The Biggest Pumpkin In The Patch: Can Leesburg Beat U.S. Record?

LEESBURG, VA — There's a contest for everything, and pumpkins are no exception. You may be rightfully proud of that enormous pumpkin in your patch, but unless it weighs upward of 2,500 pounds, you're not flirting with any kind of record. It could be a record in the Leesburg area, though.

That's a fun challenge to consider as you and your family head out on a rite of fall and visit the pumpkin patches around Leesburg. Where's the biggest pumpkin you've seen?

You can even make it a diversion from the coronavirus pandemic with a classroom outing. Teach them a little about pi — not pumpkin pie, but the mathematical formula to calculate the circumference of a circle — or how to convert pounds to kilograms.

Here's where to start:

Temple Hall Farm Regional Park

Address: 15855 Limestone School Rd., Leesburg
Season opening/closing dates: Oct. 1-31
Attractions: Enjoy a safe family outing at Temple Hall Farm picking pumpkins.
Hours: Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Pricing: $10 entry fee per person includes a pumpkin. Tickets are sold at the door. Credit is preferred for a contactless transaction.
Phone: 703-779-9372
Website: www.virginia.org/Listings/Events/TempleHallFarmPumpkinPatch

Loudounberry
Address: 14917 James Monroe Hwy., Leesburg
Season opening/closing dates: Oct. 1-31
Attractions: Enjoy a safe family outing at Temple Hall Farm picking pumpkins.
Hours: Open daily 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Phone: 703-772-8104
Website: https://loudounberry.com/

Great Country Farms
Address: 18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Bluemont
Attractions: Come pick fresh apples, find the perfect pumpkin, challenge the corn maze and play in our 12-acre farm play area.
Hours: Open weekdays 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and until 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Advance tickets required for Saturday and Sunday visits.
Pricing: Weekday admission: $10/child and $12/adult. Weekend and Columbus Day admission: $14/child and $16/adult. Children 2 and under are free.
Phone: 540-554-2073
Website: https://greatcountryfarms.com

Pumpkin Village at Leesburg Animal Park
Address: 19246 James Monroe Highway, Leesburg
Season opening/closing dates: Sept. 19-Nov. 3
Attractions: Pumpkin Village Fall Fest is packed with fun family activities. Giant hill slides, moon bounces, wagon rides, petting zoo, pedal carts, the corn bin, weekend entertainment & more.
Hours: Tuesday-Friday 9:30 a.m.– 5 p.m., Saturday-Sunday 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. or 2 p.m.-6 p.m.
Pricing: Weekday admission: $15/adult and $12/child. Weekend: $18/adult and $15/child.
Phone: 703-433-0002
Website: https://www.pumpkinfestleesburg.com

Wegmeyer Farms
Address: 38299 Hughesville Rd., Hamilton
Attractions: Pick-your-own pumpkins is by reservation only.
Hours: Open Sunday, Monday, (closed Tuesday and Wednesday) Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Reservation time slots from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Pricing: Reservations are $25 per family (not per person) and include first $25 in pumpkins. When you get to the checkout, $25 will be deducted from your total purchase.
Phone: 540-751-1782
Website: https://wegmeyerfarms.com

Cox Farms
Address: 15621 Braddock Rd., Centreville
Season opening/closing dates: Sept. 25-Nov. 2
Attractions: While Cox Farms' fall festival will be closed for the 2020 season, you can still stock up on seasonal essentials. Order online, and then pick up your goods at our drive-thru market.
Hours: Open for pickup 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily
Pricing: Pumpkins will be available for online purchase soon. If you purchase a pumpkin, you'll get to choose your perfect pumpkin from an assortment. When you shop for pumpkins online, you'll choose from several size categories. In addition to the mini pumpkins and the patch pumpkins, you'll have the options of the standard carving pumpkins in small, medium, large and jumbo sizes. When you reach the loading station at the farm, you'll pull up to a pumpkin display.
Phone: 703-830-4121
Website: https://coxfarms.com

Read more here: Leesburg-Area Pumpkin Patches 2020

The largest pumpkin ever recorded in the U.S. was grown by Steve Geddes. The pumpkin that the Boscawen, New Hampshire, man grew in 2018 tipped the scale at 2,528 pounds to win the top prize at the Deerfield Fair. The impressively sized pumpkin was 165 pounds heavier than the previous U.S. record-holder.

Neither came close to besting world record-holder, Mathia Willemijn, whose 2016 record still stands for the 2,624.6-pound pumpkin that won that year's European Weigh-Off in Germany, according to Guinness World Records, which describes the gourd as "car-sized."

Whether pumpkins are in the 2,500- or 2,600-pound range, it's a lot of pumpkin.

Ask the kiddos this: What else found in nature weighs that much?

A hippopotamus living in the wild can weigh about 5,800 pounds, but some of the smaller hippos weigh about the same as Geddes' pumpkin.

The largest and heaviest bovine species is the Asian gaur. The bulls can weigh up to 2,500 pounds, but cows weigh significantly less. Another fun fact that separates these cattle from many other species: Both male and female gaurs have horns.

The world and U.S. record-setting pumpkins both are larger than the Australian saltwater crocodile, the largest croc species in the world. They can weigh more than 2,200 pounds.

And here's another fun fact from Bengtson's, a Chicago-area pumpkin patch, and perhaps a lesson in agriculture for the spring: The health of the vine matters.

"If you are attempting to grow a massive pumpkin, you should realize that the entire vine is working toward that same goal," the site says. "All of the water and sunlight received by the leaves and roots are being dedicated to the single pumpkin."

Making sure the pumpkin has room to grow is another key. Growers should tear out roots that may be near the pumpkin while taking care not to detach the stem.

Once the pumpkin reaches the size of a softball, remove all the other pumpkins from the vine so all the plant's energy is directed at creating a prize-winning pumpkin.