Thread: Damage from Irene could lead to pumpkin shortage

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Great! now we cannot even setup cheap decorations this year.

"This is one nasty trick!
Northeastern states are facing a jack-o’-lantern shortage this Halloween after Hurricane Irene destroyed hundreds of pumpkin patches across the region, farmers say.
“I think there’s going to be an extreme shortage of pumpkins this year,” said Darcy Pray, owner of Pray’s Family Farms in upstate Keeseville. “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.”
The wholesale price for a bin of 32 to 45 pumpkins ranged from $150 to $200 upstate, about twice the normal price, the farmer said.
Pray saw his entire crop of about 15,000 to 20,000 pumpkins, washed into Lake Champlain when Hurricane Irene raked the Northeastern United States in late August."


Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/nationa...#ixzz1YbJynjaE

Interesting. Last night on our local news, the owner of a very large farm complex in our area said the pumpkin crop was very good this year. Prices are holding to what they were last year and there is an abundance of pumpkins all over this area.

They reported this on our news too. It was also pointed out that the area Irene hit isn't somehow the only place in the States that grows pumpkins. Also several farmers were trying to stay optimistic about being able to save some of it. But it will definitely increase the prices. I got 4 fake pumpkins (2 med 2 small) from Michaels at 50% + 20% off on Sunday. Kinda wish I'd bought more now. Their pumpkins look so fake though, I'm going to need to do something to make them look more realistic. Right now they look like basketballs someone glued a piece of a branch to.

None of the news stories I saw mentioned that farmers have been working on heat tolerant pumpkins to grow in Florida. Sigh. One of these years...

Oh the huge manatee.