First Pioneer Farm Credit: Community: Ag Tours

Pumpkin Patch

Nestled in New York's picturesque Schoharie Valley the Pumpkin Patch is the prescription for "affordable family fun."

So says the VanDerwerken family of their ever-popular Pick-A-Pumpkin Pumpkin Patch in Esperance, N.Y., about 30 miles west of Albany.

This entertainment-farming venture grew out of the family's original dairy farm about 16 years ago, and developed into their version of a Norman Rockwell autumn scene.

A family working together
Lois and Jim VanDerwerken and their eight children are all involved in the business in some way, even though the family spreads throughout the country and across professions — from lawyers to teachers to computer specialists.

A little history
In the beginning of their entertainment-farming venture, the VanDerwerkens grew five acres of pumpkins and offered hayrides to their pumpkin patch. Gradually they added pick-your-own-pie pumpkins, jack-be-littles, gourds and Indian corn.

It wasn't until the family encourgaged school groups to visit, that the business really took off. They added story time, a one-room schoolhouse and a petting zoo inside the old dairy barn. They built a hay maze and a corn maze and made pumpkin people of characters from children's stories. They set up kid-safe tractors for sitting, a dark witch tunnel for scaring, a long pipe tunnel for crawling, a huge truck tire for climbing and a Jack-and-Jill hill for rolling. And, of course, a maple tree with a hollow center, just right for picture taking.

Even more fun for everyone!
Pumpkin Patch also has a theater for showing their own pumpkin farm movie, written and directed by a VanDerwerken daughter. The renovated dairy barn offers shelter from bad weather. The snack bar and gift shop are in the old barn hayloft. A clubhouse was built around a tree for climbing to the second story with a fireman's pole just for sliding to the basement. Plus children can pulley a can of feed on the goat walk. Why? To watch the goats climb to the top for their reward, of course!

A successful and safe school program
Today the VanDerwerkens serve 150 schools and up to 9,000 students annually. Jim says, "The difficult part about school tours is hundreds of children arrive at the same time. The best part is when children go home excited about their day and convince mom and dad to bring the rest of the family back to visit us. In the entertainment industry kids make destination decisions, and we enjoy entertaining more than 70,000 grandparents, parents, children and guests every season."

Jim continued, "All our exhibits and activities are safe and durable, and we have the luxury of wide open spaces for families to roam as they like. We can also proudly say that we have never had a serious injury at the farm."

Photo ops also abound with unrivaled artwork by Jim's nephew, such as faces on trees and characters on signs. Jim even disguised a fuel tank as a train!

The VanDerwerken family
The family spends spring and summer planting and preparing for the season. The summer brings a few of the VanDerwerken's 32 grandchildren from across the United States to live with Jim and Lois and enjoy life with their New York cousins for a while. Of course, they also help around the pumpkin patch.

Jim and Lois save winter to visit family, and often plan their trips in conjunction with a National Direct Marketing Conference. Lois says, "We've benefited greatly from industry seminars and tours. Every year we find a new idea that we think will work well on our farm. We implement some and give others our own twist."

Be sure to stop by the Pumpkin Patch in October. You'll surely enjoy your day, and all that this friendly, energetic family has to offer you and your family.