said Linda Christensen of Linda’s Market Gardens of Smoky Lake, Alta.
“It could be really big if our weather was warmer,” said Christensen who grows pumpkins in her greenhouse and market garden as part of the local pumpkin festival.
Northern Alberta is usually guaranteed a killing frost before the end of September. Frost-free weather until the end of October is unheard of.
“Weather is a real hindrance.”
About one-fifth of her 15-acre market garden is used for pumpkin production. She also grows cabbage, cucumbers, peas and carrots.
Pumpkins have been a drawing card to Smoky Lake, which has billed itself as the pumpkin capital.
In its first year, the festival drew 50 people to the curling rink. Now, almost 7,000 people come to Smoky Lake for pumpkin golf, giant pumpkin contests and pumpkin carving competitions.
“It’s really a great event for a small town.”
