Pumpkin Picking at Kemps Farm, Horsforth

Scale is what sets this one apart. Kemps Farm grows almost 100,000 pumpkins a year at Horsforth, so the familiar late-October problem of arriving to find a field already picked over is far less likely here than at a smaller patch.

The farm has run the Horsforth Pick Your Own since 1984, and pumpkins are only one part of its year. Strawberries, raspberries, wildflowers and sunflowers all take their turn, and Christmas trees follow the pumpkins from late November into December.

Getting out to the crop is part of the visit, with a tractor and trailer ride to the picking area rather than a long walk with a wheelbarrow. Photo spots are set up around the farm and added to each year, there is a play area for children, pigs and goats to look at, and a cafe on site for when the novelty of a muddy field wears thin.

The one thing to sort before you set off is the ticket. Online pre-booked tickets are required for pumpkin picking and there is no walk-up entry, so turning up on spec will not work, however quiet the car park looks. The farm also asks that you do not eat any fruit before paying for it.