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Kansas | Back when I was in vo-tech I helped a guy that raised pumpkins and then hauled them off to Kansas city to sell them at a farmers market (I'm gonna assume a farmers market) near and just before halloween time.
The way we harvested these things was he gave each of us a set of scissor style pruners and we were to cut the pumpkins with a good couple inches of stem still on the top side. Then we would carry them all to one spot and form a windrow from one end of the field to the other. I suppose we took a 40 foot swipe at a time to put in a windrow...........give or take, memory fades on that part.
Then after the fields were picked and windrowed he would come with the high sided c60 chevy. One person would drive slowly through the field straddle or aside of the windrow. 3 or 4 people would be in the back of the truck and then a bunch of us on the ground. We would toss the pumpkins to the guys in the back of the truck and they would lay them in there nice and neat and orderly.
Occassionally there was a big hound or a really small cutey or an oddball shaped one that made you wonder how it grew like that. Those he put in the front of the cab with him and were sold at a higher price for thier uniquness.
Price wise though....I do not know that I was ever told what he got for those pumpkins other than I thought he was commiting hiway murder that people would pay that much for a silly pumpkin.
I remember him telling the story about a big one he had and put a price tag of 60 bucks on it. Lil girl came up and told her daddy that was the one she wanted. He handed out 3 jacksons and off they went and never batted an eye.
I'm sorry I couldn't offer more. I think I helped out on one of the only pumpkin farms in Kanas that did a large scale of more than a couple acres. It was hard work and I will never do it again. I'll sack groceries at a store first. At least they have a cart to carry them to the car. | |
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pumpkin help
