The Richmond Hill Garden Club’s 20th annual Pumpkin Patch will be held on Saturday, Oct. 5, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the J. F. Gregory Park Pavilion.

General admission is free, however, tickets ($1 each) can be purchased at the event and used to play games and buy food.

Pumpkins (all sizes), giant mums, indoor and outdoor décor, hay bales, corn stalks—everything you might need for fall—will be for sale. And this year, the garden club will be accepting credit and debit cards (minimum purchase $25).

Games include bean bag toss, ring the pumpkin, fish pond, pick-a-pumpkin, Wheel of Fortune, ghost darts, and creepy feels. This year’s addition will be the Monster Mash. Face painting will also be offered. There will be a raffle for a huge wreath, professionally crafted locally.

Photo opportunities abound, so wearing Halloween costumes is encouraged. The Pumpkin Fairy with her magic wand and the Pumpkin Lady will be there, distributing lollipops to youngsters, and posing for pictures. There will be many staged areas with scarecrows, pumpkins, corn stalks, and bales of straw for picture taking.

Huge Jack-O-Lantern pumpkins and lots of small pumpkins, just the right size for youngsters will be waiting in the Pumpkin Patch, nestled among giant mums and straw bales. Come early for the best selection. Wreaths, signs, baskets, centerpieces—anything you need for decorating your home and yard—will be available, all at reasonable prices. 

The Green Thumb Kids booth will return this year, distributing all sorts of plants to youngsters, most grown by club members. Kids will be able to select a plant, ask for some planting advice, and take their selection home to nurture it, either inside or out, depending on the plant chosen. All plants are free.

You’ll find a huge array of homemade goodies to enjoy. Garden Club members bake cakes, cookies, muffins, and special Halloween-themed items. 

The Pumpkin Patch is a garden club fundraiser that allows it to complete its many community projects. These projects include maintaining landscaping at its garden in Henderson Park, the library, and other spots in town, distributing daffodil bulbs (1,500 of them) during the Christmas Parade, purchasing gardening and nature books for the Richmond Hill Library, donating to local charities such as the Way Station, and providing a $1,000 scholarship for a deserving senior at Richmond Hill High School.