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By RACHEL RAIFORD | Staff Writer 

HARPERSVILLE – The time for fall festivals and pumpkin patch picking has arrived, which includes the return of one of the top pumpkin patches in the state. On Saturday, Sept. 28, Old Baker Farm will open its pumpkin patch to the public, along with activities and weekly themes for the family.

Visitors will be welcome from Saturday, Sept. 28 until Thursday, Oct. 31 to pay a visit to the farm for the pumpkin patch. 

“Our farm is unique and our pumpkin patch is too,” said Pam Baker, who manages the farm alongside her husband, Jerry Baker. “We are a real working farm, and we grow our own pumpkins for everyone to pick and enjoy.” 

The entry fee is $13 per person with a card payment or $12 cash and children 1 and under get in free. The admission fee includes a pumpkin to take home.

“We let our visitors pick their pumpkins right off the vine,” Baker said. “We’ve grown our own from the very beginning, and we really enjoy letting everybody in for this.” 

Old Baker Farm began their pumpkin patch in 1998 in the midst of a struggle with cash flow on the farm.

“My husband woke me up one morning and told me about this idea to start a pumpkin patch,” Baker said. “I thought, ‘I don’t know how we’re going to do that but let’s do it.’”

Their first year of the pumpkin patch they only hosted school field trips. With encouragement from the small group of people that visited, they opened it to the public next year. 

“We had hundreds of people visit the next year,” Baker said. “It was amazing the way our business traveled by word of mouth. We rely heavily on that and we are so grateful to our visitors for it.” 

In addition to the pumpkin patch, they’ve added activities family activities hayrides, a hay maze, a corn maze and themed weekends. 

Specialty weekends include: 

• Oct. 5–6, Square dancers and dulcimer players
• Oct. 12–13, Cowboy Day
• Oct. 19–20, American History Weekend
• Oct. 26–27, Festival Weekend 

The annual Festival Weekend includes a variety of vendors, live music, an 1800s inspired carnival and more. 

“Every weekend is so different and full of so much fun for everyone,” Baker said. “Everyone will just have to come and see everything we have, it’s a great time.” 

On weekdays the farm is open to visitors from 3–5 p.m., on Saturdays gates open at 9 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. and on Sundays the farm will be open from 1–5 p.m.