Pumpkin patch combines entertainment with education
ALLEGANY, Ore. -Tis the season for pumpkins, but with patches far and few in between here on the South Coast, one Allegany family is hauling in families and schools by the bus load, out to the Mahaffy Ranch.
Thousands of bright orange pumpkins began popping up earlier this Fall, after Ryan and Shawna Mahaffy and their three sons planted thousands of seeds, over three acres.
And eager to take a hay ride, wander through the grass maze and pick out a potential jack-o-lantern are families and kids of all ages. More than two dozen schools have booked their field trip at the ranch, so the Mahaffy's are also using this as an educational experience for the kids, showing them how bees pollinate the pumpkins and other fruit and how they care for their cattle.
"I think it's really important for kids now days to realize where their produce comes from, where their beef comes from," said Ryan. "I mean most of the kids in coos county have a pretty good idea but some kids you talk to, they have no idea where things come from."
Shawna laughed, "it's not just from the grocery store or McDonald's."
Wanting to do something fun as a family, the Mahaffy's say they knew they were taking a risk when they started this patch, especially with an unseasonably wet summer. But luckily, it didn't carve away too much of their crop.
Ryan said, "This soil here, it's like a sandy loam, so it does really well. The seeds don't rot and so we're able to grow them and they did really well. So what we did is we came out with the boys, we rototilled the whole patch, then planted the seed and the kids added some fertilizer and some seeds and they did quite well."
Mahaffy's Ranch is located about 13 miles up the Allegany River, right across from the post office. They're open Friday through Sunday, from 10-6, until the end of the month. And you can have your pick of pumpkins for 25 to 40-cents per pound.
Thousands of bright orange pumpkins began popping up earlier this Fall, after Ryan and Shawna Mahaffy and their three sons planted thousands of seeds, over three acres.
And eager to take a hay ride, wander through the grass maze and pick out a potential jack-o-lantern are families and kids of all ages. More than two dozen schools have booked their field trip at the ranch, so the Mahaffy's are also using this as an educational experience for the kids, showing them how bees pollinate the pumpkins and other fruit and how they care for their cattle.
"I think it's really important for kids now days to realize where their produce comes from, where their beef comes from," said Ryan. "I mean most of the kids in coos county have a pretty good idea but some kids you talk to, they have no idea where things come from."
Shawna laughed, "it's not just from the grocery store or McDonald's."
Wanting to do something fun as a family, the Mahaffy's say they knew they were taking a risk when they started this patch, especially with an unseasonably wet summer. But luckily, it didn't carve away too much of their crop.
Ryan said, "This soil here, it's like a sandy loam, so it does really well. The seeds don't rot and so we're able to grow them and they did really well. So what we did is we came out with the boys, we rototilled the whole patch, then planted the seed and the kids added some fertilizer and some seeds and they did quite well."
Mahaffy's Ranch is located about 13 miles up the Allegany River, right across from the post office. They're open Friday through Sunday, from 10-6, until the end of the month. And you can have your pick of pumpkins for 25 to 40-cents per pound.
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