With Halloween right around the corner, Pennsylvania shoppers might find themselves searching for the perfect pumpkin to decorate their home, make homemade pumpkin pie or carve the perfect jack-o-lantern. But the color and size of pumpkin you have to choose from may depend on where you are in the state.

"What we saw this year was a large difference between eastern and western Pennsylvanian pumpkin crops," says Michael Orzolek, professor of vegetable crops in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. " Growers in areas west of Centre County experienced less timely rain than those to the east, so their pumpkins tended to be smaller and fewer in number."

Eastern Pennsylvania received timely rain showers throughout July and August, according to Orzolek. "The crops tended to be a better size and a higher quality in the east," he says. "The stems were greener, the pumpkins were generally larger and they had great color."

To make matters worse for western Pennsylvania farmers, the small amounts of rain and moisture might not have been the only factor hurting their pumpkin crops. "With the high temperatures, bees tended to leave the field and return to the hive early," says Orzolek. "This decrease in time spent by pollinating bees directly affects the number of pumpkins a farmer will have."

While it seems that farmers in the west were at a severe disadvantage this year, there was a silver lining. With an unfortunate virus attacking pumpkin crops and reducing supplies in both New York and New Jersey, demand for Pennsylvania pumpkins increased in the Northeast.

"With the crops in New York and New Jersey being diminished, suppliers looked to Pennsylvania for their needs," says Orzolek. " Pennsylvania is already number one or two for pumpkin suppliers in the United States, but the unfortunate situation that faced growers in other northeastern states did help some of the Pennsylvania farmers who struggled with crops this year."

###

EDITORS: For more information Mike Orzolek at 814-863-2251 or by e-mail at mdo1@psu.edu

Writer: Ryan Szivos Editor: Jeff Mulhollem Penn State Ag Sciences News Office: 814-863-2719