Britain’s hottest summer on record has significantly affected this year’s pumpkin crop, with farmers reporting lower yields and noticeably smaller specimens than usual. Around 24 million pumpkins are sold in the UK each year, but eagle-eyed buyers may notice a difference in their favourite spooky decoration or autumnal culinary treat this time.
Farmers report drastic drops in yields
Growers who have reported a huge shortage of gourds this year include Liz Paterson and Andrew King, who usually produce around 10,000 pumpkins at their farm in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. This year they have only 50.
“The pumpkins just didn’t grow this year,” Ms Paterson said. “We could have tried to irrigate; we have got water, but we also have 500 breeding ewes, so we needed to give the water to them.”
She added: “I think the weather was too hot as well; they just didn’t pollinate, so it just never worked at all really.”
Drought also hits sheep farming
As well as a shortage of pumpkins, the “horrendous” drought has scorched the farm’s grass, a necessary resource for rearing sheep. There’s little optimism that next year will be much better due to the effect of El Niño.
Ms Paterson said that while decisions would have to be made to adapt to the challenging weather, they would still try to grow a batch of gourds. But she added: “If it doesn’t work, then we’ll have to start thinking this climate doesn’t work for pumpkins. What else can we do?”
Second consecutive poor season in the New Forest
Niall Smith, who works at Picking Patch, a seasonal farm attraction in the New Forest, Hampshire, said it was the second season in a row where crops had been badly affected. He explained conditions were so poor the attraction had turned to a local family farm to grow their pumpkins for Halloween events; however, even those came out 50 to 60 per cent smaller than the squash they normally grow.
Mr Smith said: “We have a pumpkin market, it all looks very pretty, but then we’ve gone very much into Halloween activities, and we’re not just a pick-your-own site.”
“I know there’s a lot of patches that have got very, very disappointing crops, and by half term they’ll be out,” he added. The grower added that while it was usually possible to turn to other farms that would normally have thousands of excess, this year “there’s not a chance”.
National shortage, especially of large pumpkins
Ross Wright, a farmer from Exeter, said there has been a national shortage of pumpkins, with particularly large ones in short supply.
“We’re just going to have to grow more acres to get the pumpkins we need for Halloween every year,” he said.
