How extreme weather in the US may have affected the pumpkins you picked this year for Halloween

Hudson, CO. (AP) – Some pumpkin farmers in the West, particularly wholesalers in places like Colorado and New Mexico, are feeling the pinching effects of drought.

Farmers have had to rely on dwindling water for irrigation while battling wacky weather to get their crops planted on time.

Alan Mazzotti holds one of his pumpkins Oct. 26, 2023, in Hudson, Colo. For some pumpkin growers in states like Texas, New Mexico and Colorado, this year’s pumpkin crop was a reminder of the water challenges hitting agriculture across the Southwest and West as human-caused climate change exacerbates drought and heat extremes. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson)

Some have cut back on other crops they grow because pumpkins bring in the most money, while others have described lower yields of smaller gourds. Still, pumpkins in major-producing places like Illinois are doing okay.

Issues in the West are a reminder that all crops suffer when water becomes more scarce — and that other challenges, like labor and inflation, are stymieing farmers across the board, resulting in higher prices at the grocery store or pumpkin patch.

To read more details on this news story click here.