Inspiration for today's blog post comes from Bob Matthews, author of The Pumpkin Nook, a website "dedicated to everything there is to know, do and say about pumpkins."  I spoke with Bob recently and he provided many great tips on how to recreate some of the beautiful variety from Spookley's pumpkin patch in Joe Troiano's The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin at your farm!  Highlights from our conversation include: 

• You can play with color.  While the standard Jack-o-Lantern pumpkin is orange, there are many pumpkin seeds out there to bring color to your pumpkin patch.  There is the Rouge D'Etant, for example, which is a small, reddish-orange pumpkin, and a Casper, which is an off-white.  You can also add the Australian Blue (Jalhrude), which is a greenish blue (and maybe your pumpkin patch will start to look patriotic, too!)
• And you can play with texture and shape.  Bob's most recent e-newsletter highlighted some "wacky" pumpkins, including Peanut Pumpkins, with skin that looks like it's covered in peanuts, and Red Warty Pumpkins, which give you color and texture!  And, with any any of these pumpkin varieties, you can play with using different-shaped molds (e.g., woodenboxes, old crates) as the pumpkins grow to have them take on fun shapes.

Adding some fun color, texture, and shape to your pumpkin patch is a sure way to delight your visitors, young and old, and help create a memorable experience at your farm.

Please send photos/suggestions if you have any!
-Aaron         

Hi All,

It is finally starting to feel like spring in the air, so my winter hibernating from the agritourism blogosphere must come to an end.

I want to take a quick opportunity to thank many of our Spookley farm partners for embracing Spookley's friend, JellyBean, in their spring/Easter festivities.  The Legend of JellyBean and the Unbreakable Egg is a wonderful story written by Joe Troiano that reminds us all of the power of a good hug!  It has been fun to see folks incorporate this story into their spring field trips and Easter events.  I have attached a few photos from this spring below for your viewing pleasure.

I look forward to planning ahead for fun at the farm this upcoming fall!
-Aaron

We recognize that the best marketing for the Spookley Farm Program will always come from you!  That is why we have added a customer testimonials section to this website, which we plan to expand during the winter season to include some more detailed testimonials and case studies.

That is also why we so appreciate for the great testimonial that we received from Abby Jacobson of Westview Orchards at the Great Lakes Expo.  Abby participated in a panel discussion with farm marketers who spoke about the measures they took in 2012 to survive a tough growing season.  Abby told attendees about the success that she had bringing Spookley to Westview Orchards, and about how their Spookley-themed bullying prevention maze attracted local school groups.  (Here is a link to the Fruit Growers News article that shares some key insights from that panel discussion).  Thank you, Abby, for sharing your Spookley story with GLE attendees!

Until next time,
Aaron

Happy New Year!

We are coming off of our biggest and most exciting Spookley season ever!  We had new Spookley-themed stage shows, scavenger hunts, bullying prevention activities and more, all thanks to your partnership, creativity, and passion.  

While we are delighted with our results from 2012, we are incredibly excited about what's in store for 2013!  I will be attending the following trade shows during this 2013 off-season, so please come and see me:

• The Corn Party Cruise - Jan 21-26
• The NAFDMA Convention - Portland, Oregon - Feb 4-6
  (And I'll be giving a talk about cause-related marketing on February 4th at 10:30am -- would love to see you there!)
• The Harvest New England Ag Marketing Conference & Trade Show - Sturbridge, MA - Feb 27-28
• Transworld's Halloween & Attractions Show - March 7-10

And we're not just talking about your fall festivities!  Spookley's friends, including JellyBean the tie-dye Easter chick, all deliver special character value messages in a fun way that is sure to entertain your young visitors.  Please come talk to me about all of your agritourism seasons.

Almost forgot to mention -- for those of you overseas, you can hear about The Spookley Farm Program from the Copleys at the FARMA convention.  Heather Copley will be giving a talk about bringing Spookley to your farm.

Thanks and here's to a great 2013!
-Aaron