Tom Tasselmyer and Family at Valley View Farms for the Pumpkin Seed Contest

 On October 29th, Tom Tasselmyer, with his wife Laurie, will be here to cut open this year's giant pumpkin, Miss Amelia, and count the seeds. She weighs in at 2005 lbs, not our biggest, but one of two we've had weighing over one ton. While this tradition began with Norm Lewis back in the '80s, Tom has been doing the counting for decades since. I've collected a few photos over the years to share here. These are not in any order, but you can see the subtle changes over the years as Tom's boys get older, and the pumpkins get larger.

Norm Lewis oversees as Alan cuts the pumpkin

The Tasselmayer Family a few years ago

Tom and Bill

The Tasselmyer Boys (-1)

Taking the pumpkin a section at a time

The family is here to help

Concentration is key to getting the count correct

The seeds are grouped together in containers, then added up to get the final count

The VVF guys lend a helping hand to scout for seeds that may have been missed

Gloves are optional to sift through the goo

We look forward to seeing these two every year

The Sawzall is the tool that opens up the pumpkin

The Tasselmyers are experts

Pumpkin goo anyone?

Contemplation

Tim adds more seeds from the pumpkin

Thank you, Tasselmyer family!

The big question is how many seeds are in Miss Amelia? We will find out when the seeds are counted on Saturday. In the meantime, get your guesses in our book. 1st prize is a $300 Valley View Farms Gift Card, 2nd is a $200 card, and 3rd is a $100  card. Your guess needs to be in the book at the time of the counting. Winners will be notified with a phone call. Your name and phone number will not be used by Valley View Farms for any marketing or tracking information. 

Miss Amelia, the 13-year-old that our pumpkin is named after

Amelia will get all the seeds from her pumpkin sent back to her so she can grow another behemoth pumpkin next year. 

Pumpkin seeds are sent back to the grower

The rest of the big pumpkins (minus the seeds) will be donated to Whispering Rise Farm and Animal Sanctuary, a home for rescued Potbelly Pigs. The pigs love the pumpkins.  

It may take a few trips to get the pumpkins to the pig farm

We hope to see you Saturday!