The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur, will be open during its last week of the year.

The patch opened on September 15th and will continue until October 31st.

The Great Pumpkin patch is located at 1749A County Road 1900 North and is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Monday.

The patch was started in 1977 when the farmers, Bruce and Mary Beth Condill added some pumpkin seeds to their children’s garden and the patch grew to what it is now, according the owners’ website.

Ginny and Mac Condill own the pumpkin patch.

The Condill’s three sons have been there since the beginning and the sons’ wives have contributed in many ways.  Ginny Condill, one of the owners of the patch, said it means a great deal to the Condill family.

“We love to share the story of our family farm, dating back to 1859 and we love to hear the stories of other families making memories and traditions on our place,” Ginny Condill said.

That garden grew into 63 acres of land where they proudly produce pumpkins, gourds and squash, Ginny Condill said. This year will be the pumpkin patch’s 27th season.

There are over 300 types of pumpkins, squash and gourds at the patch that come from 30 countries internationally and then are all grown on the farm, Ginny Condill, said.

They have 14 acres of gardens, several mazes, including a one-acre corn maze and animals like goats, llamas and pigs.

The patch offers wagon rides and have live music on the weekends and there are also two historic one-room schoolhouses, Condill said.

There is also a bakery and a seed store; the bakery is open year round.

“We don’t do just one of anything!  We also like to say that we do it all, from Dirt to Dessert,” Ginny Condill said.

The Homestead Bakery opened in June 2006 and uses their products from their land to give the people fresh homemade treats. The bakery offers baked goods like caramel iced cinnamon rolls, honey yeast breads, sweet breads and more.

The bakery is also a retail store where the Condill’s sell décor, antiques, salsas, locally made food like noodles and jelly.

The seed store sells bottled seeds with about 15 to 18 and the bottles are packaged on the farm to help self-sustaining gardeners.

Mac Condill, another owner of the patch, said the farm is a family atmosphere with much to do.

“Our family loves that other families can use our farm to reconnect to the land. It is very important to us to provide that opportunity,” Mac Condill said.

Ashley Johnson can be reached at 581-2812 or anjordan@eiu.edu