Orange and yellow are scattered everywhere as pumpkins of every size sit on haystacks waiting to be chosen at the Heritage Foundation’s 15th annual pumpkin patch.
Wagons, smudge pots and plows and other farm necessities line the walkway to the pumpkin patch and serve as a reminder of La Verne’s agricultural past.
Near the tan Weber House, a modest garden with zucchini, carrots, green onions, lettuce, cabbage and other vegetables decorate the yard in front of a citrus ranch with endless rows of ripening orange trees.
Scores of children patiently wait in line as the tractor, the main attraction, pulls around in front of the pumpkin patch.
“The kids like the tractor ride through the orange groves,” said visitor Lisa Hovey, a teacher at Pomona’s Parent Child Participation Class.
Others creatively add faces to their new orange friends at the craft tables.
With school tours set up during school days this event provides students with the chance to explore a slice of La Verne’s rich past at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains.
“Our park is a historic park and we wanted to open it up to the community,” said Robin Molina, president of the Heritage Foundation and event coordinator.
Students and visitors get the opportunity to ride a tractor, tour the Weber House, learn about the out house, pet animals, explore the garden and choose a pumpkin from the Kid’s Pumpkin Patch.
“It’s great, kids like it,” said Dorothy Bryant, a visitor who came with the Mommy and Me Club.
During these fall festivities the pumpkin patch sells at least 3,000 pumpkins annually.
The funds contribute to the maintenance of the Weber House along with the one-and-a-half acres surrounding it.
The Heritage Foundation was organized in 1985 to preserve the Weber House and save it from destruction.
The house was moved to its current location and has been restored to its original condition.
It was built in the 1880s and is one of the oldest houses in La Verne.
The pumpkin patch is open to the public on weekends from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on weekdays from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. from Oct. 15 to Oct. 30 at the Heritage Park off of Wheeler and Via de Mansion.
For more information visit www.laverneheritage.org or call (909) 593-2862.
Yelena Ovcharenko can be reached at yovcharenko@ulv.edu.
