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Toole County

You-Pick Pumpkin Patch

Published: 2020
By Kim Woodring
The Community Garden in Shelby hosted their annual You-Pick Pumpkin Patch in October. This annual event is a great way to showcase agriculture in our small community. Many people do not realize that we even have a Community Garden, and they are delighted to see the different shapes and sizes of pumpkins and gourds. This agri-tourism event is also a great economic driver for the community of Shelby. The pumpkin patch is advertised in the local paper, radio, and Facebook, so many families will drive from neighboring towns to give their kids the experience of picking pumpkins. After the pumpkins are picked, families often shop and eat lunch in Shelby. The fee that the garden collects for pumpkins goes directly back into the community and right back into fixing up the community garden and planting pumpkins and gourds for next year. After the pumpkins were picked through, some remaining pumpkins were donated to the local elder care facility. The residents of the facility were able to paint the pumpkins and they had a great time. This project reaches and supports many community members, from planting through harvest.
Zoriah Done, Daviah Doane, Dax Nelson, and Oran Nelson at the pumpkin patch.