Wellington’s Pumpkinfest brings giant ‘gourd’ vibes

Story and photos by Sharon Harrison
Many folks carved out some time Saturday to attend the popular, not-to-be-missed annual Prince Edward County Pumpkinfest in Wellington, which again this year drew a huge crowd.

The highlight every year is always the parade which kicks-off a day of family-oriented fun activities in Wellington, all centred around pumpkins and pumpkin-themed everything.

Wherever folks viewed the parade from, really any spot along Main Street, from Belleville Street, to the east, to Consecon Street, to the west, the backdrop is ever resplendent with the village wrapped in autumnal hues, Mother Nature’s magnificent scenery only enhancing the show.

The parade brought laughter and smiles, plenty of waves and shouts of “Happy Pumpkinfest!”, free candy and give-aways, pumpkin-hatted folks, a must-have pipe band, with lots of ‘gourd’ vibes and ‘gourd’ cheer in abundance: really, just plenty of joyfulness.

Oh my gourd, it was a good parade, and a long parade, filled with many of the usual floats from service groups, the Girl Guides, the Wellington Dukes and the Prince Edward County Kings, there was music too, some horses and dogs, with lots of community participation, and lots of orange and pumpkins included.

Once the parade had wrapped-up, there was plenty to do at various sites, whether it was live musical entertainment, food vendors and axe throwing in the park, to the school lawn filled with kids’ activities. Or the regular community market at the United Church (they had pie too), or the craft sale at the Anglican Church.

And it was a fair-weather fall day for the 29th annual Prince Edward County Pumpkinfest. What started with black clouds and the threat of a shower early in the morning, quickly turned into a brighter sky, and by the afternoon, sunshine.

The CML Snider school lawn hosted a busy petting zoo, countless pumpkin-themed lawn games, face painting, inflatable fun, and the firefighters brought their ever-popular junior firefighter challenge.

Pumpkinfest is, of course, always about the pumpkins, especially the gigantic kinds, some of which could be mistaken for a small car, so large is their size and shape.

Folks are often fascinated to see the variety of unusual at the annual weigh-off, along with the usually very large selection of vegetables and fruits, some a little deformed and odd-looking in appearance, which only seems to add to the enjoyment.

Attendees were equally transfixed to watch the numbers rise on the scale, sometimes attempting a guess ahead of time, which often brings some surprise “gourdness gracious” moments.

Some were maybe caught ‘off-gourd’ with the enormity of the bright orange behemoths (although some were cream or green in colour also), with some having never seen such a giant thing up-close before.

Some were in awe of the giant-ness, even the wonder of how it is possible for a fruit (and it is scientifically a fruit, not a vegetable) can possibly grow so big, and wondering if they were actually real.

The Prince Edward County Pumpkin Growers Association annual weigh-off, also a very busy spot, also saw many awards for the gourds, those growers hoping to squash a record weight or improve upon a personal best, where the giant and smaller field pumpkins were joined by giant rutabagas, giant tomatoes, giant carrots and other giant grown vegetables (and fruits).

Suffice to say, it was a ‘gourd’ day in Wellington; it struck a ‘gourd’ with some, but it was full of ‘gourd intentions.

The number of times the word “gourd” is mentioned in this article : 11 times, and that’s a gourd thing, making it 12.

Life is gourd, as they say. And that makes 13.

2025 Prince Edward County Pumpkinfest Results
Giant Pumpkins
1st Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Jim and Kelsey Bryson, Ormstown, QC 1891 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Dave Pitura, Merrickville, ON 1540.5 lbs
3rd Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Nick Body, Martintown, ON 1355.5 lbs
4th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Jim Reid, Martintown, ON 1144.5 lbs *Howard Dill Award
5th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Noah DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 1082 lbs
6th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Glenn Cheam, Carleton Place, ON 1032.5 lbs
7th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Meagan Cheam, Carleton Place, ON 975 lbs
8th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Nathan Veitch, Port Carling, ON 508 lbs
9th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Matt Kerby, Stirling, ON 418.5 lbs
10th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Dean Hickey, Godfrey, ON 404.5 lbs
11th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Christopher Bell, Consecon, ON 191 lbs 2nd Place Bill Greer Award
12th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Aiden Fisher, Belleville, ON 146.5 lbs 4-H Award, First Time Grower Award
13th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Matt Brigden, Kingston, ON 127.5 lbs
14th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Sue Brigden, Kingston, ON 89 lbs
15th Place Heaviest Pumpkin – Scott Brigden, Kingston, ON 88.5 lbs

Giant Squash
1st Place Heaviest Giant Squash – Dave Pitura, Merrickville, ON 1092 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Giant Squash – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 901.5 lbs
3rd Place Heaviest Giant Squash – Nick Body, Martintown, ON 871 lbs
4th Place Heaviest Giant Squash – Todd Kline, Shawville, QC 792.5 lbs
5th Place Heaviest Giant Squash – Mario Spinosa, Milford, ON 288 lbs 1st place Bill Greer Award

Giant Field Pumpkin
1st Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Dave Pitura, Merrickville, ON 136 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Todd Kline, Shawville, QC 112 lbs
3rd Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Nick Body, Martintown, ON 99.5 lbs
4th Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Jim Reid, Martintown, ON 85.5 lbs
5th Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Glenn Cheam, Carleton Place, ON 46 lbs
6th Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Brian DeVisser, ON 43 lbs
7th Place Heaviest Field Pumpkin – Noah DeVisser, ON 41 lbs

Giant Tomato
1st Place Heaviest Tomato – Noah DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 2.15 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Tomato – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 2.29 lbs
3rd Place Heaviest Tomato – Todd Kline, Shawville, QC 3.28 lbs

Giant Watermelon
1st Place Heaviest Watermelon – Todd Kline, Shawville, QC 30.5 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Watermelon – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 37.5 lbs
Tall Sunflower – 2025 GVGO Feature Giant
1st Place Tallest Sunflower – Nick Body, Martintown, ON 250”
2nd Place Tallest Sunflower – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 202.5”
3rd Place Tallest Sunflower – Noah DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 193.25”
4th Place Tallest Sunflower – Christopher Bell, Consecon, ON 133.25”

Long Gourd
1st Place Long Gourd – Todd Kline Shawville, QC 101.75”
2nd Place Long Gourd – Norm Kyle, Ennismore, ON 35”
3rd Place Long Gourd – Christopher Bell, Consecon, ON 21”

Giant Cabbage
1st Place Heaviest Giant Cabbage – Jim Reid, Martintown, ON 29 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Giant Cabbage – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 16.5 lbs

Giant Bushell Gourd
1st Place Largest Sunflower Head – Dave Pitura, Merrickville, ON 165.5 lbs
2nd Place Largest Sunflower Head – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 100.5 lbs
3rd Place Largest Sunflower Head – Noah DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 82.5 lbs
4th Place Largest Sunflower Head – Mario Sponosa, Milford, ON 82.5 lbs

Giant Rutabaga
1st Place Heaviest Rutabaga – Brian DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 16.89 lbs
2nd Place Heaviest Rutabaga – Noah DeVisser, Johnstown, ON 14.75 lbs

Heavy Carrot
1st Place Heaviest Carrot – Jim Reid, Martintown, ON 2.84 lbs

Sunflower Head
1st Place Largest Sunflower Head – Harley Sproule, Ormstown, QC 27.25”
2nd Place Largest Sunflower Head – Shirley Vandor, Ormstown, QC 21.75”
3rd Place Largest Sunflower Head – Christopher Bell, Consecon, ON 20.25”
Exh Largest Sunflower Head – Shirley Vandor, Ormstown, QC 19.25”

Giant Kohlrabi
1st Place Heaviest Kohlrabi – Jim Reid, Martintown, ON 42 lbs

Giant Acorn Squash
1st Place Heaviest Kohlrabi – Matt Kerby, Stirling, ON 5.25 lbs

Giant Marrow
1st Place Heaviest Kohlrabi – Todd Kline, Shawville, QC 39 lbs