Nalls Produce in Alexandria VA has the best pumpkin patch I’ve ever been to. And, imagine my surprise to end up chatting with one of the owners. Valerie Nall was wearing a “Robert is Here” cap.  For those lucky enough to be in the know, Robert Is Here is a wonderful produce operation in Homestead, FL, not too far from where I live.

Valerie told me the Nalls Produce enterprise was started by her father from a card table set-up to sell produce; I should’ve found out how many pumpkins they had – it must be in the thousands.

They came in every color range possible: white, bright orange, mottled, and striped.  In every possible size, they had big pumpkins, GIANT pumpkins, record-breaking pumpkins, tiny pumpkins, fairy tale pumpkins, and gourds in every crazy shape and size.

We had a great time with our baby granddaughter and enjoyed trying to get her to sit still for one of the many great photo op locations.  Older kids were having a blast running around bales of hay, crawling through “tunnels” and picking out pumpkins.  Parents were pulling red wagons with piles of gourds and pumpkins.  Most sales are by the pound, but some items are individually priced, like the tiny perfect pumpkin our daughter bought for our grandbaby. Nall’s wall of pumpkins was an art installation all by itself. Check it out if you are anywhere in the DC area.