Country Acres South - October 7, 2023

Preserved by community

Historic apple press continues to bring people together

BY AMY KYLLO STAFF WRITER

ROCHESTER —

On a damp but pleasant September afternoon, a small crowd of people bustled around an apple press. The press, originally owned by the Mayo family, has seen many renovations, yet what holds it together more than any part old or new is the community of people connected to it.

The apple press comes out about once a year for the Purple Foot Winemakers Club of SE Minnesota apple pressing day held at what once was the Wydra Orchard on the edge of Rochester.

“It’s fun to know that the Mayo brothers used it,” club member David Welsh said. “It’s fun that it’s been around and it’s been a part of the community for a while. Being able to say, ‘Hey, it’s still chugging along making apples and making juice just

like it did.’”

The history of the press goes back to the original owners of the orchard, Wally Wydra and his wife, Alene. Not

only were the Wydras farmers, they also were foster parents to dozens of children.

One of these children

was Joe Endrizzi. In the early 1960s, 15-year-old Joe and his little sister arrived at their new foster home. There, the orphans met their new foster parents, and though the pair was half grown up already, the place

made an impact.

“This has always been my home,” Joe said.

According to Joe, the tale of how Wydra, or Pa as he calls him, got the apple press began one night at supper when Wydra called Charles William Mayo in 1961.

“He said, ‘Charlie, — he didn’t know Charlie Mayo from no-

body — I hear you got an apple press,’” Joe said. “‘I got ... a lot of apples that need pressing.’”

According to Joe, after some conversation, Mayo agreed to give Wydra the press in return for apple juice each year.

By the early 1970s, Wydra had invited his friends from the wine club to come to the orchard for apple pressing, and the tradition has continued for 50 years.

“The rest is almost history,” Joe said. “We’ve been squeezing apples and squeezing apples ever since then.”

The apple press, though having historic roots, contains little of the original.

A motor-powered hammer mill chops the apples, a motor-powered hydraulic press squeezes them, safety shields protect operators, steel steps make it easy to drop apples in, and a staindrains the juice.

To this day, a small manufacturer’s metal tag on the side of the press identifies the history of the press as older than its compilation of parts.

PHOTOS BY AMY KYLLO

Apple juice pours out of the apple press Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. The apple press was originally owned by Charles William Mayo.

(Below) Apples lie in a trailer Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. Attendees of the apple-pressing day fill the trailer as well as IKEA bags and pails with apples.

Rain water drips off apples Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. Besides picking and processing apples, attendees of the apple- pressing day also have a potluck lunch complete with a variety of wines.

Apple press page 2

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Apple press from front

On apple pressing day, wine club members and their family and friends were found far out in the orchard during the morning. Some gathered apples they could reach from the ground; others had apple pickers in hand, and a few braver souls stood on ladders among the 60 trees. They spent hours filling buckets, bags and a small

trailer.

Toward noon, everyone congregated by the shed and the press standing outside. A stock tank filled with water and apples was ringed by a group washing and sorting apples into crates.

The event had a sense of community and collaboration.

At lunch time, everyone gathered for a pot luck replete with wines made by club members.

Gene Kelzer, the only remaining original member of the Purple Foot Wine Club, brought along some of last year’s apple juice, now a fizzy, champagne-like cider.

To make it, he puts apple juice in a plastic pop bottle in the back of the fridge for a few months and lets it ferment.

After lunch and conversation, the pressing began.

On the platform

of the press, Randy Torgeson who maintains the press, poured crates of apples slowly into the hammer mill to be chopped. Below him, two men held a piece of cloth to catch the pulped apples. As soon as they had enough, they quickly folded the cloth and apples into a bundle and put it on a wood pallet.

PHOTO BY AMY KYLLO

People wash and sort apples Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. Once the apples have been washed and sorted, they are crushed into juice.

Apple press page 3

Apple press from page 2

Once three bundles of apples had been placed between wooden pallets, the stack was placed underneath the hydraulic press. Apple juice poured out of the folded fabric bundles through a hole in the stainless-steel pan and into a 5-gallon bucket.

The pressed apple pulp is discarded and the cloths go back into the rotation. Once the bucket of juice is full, it is poured into a large barrel where it is filtered through mesh.

They make approximately 100 gallons each year.

The press was not used at the orchard for about 10 years in the early 2000s after Wydra’s death and was passed between wine club members. In 2012, Tom Endrizzi, one of Joe’s sons, and his family returned to the orchard and offered to store the press and host the yearly pressing.

“It truly is a labor of love,” Tom said. “Wally and Eileen ... shared everything with all these other people, those foster kids and all the community and stuff like that. ... We still very much as a

family feel the responsibility of continuing their legacy.”

According to Joe, the Wydras hosted 150 foster children.

Tom said he hopes the apple pressings continue into the foreseeable future and beyond.

“It’s just one of those enduring legacies that so many people have such

fond memories of,” Tom said. “We want to continue to create those memories for the generations of the future as well. ...

It’s just so simple, and it’s so pure. You don’t have a lot of that these days anymore, and it’s just such a great opportunity to be able to bring people together.”

PHOTOS BY AMY KYLLO

Karen Welsh picks apples Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. Endrizzi owns what once was Wydra Orchards. Wally and Alene Wydra were foster parents to Endrizzi’s father Joe and his sister when the Endrizzis were teenagers.

Randy Torgeson (left), Gio Zett, Tom Endrizzi, Dave Sprenger and Dave Welsh work to press apples Sept. 23 at Tom Endrizzi’s orchard near Rochester. The press comes out about once a year.

Thrift stores, garage sales and secondhand finds have always been a part of my life. There is something delightful about finding some fun and unusual piece in a low-risk environment. Even more than that, the satisfaction of dressing well or decorating well for a fraction of the cost is just the best.

My most brave thrift experience came when I tried out a thrift outlet store three and a half years ago. One would think that thrift stores are as far down the line as items can get before meeting a landfill, but that is not the case.

The Goodwill outlet that I went to was in Brooklyn Park where you paid by the pound for the clothes you bought. The more pounds you bought the cheaper the price per pound. They also sold used books and those were paid for by measuring how many inches tall the stack was and paying by the inch.

Let me just say, it was a unique experience in the most Minnesotan way possible. Clothes were massed in bins unseparated by style, size, gender, color or type so you essentially had to root through the heaps like a pig looking for choice grubs.

There were no dressing rooms to try anything on so it was just look and guess. Maybe it was just as well. The atmosphere of the store was such that anyone who went would want a friend with for moral support. However, with all that said, if you are an avid thrift shopper, I would recommend it. All others will hate the experience with a passion.

I am proud to say that everything my sister and I purchased that day — and immediately washed on hot — fit us. I still have some of the items in my closet.

My thrifting through the years extended to special event clothing. I was homeschooled all the way through until college, so typical prom was not part of my high school experience. Instead, three of the years I did a formal event. My sophomore year I did a dinner cruise on the Mississippi, and my junior year I did a formal event at the Hubbell House

wearing a thrifted gown. My senior year I found a beautiful royal blue formal dress at Goodwill. My best friend and I both dressed up, did each other’s hair and went out to Red Lobster for supper alongside our parents. The memory is a happy one to this day.

Growing up, one of my mom’s best friends was an avid garage sale aficionado. It was the perfect set up. She liked to garage sale and would have a list of stuff to find for us, and my mom had the majority of a quality wardrobe all set up for growing her girls.

Every year, we would get bags and bags of nice clothes. Considering that about every year we had either grown out of or destroyed the majority of the clothes we had, this worked well. T-shirts and jeans just can’t stand up long against the manure, grease and dust of an active farm.

With these clothes came the try-on hauls. My sisters and I would gather and take turns trying on all of the clothes in an attempt to figure out what each of us needed and then decided what styles one would actually wear and what was too far beyond the scope of stretching our personal style.

I have always enjoyed shocking my older sisters and, in general, just pushing their buttons. I would pepper these try-on hauls with comments in the general spirit of, “If you have it, flaunt it,” which I knew would irritate my well-dressed but modest sisters to no end. Though I had no intention of doing what I said either, the comments were sure to annoy them. They were well worth saying.

The thrifty spirit extends to today. My closet is busting with super finds, and my apartment walls are decorated with a lovely hodgepodge of gifts, thrift store finds and free-on-the-side-of-the road decor. All I can say is if you have never tried it out, go experience for yourself. You just may discover a whole new world you never want to leave.

Willow’s Keep Farm transforms into a haunted attraction at night for the month of October with 100 volunteer actors from Pine Area People for the Arts working to scare guests.

The first two years that Galaty raised hemp he raised a grain variety that grew about 6 feet tall. Hemp varieties of cannabis fall in three areas: grain production, fiber production and metabolite production. Metabolite producers include the hemp varieties which make CBD.

A different metabolite variety of cannabis are considered marijuana and produce cannabinoids with high THC content. Cannabinoids is the word used for the variety of compounds produced by cannabis plants including THC and CBD.

Since 2020, Galaty has been growing fiber varieties in his maze. These varieties result in tall plants better suited for the immersive maze experience.

Galaty has also grown plants for CBD oil production.

“Hemp is the only plant that can feed you, it can shelter you, it can clothe you and it can heal

you,” Galaty said. Galaty has decided to stop growing hemp for CBD production because it was not profitable for his operation. CBD oil is produced in the flowers of the hemp plant. If the flower is pollinated and

ower is and begins to make seeds, the CBD production stops. Thus, if growing for CBD production, male plants must not be present Galaty was raising other varieties of hemp on different parts of the farm, so the CBD producing hemp was being cross pollinated caus-

ing his CBD oil yield to be low.

Seed for grain or fiber varieties of hemp cost $2 a pound, while a feminized CBD variety hemp seed can cost $2 to $5 per seed.

Currently, Galaty is focusing on giving guests a hemp experience and less on processing his plants. The farm also serves to educate the

public about hemp plants which struggle with ill perception due to their adjacent position to marijuana.

located in Wisconsin — and online. Galaty said the choice to keep their products within their business helps them make sure customers know how to use the products for them to be effective. He sources the CBD for these products from other farms.

“It’s a good way for people to come out here and to get over their misgivings,” Galaty said.

Galaty has created his own line of CBD products that are only available in his two farm stores — one of which is

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to farm it, and then a willingness of people to process it.”

On Galaty’s farm, the porch of the farm store is stained with a hemp product. Discs for playing disc golf made out of hemp plastic are for sale in the farm store.

PHOTOS BY AMY KYLLO

building materials like hempcrete, hemp insulation and hemp wood. Oil from hemp seeds can also serve as the oil in paints and varnishes.

One of the challenges facing Galaty is the fact that there are zero processing mills for hemp fiber in Minnesota. After the maze is done, Galaty will make some of the plants into walking sticks to utilize a portion of the plants.

Though Galaty was one of first growers in Minnesota for hemp, hemp is not actually a new crop to Minnesota.

In the 1940s, there were processing facilities in Minnesota. In 1943, according to the University of Minnesota, the number of acres of land in hemp was 176,000, most of which came from the Upper Midwest.

Hemp production is highly regulated in Minnesota. Beyond regulations, growers’ fees, fees for the plants to be tested and fees to sell hemp products are all part of the business.

“The hard thing is that you’ve got to get farmers to buy into it,” he said. “You need a willingness of people

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, hulled hemp seeds have an average of about 31.6 grams of protein per 100 gram serving. Hemp fiber can create products such as rope; hemp T-shirts;

Light shines off of CBD products Aug. 25 at Willow’s Keep Farm Store near Zumbrota. Willow’s Keep Farm has its own line of CBD products only available at Ted Galaty’s two farm stores and online.

(Left) A Hemp Maze Minnesota sign greets visitors Aug. 25 at Willow’s Keep Farm near Zumbrota. Ted Galaty makes walking sticks out of the hemp stalks from the maze.

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4-H member Moenning focuses on pig business, helping others, sportsmanship

BY AMY KYLLO STAFF WRITER

DODGE CENTER

— When John Moenning helped the Schley family by showing their Hereford pig for them at the Dodge County Free Fair in 2015, it was a pivotal step in his life to

date.

“I fell in love with the breed,” Moenning said. “I nagged my dad for two years. (I would) be like, ‘Can we get a Hereford pig? Can we try them?’ He finally caved in.”

Now, Moenning owns 20 of the 70 sows on his family’s indepen-

dent, farrow-to-finish hog operation near Dodge Center.

Moenning is an active 4-H member, having shown many kinds of animals and static projects, but his specialty is pigs.

Moenning is the son of Paul and Cathy Moenning. This year, he will be a senior, dual

enrolled at Triton High School and homeschooled.

Moenning’s family history with pigs goes back almost 100 years to his grandfather who raised Hampshire pigs. The family business sold breeding stock and was a strong operation until what the Moennings call the 8 cent days. During this period, the price per pound dropped to 8 cents, causing the familytosellthemajority

ily to sell the majority of their pigs. As a kid, Moenning said their family had about 10 sows, down from the 70 to 80 they had prior.

Moenning is the youngest in his family and said his first memories come from the fair watching his siblings show.

“I realized it was

smile owns 20 so

almost a family tradition,” he said. “I just ing, and I also have a passion for showing

trad jus want to keep it goanimals.”

static projects that included demonstrations, self-determined, fashion, food and flowers.

Moenning said he likes showing pigs because it is less time consuming so he can have more time to help others and to volunteer.

Moenning has shown pigs, dairy sheep besid

steers, goats, sheep, rabbits and dairy besides

SELLING AGRIC

“I don’t show to win,” he said. “I show to have fun and make connections and have a good time. That’s what I’m there for.”

Moenning page 10

PHOTOS BY AMY KYLLO

John Moenning smiles with a pig Aug. 29 at his family’s farm near Dodge Center. Moenning owns 20 sows on his family’s independent, farrow-to-finish hog operation.

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Photos courtesyof AmyKyllo

National PigfAcTs 8

Life Cycle of a Market Pig

GESTATION

• Gilts (female pigs) reach maturity and are bred at 170 to 220 days of age.

• After delivering their first litter of pigs, gilts are called sows.

• Gestation (pregnancy) is about 114 days, which is 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days.

FARr OWING (birth to weaning)

• Sows and gilts are moved to a farrowing barn when ready to give birth (farrow).

• Usually, a sow or gilt will have 12 to 13 pigs per litter.

• Sows nurse piglets until they are weaned at about 21 days of age.

NURSERY

• After weaning, piglets are moved to a nursery or to a wean-to-finish barn and are housed with piglets from other litters.

• Specialized temperature controls and ventilation support the newly weaned piglets.

• Piglets are fed a corn/soybean meal diet, eating 1.4 to 4 pounds per day.

• In this phase, pigs grow to 50 to 60 pounds.

GROWING AND FINISHING

• Pigs are moved from the nursery to a finishing barn to accommodate their continued growth. If pigs are in a wean-to-finish barn, they remain there.

• In the grow/finish phase, pigs consume 6 to 10 pounds of feed daily.

• A diet typically consists of corn and soybean meal, as well as vitamins and minerals to ensure proper health and growth of the pigs.

• As the pigs grow, they are monitored daily to ensure that they are healthy.

• At about six months of age, the pigs weigh about 280 pounds and are then market ready.

1. Pigs are among the first animals to be domesticated about 9,000 years ago, in China. There are approximately 840 million hogs on farms throughout the world.

2. Pigs have 44 teeth and 15,000 taste buds; humans have 9,000. Pigs can drink up to 14 gallons of water every day.

3. The largest pig on record was a Poland-China hog named “Big Bill,” weighing 2,552 pounds. He was so large he dragged his belly on the ground. His shoulder height was 5 feet and he was 9 feet long. The smallest breed of pig is 20 pounds in maturity and called the Mini Maialino.

4. People with allergies sometimes have pigs as pets because they have hair, not fur. They are highly social and intelligent animals which are trainable and can be taught tricks. China has the most domesticated pigs in the world. The United States is second.

5. Pork has a high protein content (around 20%), which is important for muscle building and for keeping organs healthy.

6. There are about 2 billion pigs on earth. In Denmark, there twice as many pigs as people. A pig can also be known as a baconer, chopper, sucker, piglet, weaner, porker, sow, boar, and stag.

7. Pigs can run at speeds of up to 11.5 mph (almost 20 km/h) and have a good sense of direction and can find their way home over great distances.

8. Pigs have good long-term memories, and they can be socially manipulative with others.

Facts from www.alleventshogroast.co.uk/30-interesting-pig-facts/

Facts fromchromeextension:/efadnbmnnni bpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https: ucanr.edu/sites/nchemarketng files342009.pdf

Moenning from page 7

Moenning’s pigs are not show animals. They are production pigs from breeds known historically for superior meat quality and an enjoyable eating experience.

What sets Moen-

ning apart in the show ring however is his attitude toward other competitors. He said he believes that a good show person is always happy for their competition.

“I realize a smile

goes a long way because I’m a very happy person,” he said. “Especially during the Dodge County (Free) Fair, I can see people are getting down or something, (but) I’m just smiling. I come back the next day and they’re smiling too.”

Moenning is passionate about showmanship. He has participated in the showmanship class for nine years and has won grand champion for his age group all but two years.

Currently, Moenning has three 4-H students leasing pigs from him. Not only does Moenning lease them animals, but he helps to mentor those students as well.

“I want to teach kids that it’s not all about winning,” he said. “It’s about having a good time and the showmanship is what counts.”

This year one of his lessees won showmanship for the beginner class.

“He was out here many times working with his pig,” Moenning said. “His hard work paid off, and that’s something very important when you’re young.”

Moenning’s first pig was a sow named Tootsie Roll.

“I worked for everything that I’ve had (and) that I’ve got off of that one sow,” he said.

Moenning has reason to be proud of his pig business. As an FFA student, he currently is the Minnesota

state champion for swine proficiency entrepreneurship. He also is a top four finalist in swine entrepreneurship in the U.S.

Moenning and his family sell their finished pigs to Niman Ranch as well as direct marketing pork at the Rochester farmers market. The family sells seven types of bacon, summer sausage and around seven types of meat sticks including pineapple honey ham and garlic red pepper. They also sell typical cuts such as pork chops, ribs and roast as well as the unique, yet classic, braunschweiger.

After high school, Moenning plans to go into the workforce. He is interested in learning construction but would also eventually like to be the next generation on his family’s farm.

“My dreams are to keep the family farm going, then also to raise my own children into the farm and hopefully have them take over to carry on the legacy,” he

said. He also would like to expand the current operation to 250 sows. However, he does not

expect to take over the family farm immediately as his dad is not of retirement age.

PHOTOS SUBMITTED John Moenning feeds pigs Sept. 5 at his family’s farm near Dodge Center. Moenning hopes to someday grow the business to 250 sows.

John Moenning shows a pig at the Dodge County Free Fair in Kasson. Moenning has shown many kinds of animals and static projects, but his specialty is pigs.

Called to help others

Hardwick earns recognition as firefighter

BY SARAH COLBURN STAFF WRITER

MANTORVILLE — Annabelle

Hardwick has been a firefighter since she turned 18.

This Fall, Hardwick, 24, was officially named the Minnesota Firefighter of the Year by the Minnesota State Fire Department Association.

Today, Hardwick works full-time for the Rochester Fire Department, and she continues to volunteer for the Mantorville Fire Department. She also works as a paid on-call EMT for Dodge Center Ambulance.

“I knew I wanted to give back in some way,” Hardwick said. “Firefighting has things I really enjoy … the medical side, community interaction and the physical (activity). It’s such a perfect fit for what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

Hardwick was first encouraged to consider firefighting by the now retired Rochester Fire Department Captain David Worstman, a family friend of her parents.

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Hardwick has been volunteering for the Mantorville Fire Department for seven years — a job she first took on when she returned home on college breaks. When she was away at school, she volunteered for the department near her college.

“He’s been an amazing mentor and really sparked my interest,” Hardwick said. She also credits her parents. She said she didn’t know what she

wanted to do after high school but knew she loved helping people.

Throughout her life, she said, her parents, Michael and Jane Hardwick, have always been involved in the Mantorville community, and she grew up volunteering with them.

“It was how my parents raised us,” she said. “They demonstrate it in their day-to-day life.”

In addition to helping others, Hardwick said her work is spurred on by the camaraderie she finds in the departments where she volunteers and works.

The very first time she volunteered at the Mantorville Fire Department, she attended a vehicle extrication training and marveled at the communication between each member of the team.

Hardwick page 12

COURTESY OF MIKE HARDWICK PHOTOGRAPHY

The Mantorville Fire Department conducts a training burn with propane. The firefighters work together to get close enough to the propane tank to turn it off

PHOTO SUBMITTED

(Right) Annabelle Hardwick has been volunteering with the Mantorville Fire Department for seven years. She also works full-time for the Rochester Fire Department and works as a paid on-call EMT for Dodge Center Ambulance.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Mantorville Fire Department members Annabelle Hardwick, Orion Hardwick and Nate Suhr collect toys and donations for Toys for Tots. Annabelle Hardwick said she grew up volunteering with her family and wanted to continue doing so as an adult.

With subsequent departments and positions she’s found a sense of community.

“There’s so much trust, and everyone cares about everyone else,” Hardwick said. “You just have this really great support group of people who can joke around and can be serious at times.”

When she began as an EMT during college, she said, she learned how much she enjoyed first responder calls.

“It’s the patient contact and the one-onone of helping others,” she said.

She said her job is to respond and help on a day when someone is likely having one of the most difficult days of their life.

“If I can train or work a little harder to help someone, I think it only makes sense to do that,” she said.

While emergency situations may look chaotic, Hardwick said, her departments train so hard and the firefighters push one another to improve to the point that each member of the team knows their role.

“We just train really well; it’s not scary to me at all,” she said. “It’s muscle memory almost.”

With the Rochester Fire Department, Hardwick is in charge of patient care and contact on medical calls while the motor operator and captain serve as medics. On fire calls, her role is to handle the nozzle and the interior attack.

“There’s something about getting to utilize what we train on in real life,” Hardwick said. “We train and train and train for something we may not see for a year or six months. To be able to use those skills and get better at those things is interesting.”

PHOTOS SUBMITTED

Mantorville Fire Department members (from left) Steve Fairchild, Troy Stafford, Annabelle Hardwick, Nate Suhr and Kyle Johnson take a breather during structure fire training. Hardwick first started volunteering with the department seven years ago.

Annabelle Hardwick, 24, was named the Minnesota Firefighter of the Year by the Minnesota State Fire Department Association. Hardwick began volunteering as a firefighter when she turned 18.

Browns build agritourism venture focused on fun

BY AMY KYLLO | STAFF WRITER

LANESBORO — It is a bright fall day at Big Springs Farm.

The happy screams of children punctuate the air as adults hold a warm cup of hot cocoa or a pumpkin spice latte. Underfoot are the dying vines of the pumpkin patch revealing their orb-like treasures of every size and shape.

To the side, a field of sunflowers flaunt their flamboyant beauty, and beyond the pumpkin patch, the main corn maze stands waiting for guests to enter its labyrinth.

Big Springs Farm is owned by Justin and Pam Brown along with their children Jeron, Allison and Jameson. Their farm, which has been in the family for over 150 years, is located about a 15-minute drive from Lanesboro.

“The atmosphere that we’re trying to promote is that a family can come here and call this their farm,” Justin said.

Their farm welcomes all ages but has a special focus on activities that adults and teens will like with the goal that the whole family will enjoy in tandem.

This year, they expect to welcome 10,000 guests over the 16 days that they are open. Pam said she wants guests to have a fun experience away from the hustle of everyday life.

“I hope they have an exciting and relaxing day spending time with their family and friends,” she said.

Justin agreed.

Brown page 14

Justin and Pam Brown smile Sept. 12 in their pumpkin barn at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. The Browns started the pumpkin patch and corn maze in 2021.

(Right) Jeron Brown glides through the air Sept. 12 on the zip line at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. The zip line is one of the new attractions this year, joining other popular activities like the giant slide and corn pit.

Raindrops enhance the color of the Big Springs Farm sign display Sept. 12 at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. The Browns expect to welcome about 10,000 guests this fall during the 16 days that they will be open.

P HOTOS BY AMY KYLLO mpkin Farm near ch and corn maze in 2021.

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sentinels Sept. 12 at the beginning of the mini corn maze at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. The Browns first became interested in agritourism during a trip to Switzerland while in college through the University of Minnesota.

(Left) Dirt clings to a pumpkin Sept. 12 in the patch at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. Pam Brown spends the winter looking through seed catalogs and nding pumpkin varieties to grow.

Brown from 13

“My goal is for this to be just a super fun place that a family can have enjoyed together,” he said.

Their pick-your-own pumpkin patch has 75 varieties of pumpkins, squash and gourds, many of which are heirloom varieties. From classic orange pumpkins to warty brown pumpkins, large flat reddish pumpkins and even a black pumpkin, guests can expect to find diversity and options they likely have never seen before.

photos and pick flowers. Brown

“Our goal is to have as much variety as we can because we want to be known for that,” Justin said.

SMITTY’S MARINE

The Browns, who went to college together, first became interested in agritourism during a study abroad trip to Switzerland through the University of Minnesota.

“We knew that industry existed here in the U.S., but we weren’t really exposed to it that much,” Justin said. “It always was something that we wanted to aspire to do.”

In 2020, the couple said the details started lining up for their venture to happen. They launched their first year in 2021.

“What better job to have than to make people happy?” Justin said.

Each year their maze has a theme. An aerial view shows the images worked into the field. This year the theme is emojis.

The Browns decide on the theme of the maze and then hire a company to create plans. The company creates a GPS map plan that connects to their corn planter’s computer so the field is actually planted in the maze pattern.

PHOTOS BY AMY KYLLO

(Above) Round bales stand as

(Right) A sunflower blooms against a stormy sky Sept. 12 at Big Springs Farm near Lanesboro. The sunflower field is a great opportunity for guests to take