Sunday 25 October 2020
We last visited The Patch MK in August for the sunflowers, and as soon as I heard that tickets were on sale for pumpkin picking, I jumped right on it. It was so much fun at The Patch the first time around, with plenty of other attractions and things to see. I did kinda regret booking so late for the pumpkins – I watched on in envy as everyone else on Instagram had visited and brightened their autumn feeds with buckets of orange. After a bit of rain on the Saturday before, the fields were muddy – but worse than that, during our visit there was a torrential downpour!
The arrival
We drove past where all the sunflowers were, and of course, now, they’re all wilted and dead – ready to be cut down for harvesting. Parking was in a different area of the farm, with an attendant showing everyone where to go. Once we were good to go, there was no queue to get in.
The prices of the pumpkins were clearly marked on a blackboard at the entrance. I can’t remember now each specific price, but I think the ‘munchkin’ pumpkins were £1, with the prices increasing to between £2-5, depending on diameter. There was also the option at the entrance to hire a wheelbarrow for £1. Something we didn’t bother with – but later regretted, especially as soon as the rain started!
There were so many varieties, colours and sizes of pumpkin and I couldn’t wait to go into the field. But sadly, that wasn’t the first thing on Alfie’s agenda…
Other attractions
First up, there was the double slide. This wasn’t set up during the sunflowers, so no wonder Alfie rushed to it. It was all fun and games, until he slid down too fast and fell off the end. He ended up on his hands and knees in the mud. Still, he got up again and carried on!
There was also the tractor barrel ride, that we went on before. Again, it was £2.50 per person, and cash only. Unlike in August, there was a queue for a ride – with the barrels seating 10 people, in five rows of two. Alfie wasn’t keen on waiting and was very impatient – but it was worth it once we were seated. The ride seemed longer this time, going across a different field too. At this point, the rain started, but only light and fine – so it didn’t spoil our enjoyment. In fact, Alfie enjoyed it more this time, and it could be down to the terrain. It was so much bumpier, to the point I felt my bum leave the seat!
The giant haybales were also still in action, meaning I had a mini heart attack when Alfie asked to go on them. He really wanted to climb to the top, as he’d watched the bigger children running and jumping about… but that wasn’t happening! It was bad enough that he was running up and down, as I don’t think he really knew where the end was. There was the maze too, but we didn’t go in that this time.
Pumpkin patch
Oh wow! I was really impressed by the pumpkin patch. Considering how late in the month our visit was, there were still so many different kinds of pumpkins and squashes – a variety of colours, sizes and shapes (they weren’t all round!) – including some I had never seen before.
We decided we would all pick a pumpkin each, although Alfie wouldn’t choose. We kept pointing and picking them up and he said no, and instead, wanted the biggest ones in the field (but struggled to pick them up). After a paddy, I just chose two and we were on our way.
Despite the signs regarding dropping and kicking the pumpkins, there were some that were quite badly damaged, which was a shame. Although beautiful inside and great for wildlife, we had to sometimes negotiate the scattered remains.
And for fabulous photo opportunities (maybe not when the rain is torrential and you look totally windswept), there was the pumpkin house and pumpkins sign. I’ve only just noticed that the MK in PUMPKINS is a different colour, and that’s pretty cool! I was hoping to get Alfie’s photo by the sign, but by that point, he’d had enough and while I was busy taking selfies, Ash took him to pay for the pumpkins and then return to the car.
To be honest, the elements were getting bad, and they were worse once we were in the car and driving home. Had it been better, there’s no doubt we’d have stayed longer. I wasn’t ready to go, even though we’d seen and done most of the attractions and things in the field. But we’ll definitely return next year.
I’ve just cut up our pumpkins and have a few ideas of what to do with them. I’m thinking some pumpkin risotto, maybe some soup for the winter months, but who knows what else? What do you recommend?
Love, Lucy xx
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Love, Lucy xx