Pick Your Own Pumpkins near Exeter

More than twenty varieties grow in this field at Exminster, just outside Exeter, and you pick them where they were grown rather than from a display of trucked-in crates. Entry is free and there is no booking, so a Saturday morning can be decided over breakfast.

Pumpkins are priced by size and start at 50p, which leaves room for children to have one each without much argument. Plenty of wheelbarrows are provided for carting the haul back to the car.

Around the picking there is a fair amount to keep a family busy. Mane Events brings inflatable slides and obstacles to the field, there is a barrel train ride pulled behind a quad bike, TrueTone Face Art runs face painting, and children's archery games are set up nearby. Homemade cakes, hot food and hot and cold drinks are served on site, so lunch does not have to be packed.

The practical things are covered too. There are toilets and baby changing facilities, parking is free and plentiful, and both cash and card are accepted. Dogs are welcome on leads, though not on the pumpkin patch itself, so work out who is holding the lead while everybody else is picking.