UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Twenty thousand visitors. A thousand free pumpkins. More than 600 jack-o’-lanterns. Two-hundred-fifty community and student volunteers. More than 200 gallons of hot chocolate. Countless smiles.
The Arboretum at Penn State will twinkle with the lights of hundreds of nighttime displays at the 2023 Pumpkin Festival. The annual festival will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 6, and from 3 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 7. Admission and parking are free.
“The pumpkin festival is welcoming and wonderful for everyone,” said Casey Sclar, the H.O. Smith Endowed Director of the Arboretum. “Hundreds of lit jack o’-lanterns celebrate the art and skill of carvers of all ages who enter, combined with family-friendly food, crafts and entertainment. We’ll even provide the pumpkin for you!”
Pumpkins are native to North America and one of the “three sisters” of indigenous American agriculture, Sclar said. While pumpkins are grown mostly on small-acreage farm plots in Pennsylvania, the commonwealth is one of the top pumpkin producers in the nation.
“They are pollinated by squash bees and other solitary pollinators, some of the very same ones we seek to attract throughout the year in our Pollinator and Bird Garden,” he said.
Contest jack-o’-lanterns will be displayed during the festival and will be lighted from 6 to 9 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday. Live entertainment will include traditional Celtic songs provided by Lilting Banshee on Friday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. and Texas swing, honky-tonk and rockabilly music by Western Range on Saturday from 5 to 8:30 p.m.
Saturday’s entertainment includes family-friendly crafts and games including pumpkin bowling and gourd decorating, a puppet show, face painting and strolling musicians Picker & Papa from 3 to 6:30 p.m. Visitors can also learn about animal care, pollinator gardening and more from demonstrations and other displays.
Volunteers log hundreds of hours helping each year with event set-up, contest registration, jack-o’-lantern illumination, games and crafts, refreshments and more. Interested volunteers can email arbvolunteers@psu.edu or access the volunteer application on the Arboretum website. Funding for the festival is made possible in part through a grant from the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau and the Centre County Commissioners.
Pumpkin giveaway and jack-o'-lantern contest
Community members can pick up free pumpkins and pre-register for the jack-o’-lantern contest on Sunday, Oct. 1, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Arboretum’s Overlook Pavilion. Contest participants can also use their own pumpkins, but all entries must be dropped off on Friday, Oct. 6, from 8 to 10 a.m. or from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at the Overlook Pavilion. Judges will award ribbons for the best three jack-o'-lanterns in each age category for best-in-show, best pop culture theme, best Penn State theme and best Arboretum theme. Results will be posted on Facebook and on The Arboretum website Friday evening and in the gardens on Saturday.
Learn more about the 2023 Pumpkin Festival on the Arboretum website.