SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — This is the time of year to consider picking up a pumpkin or two near Southampton, whether your search for the best takes you to patches and fields or to the local grocery store.
In some areas, however, experts fear heavy summer rains could have increased the chance of a blight that affects many vegetables, including pumpkins, reducing prospects for the pumpkin crop this fall.
New York is a leading pumpkin producer in the United States, with about 5,592 acres harvested in 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture census. The state ranked third for most acres harvested in 2017.
The USDA says six states — Illinois, California, Indiana, Michigan, Virginia and Texas — account for 40 percent of the pumpkin acres harvested. Together, they average between 4,700 and 5,600 acres of pumpkins per year, according to the USDA.
More recently, Illinois tops the list of pumpkin-producing states, harvesting about 10,900 acres in 2019. The other states among the top six all average between 4,700 and 5,600 acres per year.
Four other states — Wisconsin, Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania — account for another 20 percent of the nation's pumpkins harvested, meaning the top 10 pumpkin-producing states provide more than 60 percent of the nation's pumpkin production.
Plague concerns
Phytophthora is a fungus that appeared earlier than usual in the states that produce the most pumpkins, Mohammad Babadoost, a professor of plant pathology at the University of Illinois, told Harvest Public Media in July.
Heavy rains in late June and early July caused the fungus to appear earlier than expected in Morton, Illinois, a village that produces more than 90 percent of the world's canned pumpkin.
“After mid-August or near the end of the season in September or so, it's not that bad,” Babadoost said. “But this year, the first week of July, it's too much.”
It's not yet known if the fungus will reduce the number of pumpkins produced in 2021. But Babadoost told Patch in an email statement that he is “still seeing some Phytophthora infection in pumpkins and other cucurbits (pumpkin plants).
Editor's Note: This post was automatically generated using data from the US Department of Agriculture census. Please report any bugs or other feedback to content@patch.com.
