Pumpkin Picking at Craigend Nursery

A garden centre is an unlikely place for a pumpkin patch, but Craigend turns its Condorrat site into one on select dates through October, and the nursery and coffee shop are already there when you need them.

Your ticket buys a thirty-minute entry slot for one vehicle, not a thirty-minute visit. Once you are through the gate there is no limit on how long you stay, which is worth knowing, because there is enough set out to keep children going. Jumbo games, a straw pit and a spooky tunnel form part of the route round the site, and firepits are lit for toasting marshmallows.

Hundreds of pumpkins are put out to buy on the day, so the choosing is real rather than a token pick from a crate. A carving station means children can take the pumpkin they have chosen and turn it into a lantern before they leave, and refreshments come from vendors on site during the event.

Two ASN sessions run on Friday 16 and Friday 30 October at half past ten, with fewer visitors on site and the activities taken at a slower pace. Places on those are extremely limited, first-come first-served, and booked through a separate link from the general tickets.

All tickets are booked online in advance, and the patch shuts in the late afternoon, so an earlier slot leaves more of the day to use.