Thread: Pumpkin Shortage because of Irene!

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http://news.yahoo.com/northeast-farm...211647231.html

You may all panic now.

NEW YORK (AP) — Northeastern states are facing a jack-o'-lantern shortage this Halloween after Hurricane Irene destroyed hundreds of pumpkin patches across the region, farmers say.
Wholesale prices have doubled in some places as farmers nurse their surviving pumpkin plants toward a late harvest. Some farmers are trying to buy pumpkins from other regions to cover orders.
"I think there's going to be an extreme shortage of pumpkins this year," said Darcy Pray, owner of Pray's Family Farms in Keeseville, in upstate New York. "I've tried buying from people down in the Pennsylvania area, I've tried locally here and I've tried reaching across the border to some farmers over in the Quebec area. There's just none around."

It's true. Too much water at the wrong time will destroy a pumpkin patch, and Irene was the perfect storm. Bad for HallowFreaks, disastrous for the farmers who have thousands of dollars that are now rotten in the fields. I'm seriously considering growing a small patch under cover (e.g. a hoop house) in the coming years, just to see if we can avoid this.

Only thing unusual is that y'all up north are now facing what's plagued us for a few years in the south.

Last year we were living in NM, and we had a canned pumpkin shortage. Really!
My "friend" bought a bunch of canned pumpkin and warned us. We ignored her warnings. She was the only one who had cans of pumpkin all fall and winter. And she wouldn't let us buy even one can!

Anybody in the Northeast have a pumpkin report? I am in MO. We have pumpkins for sale at Walmart and a few other places.

I got a few out of the garden so we have some...

No shortage in Idaho. We trade our taters straight up for truck loads of pumpkins.

I've already seen small pumpkins in Walmart and then big pumpkins in Stop & Shop and Market Basket (local markets)

Irene killed my patch. Frowny face. I'm hoping I can grab however many I need the week before Halloween as usual.

Saw a box of HUGE, perfectly round pumpkins in the garden section of lowes the other day. First of the season too.

Its true. I was talking to a local farmer who has his farm up the road from my old place and he said he watched his pumpkins float away during Irene. His corn maze survived and he's hoping that this and his haunted trail make up for the losses.

Rotten ol Irene! It is never good to hurt a pumpkin. I have alot around here already also, thank God. I hope everyone is ok and can get all the pumpkins they want for the season.

Texas and New Mexico did alright, even with the severe drought. The pumpkins are much smaller than normal though.