Bishop s Pumpkin
Vine Line
VOL. 20 • ISSUE 4 SEPTEMBER 2010
Corn Maze to Celebrate Sacramento Kings
The Bishops have been fans of the
Sacramento Kings since the team moved
to Sacramento in 1985. It was certainly
a milestone for the entire Sacramento
region to get our first and still only
major level team. It was that first season
when Mom and Dad’s insurance agent
gave them tickets to a game. When they
arrived at the original ARCO Arena in the
old farm pickup, they were surprised to
find their tickets included VIP parking!
They were even more excited when they
discovered the tickets were for a luxury
box with complimentary refreshments!
Mom was hooked and has been an
avid Kings fan ever since. She was loyal
through the lean years and got really
vocal when the Kings went deep into the
Playoffs. She had us all on board to feel
the agony of the series loss to that yellow
team in 2002.
The 2009-10 season has brought
renewed hope for all of us. Rookie of
the Year Tyreke Evans is surely the most
exciting player to watch in the NBA. All
of the other young guys are great as
well and the recent off-season acquisitions by the team have me excited. I am
confident that this will be the year for a
Kings return to the Playoffs and perhaps
a championship will be ours in the near
future!
The theme for our corn maze changes every year. This year, we thought, how
about doing something to show our loyal
support for the Kings? After all, what can
prove you are a fan more than spelling it
out in a corn field? Before we did it, we
thought we had better contact the Kings
organization and get their permission.
Well, darned if the first person we talked
to wasn’t a fan of ours! As it turned out,
the Kings didn’t just grant permission,
they wanted to get in and help! They have
assisted with the maze design, offered
prizes for the maze and will be helping
out a bunch with the theme of the maze,
as well. They are even producing a photo
gallery documenting the making of the
maze! We have had a chance to meet and
work with some great people in a terrific
organization. If possible, I think I have
become an even bigger fan.
The thing that excites me the most
about working with the Kings is what the
Kings want to do for visitors to our farm.
All maze-goers will have a chance to
enter exclusive drawings for Kings prizes!
For your chance to win, simply follow the
instructions on the signs in the maze to
send a text to the Kings. In order to receive clues for navigating the maze, you
BISHOP’S PUMPKIN FARM
1415 Pumpkin Lane • Wheatland, CA 95692
530-633-2568
www.bishopspumpkinfarm.com
Planting the corn maze
will also need your cell phone. No, you
won’t need to dial 911, but you can use
it to text for clues! This year, I believe the
maze will just be plain fun! Okay, I know
what you are thinking. Usually, this is
when I would show you a picture of the
maze design. Sorry, can’t do it this year!
It’s a secret. We promised the Kings we
wouldn’t reveal it until opening day. The
only way to get a look before that would
be to fly over it. Oops, I hope I haven’t
given anyone any ideas!
PRSRT STD
US POSTAGE PAID
Wheatland, CA
95692
Permit No. 18
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PUMPKIN VINE LINE
A Little About Us
My mother started writing this letter
twenty or so years ago and mailing it out
to folks who had signed up for it when
they were out for a visit. I took it over
about ten years ago and now many of you
are receiving it in your local paper. It occurred to me that some of you might not
know anything about us!
Mom and Dad bought our little farm
on the outskirts of Wheatland in 1971.
It was in a rather run down condition
but they were attracted by the huge old
poplar and cork oak trees lining the
drive and the old barns, which had obviously been quite impressive in an earlier
time. Dad rented more land around us
and farmed corn, beans, and alfalfa.
There was a small field in front of the
house, however, that he didn’t have time
to deal with that first summer. Mom had
been a teacher and knew that a field trip
to a farm would be a great experience
for kids. So in the spring of 1973, she
planted an acre or so of pumpkins with
the idea of inviting the local schools out
for a field trip in October. A few came
that year and some brought parents back
with them on the weekend. We penned
up some of our farm animals to pet,
put an old farm wagon to work giving
hayrides around the field and my brother
and I saddled our ponies and tied them
to a tree for self service pony rides. In
the next year or two, Mom started baking
pumpkin pies to sell. Dad used an old
cleaver that Grandpa had made in college
to chop up our own pumpkins for the
baking. He told Mom that when people
come out to a farm for a pie, they aren’t
looking for something that came from
a can. I don’t think any of us knew it
then but I’ve come to believe that we all
still have something deep within us that
drives us to harvest in the fall. No matter
how many generations we are removed
from the farm, we still want to get out in
the field and get our hands dirty at that
time of year.
Business grew a little every year and
by the late ‘70s, Mom and Dad employed
a labor force of six: myself, my brother,
my sister, and three of our grandparents.
Dad noticed pumpkin picking made folks
thirsty and hungry so we started selling
cans of soda and soon popcorn and hot
dogs. Mom would watch for sales on the
soda and then we’d go load up the station wagon once or twice and that would
get us through the season.
The county came along around that
time to let us know that selling pies
baked in your home kitchen was against
the rules. We had to quit that until 1981
when Dad and I built a little bakery on
the farm. As a fifteen year old, this was
my first big chance as a carpenter but the
one thing I knew was I had to bring my
radio to the job site. My favorite memory
of that time
was of Dad
getting really sick of
John Cougar singing
about Jack
and Diane.
Dad turned
the cleaver
over to one
of Mom’s
helpers when
the bakery
opened but
we kept using our own
pumpkins. By this time we had settled
on a favorite pumpkin to use. It’s an
heirloom variety called “Winter Luxury.”
It is rather finicky to grow and nearly
impossible to find seed for but it has no
rivals for natural sweetness and smoothness of flesh. Besides that, it just plain
tastes better than all the rest.
The bakery, the hot dogs and such
seemed to help us attract more visitors
and by the time I left for college in 1984,
Dad had quit most of his other enterprises and he and Mom started devoting
their full attention to the pumpkin farm.
They would add the train in 1991 and
crank up the cider mill in 1992. Around
that time they also started making our
signature hand dipped corn dogs and
cooking up homemade caramel for our
famous caramel apples.
I returned to the business in 1995.
Since then we have added Coyote Mountain, our cornfield maze, pig racing,
and The Hamburger Farm among other
things. We also built Pigadeli Square
on the farm in 2007. There you will
find those famous corn dogs along with
pizza, hamburgers, garlic fries, salads,
chimichangas, chicken, ice cream and of
course our famous saucy Tri-Tip sandwich.
Today we have grown to be the
world’s largest U-Pick pumpkin farm.
This year we have 72 acres planted
with over 30 varieties of pumpkins and
another 30 or so varieties of ornamental
and edible gourds and squash. The bakery has been expanded several times but
we’re still using the Winter Luxury in our
pumpkin pies. We did put the old cleaver
away however, in favor of some special
equipment we built for the job. You can
watch the pumpkin chopping, cleaning,
and cooking go on through the windows
in the cider mill.
Mom and Dad moved off the farm and
mostly retired a few years ago. Dad still
helps out wherever needed in the fall.
Mom keeps our books and still supervises her bakery. We can’t get it all done
just with family any more. My wife Ann
and I work full time and our kids help
out when they can but last fall we hired
over 300 temporary farmers to assist our
year around staff of three.
So that’s our story, if you hadn’t heard
it before. You probably won’t see or hear
any advertising about us. We choose to
just send out this little letter each year
and hope that the folks who have found
us will tell a few more. We try our best
to please each of our guests so consider
coming out to Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm
for this fall’s harvest. Join the other families that make the trip out to Wheatland
when the days start getting shorter and
that urge to prepare for winter kicks in.
Eighth Annual
Pumpkin Run/Walk is
September 26th
The American Red Cross Three Rivers
chapter will once again be holding a 5k
Fun Run/Walk on Sunday, September 26th.
Participants always seem to enjoy the
journey through the pumpkin fields and
walnut orchards. It has become a tradition
for many active families. The event will
start at 9:30am with check in starting at
8:30am. You can preregister by calling the
Red Cross at 530-673-1460; ask for Christina. Pre-registration must be received by
Friday, September 10th, 2010. Cost is $20
per adult or $10 per child under 13 for
early registration, which includes a T-shirt.
On the day of the event, the cost will be
$25/ adult or $15/ child.
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
Fresh Flowers for the cutting!
Last year’s addition of the Sunflower Labyrinth was one of the more satisfying improvements we have ever made. My favorite memory from the 2009 harvest was watching
a young family walking through the farm with their three-ish aged daughter. She wasn’t
paying attention to where they were going because she couldn’t take her eyes off of her
“flou-a” as she called it. I have not seen bigger smiles on two parent’s faces. Our goal
of creating something beautiful and peaceful on that little corner of the farm ended up
spreading beauty all over the farm as people walked around with their flou-as. I can’t
find the words to describe how it makes me feel to see people enjoying the beauty of
something we have coaxed from the earth. In my mind’s eye, I can see these flou-as
sitting on kitchen tables all around, reminding those who harvested them of their visit to
our farm.
A good thing can always get better and the Sunflower Labyrinth is no exception.
This winter, we added cobblestones to line the paths and we have spread out our plantings to ensure the beauty lasts throughout the season. We should have at least 50,000
blooms this year. You won’t want to miss it.
After the success of the sunflowers, we thought, why not plant more flowers for the
fall harvest? So this year, in the field where the Hamburger Farm is located each spring,
we have planted a variety of flowers for the cutting. You will be able to go out into the
field and cut your very own bouquet. Or, we will have fresh bouquets ready to go at
least on weekends. Perhaps the best part of all this is we will have agriculture students
from Wheatland’s Bear River Middle School working with the flowers. The students will
be here on weekends to prepare bouquets
and assist you with cutting your own. For
their efforts, we will be donating 25% of the
flower sales to the Bear River agriculture
program. This program, which we are so
lucky to have in our community, provides a
rare opportunity for middle school aged students to grow themselves by growing things. I
have had the chance to see the pride in these
kid’s faces when they talk about what they are
learning. With all of the budget cuts facing
schools these days, we need to do our part to
be sure programs like this stay around.
So when you come out to pick your
pumpkins don’t forget to harvest some flou-as
at the same time. This advice comes to you
from a forty something year old guy who only
recently discovered how important it is to stop
and smell the flou-as now and then.
Mrs. B’s Famous Pumpkin Apple Muffins
New items in the Bakery
Have you ever had a real apple
dumpling? I never had and probably
couldn’t have described one exactly. A
couple of years ago, Ann and I were visiting Lancaster County, PA and were served
real apple dumplings. Wow. Why have
we lost the simple recipes of our grandmothers? So last winter we all got our
heads together, did some experimenting,
and tested the results at a charity dinner.
We have a winner. Our apple dumpling
is so simple and yet so utterly decadent.
We start with a Northern California Fuji
apple fresh from the orchard. We peel
it and core it, fill the center with brown
sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Then we
wrap it with our own homemade pie
dough, bake it until the crust is golden
and then serve it warm. As if that isn’t
enough, we drizzle it with our own special apple cider sauce. Can you picture
it? Can you taste it in your mind?
Also new this fall will be a Deep
Dish Apple Pie. We have of course made
a French Apple Pie forever and it is
perhaps our most popular pie. The deep
dish will have no bottom crust but will be
crammed full of apples and have an extra
thick top crust. It is made especially for
those who seek out apple pie for the fruit
soaked pastry. It’s also a little smaller
around than our regular 10” pies and
not so intimidating for those not feeding
an army at home.
Don’t worry. All of the old bakery
standards are still here. Our made-fromscratch Fresh Pumpkin, Walnut, Lemon
Walnut, and Pumpkin Walnut pies; the
apple and pumpkin cakes and breads;
the cookies and muffins; and of course
the caramel apples and popcorn balls
will be made fresh every day. Mrs. B will
be here to make sure it all is baked to
her standards.
887 Onstott Road • Yuba City, California 95991
BEAR RIVER
S
U
P
P
L
Y
,
I
N
C
218 Pleasant Grove Road • Rio Oso, CA 95674
bearriversupply.com
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Store: 530.673.3555
Fax: 530.674.8526
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PUMPKIN VINE LINE
New Hours This Year
Due to popular demand, we have decided to extend our hours this year.
From Opening Day on September 25th through September 30th,
we will be open from 9am until 6pm.
From October 1st through October 31st,
the farm will be open from 9am until 7pm or dusk.
Employee
Scholarships
One of the great pleasures of our
farm is that it allows us to offer jobs to so
many young people. Each year we select
a few of these students for a scholarship
which we hope will offer a little boost for
their continuing educations. This year’s
winners are exceptional as usual.
This year we awarded scholarships
to two students from East Nicolas High
School. Courtney McCartney worked for
us for three years at different jobs including a stint as Jenny Knowswine, pig racing
announcer. She is attending California
State University, Sacramento with the
goal of becoming an elementary school
teacher. Charissa Guynes was our other
winner. She worked three years as a
cashier/salesperson in our cider mill. She
is also attending Sac State with the goal of
entering a career in the medical field.
We are confident both of these young
ladies will be successful and wish them
both well.
Follow us on For the past few years, I have been a
curious observer as my kids, now aged
18, 21, and 24, rode the wave of social
media. Like many parents, I’m sure, I
didn’t quite get why anyone would want
to bare their souls to the world in this
way. Then my wife joined in. Ann started
her Facebook page a few months ago
and I’ll admit I have enjoyed hearing updates through her about what our friends
are up to. I’m still not ready to put myself
out there but we agreed she should start
a page for Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm. Our
daughter Meghan set it up for us; it was
so much easier to just let her do it. Ann
is posting to the page regularly and the
list of people who “like” us is growing steadily. It still seems a little weird.
However, I must admit that I have taken
photos and made suggestions for things
to post. We always get lots of questions
about how the pumpkins are grown so
I thought it might be fun to post some
things along those lines. OMG. You can
find our Facebook page by going to our
website, www.bishopspumpkinfarm.com,
and clicking on the Facebook link.
Wayne Bishop with daughter Meghan
Checking Sprinklers
This article was authored by my daughter Meghan Bishop, now a sophomore at
Cal Poly – San Luis Obispo
When I was four, my dad owned a little yellow motorcycle. I would wrap my little
arms around his tummy (no small feat, if you know my Dad) and ride to the farm with
him. We would go out to the fields and check on our pumpkins. Now 14 years later on
an occasional summer evening, I ride beside my dad in his Kawasaki Mule, and check
on those ever growing fields. After a long day at my summer job, it’s fun to go with him
to the farm and drive around, checking water and the growth of our “punkies,” as we
like to call them. He thinks I don’t know what will happen when we find a plugged
sprinkler. Of course, I do know he is going to use one of his standard tricks to get me
wet. You can never go out to the fields and come back clean and dry when you’re with
my dad. Sometimes he blames it on mechanical troubles: “Oh the mule’s not running
right” he says, right when the sprinkler is headed our way. Or he pretends to need my
opinion: “I think this one is working, what do you think?” as he lets the sprinkler give
me a shower. Sometimes we just race down a line of sprinklers, and find out which
ones are pointing our way as we pass – kind of a sprinkler roulette. I’ve seen all of his
tricks before; I just don’t know which ones he will pull out for this particular evening.
I giggle my way through the field. Even though I’m growing up and the fields continue
to get bigger, I will always enjoy the summer evenings next to my dad amongst our
beloved punkies.
So my challenge to all of our guests this year: go out to the fields and make some
life long memories. Pick out that tall skinny one, the short fat one, or the perfect round
pumpkin. Find the biggest pumpkin and make your dad carry it, find the pumpkin that
will light up your Halloween night and make the best Jack O’ Lantern on the block.
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
Crop
Looking
Good
The last two pumpkin crops have
been the best we’ve ever had. Believe me,
I feel the pressure to try and repeat it. It
has been a different kind of year already.
The coolest spring I can remember finally turned to summer late in June, just
in time for us to start planting. Believe
it or not, it only takes 80 to 100 days to
grow a pumpkin from seed, even the two
hundred pounders. Something about this
years weather seemed to be healthy for
varmints. I have never seen so many field
mice and gophers who like to eat pumpkin seeds and rabbits and crows who like
to eat seedlings. Somehow we managed
to get through those early stages with
minimal damage. The next battle to be
waged is with the weeds. So far, we are
winning that battle but there are usually
a few who poke their ugly heads up near
the end of the season. Still, they can’t
keep me from believing we will one day
beat them all.
These pumpkins look happy under
drip irrigation
Lic. No. 369747
FRANK WEBB CONSTRUCTION, INC.
General Contractor
DEAN WEBB
(530) 633-4072
Mobile (530) 624-6200
FAX (530) 633-4007
1758 Oakley Lane
Wheatland, CA 95692
This year we are trying a fairly advanced irrigation method on our largest
pumpkins. We have drip irrigated them
for several years but this year we put in
a new system that is buried 10 inches
under the field. This sort of drip is being
used extensively by the big row crop
farmers for several reasons. First, it saves
a significant amount of water. By keeping
the moisture well below the soil surface,
evaporation losses can be almost completely eliminated. Also, these systems
distribute the water with almost perfect
uniformity. This eliminates the need to
over-irrigate some parts of the field in
order to make sure nothing is underirrigated. Energy savings are significant
as well since drip systems run on much
lower pressures than sprinklers. For
us, we are hoping the biggest advantage
of the drip will be in the control of the
aforementioned weeds. The absence of
moisture on the soil surface means that
the germination of weed seeds is minimal! The savings in time and tractor fuel
spent on the weed battle has been huge.
We will evaluate the return on our investment after the harvest but so far I am
excited to put more acres on drip in the
future. With all of the attention different
industries are getting for their efforts to
go green, I really think farmers deserve a
little credit here.
As I mentioned elsewhere, Bishop’s
Pumpkin Farm is the largest U-Pick pumpkin farm in the world. We have increased
our acreage this year from 67 acres to 72.
Absolutely none of our crop is wholesaled.
We want to make sure our guests have a
selection beyond imagination. We have
also increased the number of varieties
we plant. If you have never been out, or
have but never boarded the free hayride to
make the trek out to the fields, you are in
for something special. Believe me, there is
a pumpkin out there for everyone.
Temporary Farmers
For this fall’s harvest, we have hired
over three hundred temporary farmers.
Many of them are young people working at their first jobs. Others are adults
working full or part time for a little extra
income before the holiday season. We
even have some folks who have retired
but have fun working here in the fall.
A few families have made a tradition of
working together at the farm. If you are
interested in being a Bishop’s Pumpkin
Farm temporary farmer next year, take a
look at our website or come on out the
first week of August.
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PUMPKIN VINE LINE
ATTRACTIONS
1. BPF Railroad – Ride this scaled down train
through the jumbo pumpkin patch, past the pony
pasture and the flower farm.
2. Pony Rides – Young cowboys and cowgirls will
pick out and rein their own ponies around the ring.
3. Hay Rides – Free rides on our straw-filled wagons take your family to the pumpkin fields. You can
wander over 72 acres of pumpkin fields!
4. Coyote Mountain Mines – Slide down the
mountain and pan for marbles.
5. Corn Maze – Find your way through our cornfield
maze. It’s 3½ acres of corny fun!
6. Porko Arena – NASPIG Racing sponsored by:
FRANK WEBB
CONSTRUCTION, INC.
7. Pond – Sit back and listen to bands on the deck
stage or just enjoy the waterfall,
butterflies and birds.
8. Sunflower Labyrinth – Take a relaxing and
healing walk through a labyrinth of sunflowers. Cut
one of your own to take home.
9. Flower Farm – Cut your own bouquet of flowers or select from those already cut. 25% of sales
go to the Bear River Middle School agriculture
program.
10. Cider Mill Stage –
A cool place to relax and enjoy the
entertainment.
11. Apple Orchard –
Birthday parties held here.
PLAY AREAS
12. Farmer Bill’s Barn – Play like the farm kids
play; jump in the corn, climb to the loft, and slide
into the hay.
13. Tree House – Three levels of fun to slide or
climb. Play firefighter on the wooden fire truck.
14. Fort Alotafun –
Take shelter from outlaws and banditos in this fort. 15. Great Pumpkin – Get your picture taken inside
a pumpkin and play engineer on the “BPF Short
Line” wooden train.
16. Hay Jump – It’s hay, it’s bouncy, it’s good
farm fun.
17. Tire Climb – These big ol’ recycled tractor tires
are great fun!
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
FARM ANIMALS
18. Weeland Farm Animal Display – The animals
have taken over this town. They’ve elected a mayor,
established a school, hospital and church. Visit them
here to feed and pet. You’ll also find Goatchalks
where you can pick up a drink, animal feed or a
souvenir.
19. O.K. Corral – You will find a
few more animals here but
be careful not to get
locked up in the
local jail.
SHOPPING
20. Gift Shop – Find the latest in fall, Christmas and
general decorating and gifts for any occasion.
21. Cider Mill – Watch apple pressing and peeling,
pumpkin cooking, and shop for local specialty foods.
22. Fannie Annie’s Emporium –
Purveyor of Fine Candies, unique Toys, and homemade fudge.
23. Pumpkin Checkout – Pay for your pumpkins
here. We have pumpkins from a half pound to two
hundred pounds. And they’re not just orange. We
have red ones, white ones, and even blue ones.
FOOD
24. Mrs. B’s Caramel Shop – Handmade caramel
apples and popcorn balls.
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25. PigaDeli Square – Tri-Tip and Burgers at the
Tin Shed, Pizza and Salads at Jailhouse Pizza. Other
shops featuring Churros, Garlic Fries, Corn Dogs, Hot
Dogs, Ice Cream and much more.
26. Mrs. B’s Country Bakery – Homemade pies,
cakes, muffins, bread and cookies baked fresh in our
ovens every day. We use our very own pumpkins and
walnuts, and local apples. Follow your nose all the
way here.
27. Barnyard BBQ – Turkey legs and roasted corn.
Open on busy weekends.
HISTORY
28. Milk Barn – Cows were milked here in the
early 1900’s.
29. Caboose – Southern Pacific car 1313
traveled through Wheatland from 1940-1980.
It sits on tracks near the pond.
30. The Big Green Barn – The center
portion of this barn was built in the late
1800’s and stored hay for more than a
century. Come on in and sit down for
a picnic.
31. Antique Tractors –
Check out Farmer Bill’s
antique tractor collection.
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PUMPKIN VINE LINE
Specializing
in quality
plants and
helpful staff.
We want to make your gardening experience enjoyable
603 4th Street (on Hwy 65)
Wheatland, CA 95692
530-633-4526
www.flowerhutnursery.com
City
Ish & Staci Medina
Owners
Grill
1912 Hwy 65 Ste 210
Wheatland CA 95692
Breakfast & Lunch
Tues.-Friday
Saturday
Sunday
7am-3pm
7am-2pm
8am-12pm
CLOSED MONDAY
530-633-0140
WHEATLAND
The town of Wheatland was established in 1874 after flooding from the Bear River wiped out a small
settlement that was just west of where Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm is now. The city grew quickly as agriculture started to replace mining as the economic engine in the area. Many of today’s farmers are descendants of those early settlers. Although the town has seen some growth in the past decade, Wheatland
is still a small farming community. The greatest thing about little towns like this are the family owned
restaurants and other businesses. While visiting Wheatland, consider a side trip to see what I mean.
You won’t find a friendlier storekeeper or a meal served with more warmth.
PUEBLITO
I
M
Ramon Johnson
OWNER
W
H
Y
65
FORTY MILE RD
HWY 70
1st
J&W
AUTO SERVICE
W
D
DR
LAN
T
HEA
Air Conditioning • Brake Service
Radiators
Complete Engine & Auto Repair
2587 Jasper Lane
Wheatland, CA 95692
633-4848
TAQUERIA
Authentic
Mexican Food
(530) 633-2534
4505 Wheatland Road
Wheatland, CA 95692
1920 Hwy 65, Suite 110
Wheatland. CA
(530) 633-2911
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
From your Editor:
9
As our thirty-eighth harvest approaches here on the farm, I find myself with a
much more positive outlook than I had a year ago. I’m not sure the economy or
the state of our nation has improved a whole lot in that time, but it doesn’t seem
to have gotten any worse. Something occurred to me this morning, as I looked
over our pumpkin fields at sunup. As a farmer and small businessman, I just
don’t have any choice but to be an optimist. I must believe we will weather this
storm as Americans have so many before.
Like many small businesses in this country, we have never found much time
for long range planning. We have rarely had a good plan for the next five days,
let alone five years. We have always just tried to listen to our guests and provide
the things you want. Some of things you want, however, require a little more
planning and a whole lot more jumping of bureaucratic hurdles. This year, with
my rediscovered optimism, I have been working on some long range projects
we hope to complete over the next two or three years. I had hoped to be able to
announce something concrete here in these pages but alas a few hurdles remain
between us and the finish line. Hopefully next year I will be able to report some
progress on these plans. I’d like to be one of the legions of small businesses that
will lead our country forward in these times.
We look forward to seeing you soon. Thank you for all of your support over
the years.
The sun comes up on the pumpkin fields on an August morning.
FREE
FREE
Train Ride Pumpkin
Get a Free $1.00 Pumpkin
Get One Free Train Ride
when you buy four.
when you buy $10.00 or more in
pumpkins or other produce.
While supplies last.
Coupon valid through
October 8, 2010
Coupon valid through
October 8, 2010
10
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm Menu Highlights
Map out your eating adventure!
Pigadeli Square
• The Tin Shed Bar-b-que
Bishop’s Famous Saucy Tri-Tip Sandwich
Hamburgers and Cheeseburgers with Bishops’ special sauce
• The Assayer’s Office
Bishop’s Golden Hand Dipped Corn Dogs
• The General Store – open weekends only
Bishop’s Secret Recipe Garlic Fries
• The Hotel Jalapeño – open weekends only
Giant Bishop’s Tri-Tip or Chicken Chimichangas
Fresh Made Churros
• Jailhouse Pizza
Cheese and Pepperoni Pizzas
Santé Fe Chicken Salad
Taco Salad
Wraps
• The Wild Rose Dairy
Soft Serve Ice Cream Cones and Sundaes
• The Chuckwagon Café
Hot Dogs, Chili Dogs, and Nachos
• Wacky Willy’s Shaved Ice Flavor Factory
Mix and match from 24 flavors – from blueberry to bug juice!
Mrs. B’s Country Bakery
• Pies
Fresh Pumpkin – made from heirloom variety pumpkins
grown here on the farm
French Apple
California Walnut
Pumpkin Walnut
Lemon Walnut
Deep Dish Apple
• Cakes – with or without Mrs. B’s cream cheese frosting
Pumpkin
Choco-Pumpkin
Apple
• All The Rest
Pumpkin Apple Muffins
Pumpkin Bread
Apple Dumplings
Cinnamon Rolls
Cookies
Homemade Caramel Apples
Caramel Popcorn Balls
The Barnyard BBQ – open weekends after Oct. 1st
 Roasted Corn on the Cob
 Turkey Legs
Fanny Annie’s
 Fresh Homemade Fudge
 Assorted Taffy by the pound
 Other Unique and Fun Candies
Cider Mill
 Fresh Apple Cider
 Apple Cider Slushies
$
1 OFF
on $3 purchase
Alison Santiago
395 South State Hwy 65
Suite D
Vice President
In the Safeway Complex
[email protected]
www.homespunyogurt.com
Lincoln, CA 95648
916.316.3943
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
A Notable Retirement
11
Birthday Parties
on the Farm
A couple of years ago, we started a new birthday party program for those
fall birthday parties. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive
and we are busy taking signups for this fall’s birthdays.
We offer a turnkey party including reserved tables, a hot dog
or pizza lunch, attraction tickets, parking passes, pumpkins of
course, and your own personal farmer host.
Get more details at www.bishopspumpkinfarm.com or call the
farm at 530-633-2568. Reserve your party early, because space
is limited.
While our seventy-two acres of
pumpkins seems like a lot to us, we are
actually quite a small farm. Because of that,
we don’t use our tractors enough to justify
buying them brand new. Instead, we look
for used tractors that have some life left in
them and keep them for a long time. This
spring we retired an old favorite.
This tractor is actually a member of
the family. It is a John Deere model 520
purchased new by my grandfather in
1958. He used it on his dairy farm north of
Marysville. My uncle owned it for a while
before we acquired it in the early ‘70s,
right around the time we planted the first
pumpkins. Since that time, the tractor has
performed nearly every job on the farm.
The hour meter broke a couple of decades
ago but the old 520 surely has tens of thousands of hours. It received more overhauls than I can count and at least two fresh paint
jobs. It was the second tractor I learned to drive and my favorite right away. The 520’s
hand operated clutch worked well for a little guy who had trouble reaching a foot
clutch. I was also pretty sure I could pull just about anything with it; it had 34 horsepower in its two cylinder gas engine after all. We had another 520 but this one always
seemed to run better, steer better, and look better. It also became the favorite of many
of our hayride drivers over the years. More than once, I’ve had to settle an argument
over who would drive the “Cadillac” as they called it.
Of all the jobs we did with the old 520, perhaps the most notable was pumpkin
planting. For at least thirty years, every pumpkin seed that went in the ground was
planted behind that 520. It was the last job the tractor held on to, since the planter and
fertilizer tanks were custom fit to it. The old girl got a little cantankerous around the
time it tuned fifty and often required some tinkering before we could get to the field.
Parts to keep her going were becoming more expensive and scarce all the time. All
things eventually come to end, I suppose. In 2010, the old 520 yielded the planting duties to a tractor thirty-seven years younger.
I don’t expect the 520 to ever leave this farm. Most tractors of her vintage have
been cut up for their high quality scrap iron. She would also be a prize for one of the
Midwestern tractor collectors, since few 520s came equipped from the factory with a
wide front axle such as she has. No, the 520 is still a member of the family, as I see it.
She will stay in the barn except for in the fall, when she
will take her place amongst
Dad’s other old tractors for
you to see. And who knows,
maybe once in a while we’ll
start her up and let her pull
a hayride wagon around for
old time’s sake.
12
PUMPKIN VINE LINE
2010 Entertainment Schedule
Saturday, September 25th Opening Day
Sunday September 26th
Red Cross 5K Fun Run: Check in at 8:30 a.m. • Event starts at 9:30 a.m.
Scarecrow Contest at 1:00 p.m.
Pond Stage
Cider Mill Stage
10:45, 12:45 & 2:45
11:45, 1:45 & 3:45
—
Saturday, October 2nd
Thunderfoot Cloggers
—
Sunday, October 3rd
Wheatland High School Drum Line
Pyronauts
Saturday, October 9th
John Carter (Children’s singer)
Sourdough Slim
Sunday, October 10th Wheatland High School Drum Line
Busy Bee Dogs
Sunday, October 17th
12, 2 & 4 p.m
located at Porko Arena
Francie Dillon
(Children’s Storyteller)
Francie Dillon (Children’s Storyteller)
Amazing Harmonatras
John Carter (Children’s singer)
Sunday, October 24th Amazing Harmonatras
Lincoln Highway
(Country with a little rock) (children’s singers)
(children’s singers)
Rock Bottom Boys (Rockabilly)
Saturday, October 30th —
—
Sunday, October 31st
Thunderfoot Cloggers
T
hank you for joining us for this harvest season!
Hours of Operation:
Ann has recently returned from a shopping trip and the gift shop is stocked
with lots of exciting new things!
TO MARYSVILLE
Open every day!
September 25th through September 30th
Sunday - Saturday: 9am to 6pm
October 1st through October 31st
Sunday - Saturday: 9am to 7pm or dusk
WHEATLAND
et
Stre
Busy Bee Dogs
Saturday, October 16th 12, 2 & 4 p.m. located at Porko Arena
Saturday, October 23rd
Pies must be ordered in advance,
so please give us a call up to
the day before you would like to pick up.
4th
All of Mrs. B’s favorites
will be available along with
some special pies baked
only for the holidays.
(Yodeling Cowboy)
This Thanksgiving
or Christmas,
let US do the baking
for you.
65
BISHOP’S
PUMPKIN
FARM
BISHOP’S PUMPKIN FARM
65
80
1415 Pumpkin Lane • Wheatland, CA 95692 • 530-633-2568
www.bishopspumpkinfarm.com
LINCOLN
SACRAMENTO
193
ROCKLIN
MAP NOT TO SCALE