Popular pumpkin patch in Oak Lake closing down

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/04/2022 (1426 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Despite serving as a popular agri-tourist site since 2006, the Meandher Creek Pumpkin Patch will no longer be open to Manitoba residents looking to take part in some wholesome family fun every fall.

On Monday, the organizers behind the attraction, located at the Meandher Creek Farm near Oak Lake, announced via Facebook that the pumpkin patch is being permanently shut down after “much soul searching, contemplation and discussion.”

Talking to the Sun on Tuesday, co-owner Judy Podobni said this path forward became increasingly clear over the past two years, since the pumpkin patch hasn’t been able to operate throughout that time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Everybody’s life has kind of gone in different directions now after two years and so we just decided that now is as good a time as any to make the final decision,” she said.

“And so we want to retire, the kids are moving on … and we just reached that point where we thought ‘do we really want to go at it again?’”

Podobni isn’t sure if she and her fellow owners have the energy to put together this event any more, since it requires year-round planning on top of their everyday farming tasks.

“We started planning in January and of course you had to have the pumpkins [planted] in May and we had to look after them all through the summer and then we had to get the site ready,” she said.

“I think a lot of people thought you just came [to the patch] and it just magically appeared, but it was a phenomenal amount of work to get it ready each fall for those eight weekends that we were open.”

Podobni said the decision to shutter their operation wasn’t made lightly, since she knows the Meandher Creek Pumpkin Patch means a lot to the thousands of people who visit the grounds every year.

Many of these same visitors shared their favourite pumpkin patch memories in Monday’s Facebook post announcing the closure, which has generated over 160 comments as of Tuesday afternoon.

“Our kiddos loved going here when they were little and your mini pie pumpkins among other treats introduced our family to making the perfect pumpkin pie from scratch,” user Christy Klaassen wrote. “Take care of yourselves.”

User June Fefchak also chimed in by writing: “You provided many families with some wonderful memories over the years and for that we are all thankful. Enjoy your new endeavours whatever they may be.”

The Meandher Creek Pumpkin Patch was originally started by Podobni, her husband Don and Louise Stitt, who were all looking for a way to diversify their farming operations in the mid-2000s.

After bearing witness to the popularity of similar events in Ontario and the northern United States, the trio finally decided to cultivate their own pumpkin patch in 2006, even though those first couple iterations left a lot to be desired in terms of programming.

“We look back at the pictures from the first year and we would say ‘why would anybody even come to this?’” Podobni recalls. “Because there wasn’t much to offer that first year.”

But Stitt and the Podobnis continued to expand the size and scope of their pumpkin patch as the years rolled by, adding features like corn trails, zip lines, horse-drawn cart rides and tractor pulls to liven up the proceedings.

“The one thing that I’ll probably miss the most is the pig races,” Podobni said on Tuesday. “I enjoyed that because it was so much fun to see those little pigs running around that track and to hear people cheering.”

Outside of attracting families, the Meandher Creek Pumpkin Patch grounds gradually became a popular destination for specialty groups like nearby schools looking to organize a field trip or even couples hoping to secure a scenic venue for their wedding.

The site also served as a reliable source of seasonable employment for younger residents, with around 30 staff being hired to help run things in 2019.

“It was really good for the community, especially as far as local employment for kids who didn’t have driver’s licences yet,” Podobni said. “They would get dropped off by parents and picked up, because it wasn’t far for them to go. So in that way, it’s a real loss for the community.”

While the Meandher Creek Pumpkin Patch is shutting down for good, Podobni confirmed the farm itself will continue to operate.

Additionally, the pumpkin patch site will still be available to rent for weddings, anniversaries or similar events.

But for right now, Podobni admits it still won’t be the same without the droves of people who visited their little slice of pastoral bliss on an annual basis.

“We thank them for their support, because we had so many people who came back repetitively,” she said. “They supported the venue so much and promoted it to their friends and family. We were so blessed that way, to have that kind of support, and we’ll miss them.”

» kdarbyson@brandonsun.com

» Twitter:@KyleDarbyson