All guides
How to pick pumpkins
4 min read
Half the reason American farms open to the public at all in October, and the one pick where what you do with it decides what you choose.
228
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19
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September to November
picked
When you can pick pumpkins
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Across every region on Pickeria. Darker months are peak somewhere; your own region is narrower, and the table below gives it.
What to look for
- 1
Cut the stem with snips or a knife, leaving three or four inches. Never carry a pumpkin by its stem, which snaps and opens the fruit to rot
- 2
Knock it. A ripe pumpkin sounds hollow, and the rind should resist a fingernail rather than dent
- 3
Uniform colour with no soft patches, and a dry corky stem. A green stem means it was cut early
- 4
Check where it sat on the ground, which is where rot starts and where nobody looks
- 5
For pie, take a small dense variety rather than a big carving pumpkin, which is watery and stringy by design
What people get wrong
Every one of these is common enough to be worth naming.
- Carrying it by the stem, which snaps and opens the fruit to rot. The stem is a handle in appearance only
- Buying a carving pumpkin for a pie and concluding that homemade pumpkin pie is disappointing
- Not looking at the underside, which is where rot starts and where nobody checks
- Cutting one in the wet and storing it damp, which is how a pumpkin fails to last the month
Varieties worth knowing
Farms post the variety at the gate. This is what the names mean.
Carving pumpkins
Bred for size, a hollow cavity and a thin wall. Watery and stringy to eat, and that is deliberate.
Sugar or pie pumpkins
Small and dense, four to eight pounds. This is what you want if any of it is going in an oven.
Heirlooms
Cinderella, Jarrahdale, Long Island Cheese and the warty types. Better eating than a carver and far better looking on a step.
Miniatures
Jack Be Little and similar. Children will want twelve and they cost almost nothing.
Once you are home
Most people pick more than they planned to.
- Cure a cooking pumpkin in a warm dry spot for a week, which improves the flavour noticeably
- Roast halves cut side down rather than boiling, because boiled pumpkin is watery
- Purée freezes perfectly in measured pie quantities
- Roast the seeds. Rinse, dry properly, oil, salt and roast at 300F until they crack
Where you can pick pumpkins
228 farms across 19 regions, earliest season first. Every date came from the farm's own words.
New York, NY33 farms
Greig Farm, Von Thun's Country Farm Market, Ochs Orchard and 30 more
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September to November
Washington, DC23 farms
Marker-Miller Orchards, Great Country Farms, Baugher's Orchards and Farms and 20 more
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September to November
Overhiser Orchards, Schwallier's Country Basket, Crane Orchards and 18 more
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September to October
Philadelphia, PA19 farms
Weaver's Orchard, Kauffman Orchards, Linvilla Orchards and 16 more
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September to October
Minneapolis, MN18 farms
Pine Tree Apple Orchard, Afton Apple Orchard, Pleasant Valley Orchard and 15 more
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September to October
Detroit, MI15 farms
Spicer Orchards, Westview Orchards & Winery, Johnston Fruit Farms and 12 more
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September to October
Hartford, CT14 farms
March Farm, Belltown Hill Orchards, Bishop's Orchards Farm Market & Winery and 11 more
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September to October
Boston, MA12 farms
Tougas Family Farm, Parlee Farms, Westward Orchards and 9 more
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September to November
Seattle, WA10 farms
Celebration Farms, Schuh Farms, Jubilee Farm and 7 more
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September to October
Chicago, IL10 farms
Stade's Farm & Market, Johnson's Farm Produce, Keller's Farmstand and 7 more
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September to October
Charlotte, NC9 farms
Lineberger's Maple Springs Farm, Bush-N-Vine Farm, Hall Family Farm and 6 more
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September to October
Rochester, NY8 farms
Whittier Fruit Farm, Chase Farms Market, Burnap's Farm Market & Garden Cafe and 5 more
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September to October
Sacramento, CA8 farms
Bishop's Pumpkin Farm, Impossible Acres, 24 Carrot Farm and 5 more
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September to October
Portland, OR7 farms
Hoffman Farms Store, Albeke Farms, Bushue's Family Farm and 4 more
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September to October
Atlanta, GA6 farms
Washington Farms, Jaemor Farms, Oakhurst Farm and 3 more
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September to October
Los Angeles, CA5 farms
Tanaka Farms, Underwood Family Farms, Forneris Farms and 2 more
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September to October
Milwaukee, WI4 farms
The Little Farmer, Jelli's Market, Appleland Farm Market and 1 more
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September to October
Cleveland, OH4 farms
Geig's Orchard, Hillcrest Orchards, Arrowhead Orchard and 1 more
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September to October
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September to October
The one farm that publishes a price
Taken from the farm's own website, never from a directory. Most publish nothing at all, so these are worth knowing.
