From field to festival: The community creates dazzling Pumpkin Fest displays

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — This fall, during Pumpkin Fest, hundreds of pumpkins transformed The Arboretum at Penn State into an autumn wonderland with hand-carved jack-o’-lanterns and colorful displays.

For Jill Rosenfeld, a State College resident who attends the festival annually, this year’s displays stood out.

“I cannot believe it. I’ve never seen so many gourds and pumpkins in one place,” Rosenfeld said.

The work to bring that colorful fall spectacle to the Arboretum began months before the festival, thanks to the staff, students and volunteers who helped bring the event to life.

For Owen Vaira, a Penn State student majoring in plant science with a concentration in genetics and biotechnology, the journey began in June.

Working as a horticulture technician intern at the Arboretum through the Penn State Office of Physical Plant, Vaira helped plant pumpkin seeds in trays before the young plants were transplanted into fields at Penn State’s Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs.

Returning to the fields in September gave him a chance to see the results of that early work.

“It’s a really cool thing to go back out and see, basically, the fruits of all that labor,” Vaira said.

The harvest required coordination among the horticulture team. Vaira said collecting the ornamental pumpkins and gourds took about two days. The farm crew harvested the larger carving pumpkins used for jack-o’-lanterns.

“It’s insane how many pumpkins and gourds there are, but through having a good system and working with all the other horticultural techs, we usually make quick work of it,” he said.

For Vaira, the experience provided an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in the field.

“It’s really kind of an honor,” he said. “This was an internship that I was excited to get. It was definitely something I worked toward.”

After the harvest, Arboretum staff and volunteers worked to give nearly a thousand pumpkins to community members to carve into jack-o’-lanterns a week before the festival. Due to heavy rains and soaked fields, pumpkin pickup turned into a drive-through event, but the rain did not dampen the spirits of all involved.

As he unloaded pumpkins from a trailer and loaded them into cars for community members, Arboretum volunteer Dwight Pakan said it was fun to see the community come together.

“It’s just, no matter what the weather is, or how the football team does, Pumpkin Fest just brings everyone together to have a fun time,” Pakan said.

Watching families come through to get their pumpkins reminded him of when his own children were young.

“It makes me reflect back to when I had little kids that age, and did the same thing, and how quick it goes,” he said.

First year Penn State student Abril Xu braved the rain with a friend to look for the perfect pumpkin to carve for the Pumpkin Fest jack-o’-lantern contest.

The contest invited participants to bring carved or decorated pumpkins to the festival for display. The finished creations showcased the imaginations of people throughout the community. The whole thing was a new experience for Xu, who creatively carved a seal into a green pumpkin.

“I had an absolutely wonderful time,” Xu said. “This was actually my first time carving a pumpkin, and it was a lot smoother than I thought it would be. I did it alongside my friend Amy, in our dorm, which made it more fun as well.”

She said seeing her pumpkin on display with the more than 500 other contest entries was a unique experience.

“I actually stopped by Pumpkin Fest twice, so I was able to see my pumpkin both by day and by night,” she said. “I was so charmed by the display after dark. The light was so bright, so I could really see it shine through my seal design.”

Hers was one of hundreds of carved jack-o'-lanterns entered into the contest by community members and students of all ages. Brinley Kleinfelter, a second grader from Bellwood, said a pumpkin designed to look like a gumball machine was one of her favorites.

For Rosenfeld, the opportunity for families to take free pumpkins home and return with their own creations made the event special. She also appreciated the chance for people to experience the Arboretum during a different season.

“It’s a great way to introduce people to the Arboretum because I think a lot of people don’t know what it offers year-round. Maybe they don’t visit it every season,” Rosenfeld said.

The Arboretum offers year-round seasonal community events and programs, such as December’s Winter’s Glow — this year on Saturday, Dec. 12 — spring’s Wild Wellness and summer’s “In the Gardens” series.

Ayushma Neopaney, a Penn State senior majoring in security and risk analysis, started working with the Arboretum as an intern this semester.

During Pumpkin Fest, she helped with the event and activities for children. She said it was fun to see the children meet friends, create pumpkin designs and express themselves creatively.

Having attended Pumpkin Fest previously as a student, Neopaney gained a new appreciation for the work behind the scenes.

“It’s crazy to see how much work goes into it,” she said. “You don’t realize when you’re just here and, like, walking around and having your fun, but it takes a lot of work and community to make this happen.”

Now that the festival is over, the jack-o’-lanterns have returned home to their owners, gone to compost or fed wildlife, but fall is still on display at the Arboretum. Learn more about visiting, volunteering or interning on the Arboretum website.