Procrastinators can still get in the spirit at these favorite haunts
The corn maze at Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon covers 60 acres. Halloween is the last day to try it out this year. Courtesy Cool Patch Pumpkins
Happy (almost) Halloween! If you haven’t already, there’s still time to get in the Halloween spirit – and enjoy some time outdoors, too.
While pumpkin pickings may be slim at neighborhood supermarkets, there are still plenty of distinctive and good-looking gourds at local pumpkin patches. All seven Green Acres Nursery & Supply locations will keep their pumpkin patches open through (at least) Tuesday with more than a dozen varieties. (Uncarved pumpkins make good decorations for Thanksgiving, too.) Green Acres nurseries are located in Sacramento, Auburn, Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom, Rocklin and Roseville. For directions and details: www.idiggreenacres.com.
The biggest pumpkin patch in the Sacramento area is Dave’s Pumpkin Patch at Vierra Farms in West Sacramento. Open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday and Halloween Tuesday, Dave’s does a lot more than sell pumpkins. Located at 3010 Burrows Ave., the farm hosts its annual “Cornival” with hay ride, “jumping pillow,” corn maze, hay pyramid, hay maze and farm animals. Don’t miss Dave’s famous hot apple cider cinnamon donuts.
Admission is $12 per person, age 3 or older. Tots age 2 and younger admitted free. Because of its rural location, Dave’s accepts only cash or check on site. Tickets maybe purchased by debit or credit card in advance online: https://www.vierrafarms.com/.
Feel like taking a drive? Amador Flower Farm, known for its millions of daylilies, has its pumpkin patch and kid-friendly corn maze open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday. Admission and parking are free. In the heart of Amador wine country, the flower farm is located near Plymouth less than an hour from downtown Sacramento. Details and directions: https://www.amadorflowerfarm.com/.
Our area’s biggest and most famous Halloween attraction: Cool Patch Pumpkins’ world’s largest corn maze. Listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, this Dixon attraction draws crowds from throughout Northern California. During the final countdown to Halloween, it’s a little less packed and only 20 miles from Sacramento.
With the help of GPS, the maze – which covers more than 60 acres – is cut differently every September. Allow at least an hour to get through the maze. Five bridges allow visitors to get above the corn and see the pattern – which is actually a tribute to farmers.
“Every year, the maze is completely unique,” says the owners. “This year, we honor the hard work and dedication it takes to be a modern day farmer! In the 1800s, 90 percent of the U.S. population lived on farms; today it is around 1 percent. So no matter who you are or where you're from, chances are you have farming in your heritage.”
More than 20 years ago, Cool Patch started as a pumpkin patch, and the Cooley family farm still boasts an amazing selection in its U-Pick fields (as well as pre-harvested pumpkins). Cool Patch grows more than 50 varieties of decorative pumpkins and gourds. Choose the one you want and pick it right off the vine.
Located at 6150 Dixon Ave. West, Cool Patch is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and Halloween Tuesday. Admission is $22 for ages 6 and up; children age 5 and younger admitted free. Details and directions: https://www.coolpatchpumpkins.com/.
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Food in My Back Yard Series
May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success
April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds
March 4: Potatoes from the garden
Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space
Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting
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Garden Checklist for week of May 11
Make the most of the lower temperatures early in the week. We’ll be back in the 80s by Thursday.
* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. Time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.
* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.
* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.
* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters. (You also can transplant seedlings for many of the same flowers.)
* Plant dahlia tubers.
* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.
* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.
* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.
* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.
* Add mulch to the garden to maintain moisture. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch-to-1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.
* Remember to weed! Pull those nasties before they set seed.
* Water early in the day and keep seedlings evenly moist.
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