Family focused fall festivities are in full swing this month at The Patch at Whalen Oaks Farm in Woodland.
“The atmosphere is all about families having a good time, parents bringing children and even other folks,” said Matt Donald, public relations and pumpkin farmer at The Patch. “The atmosphere shows you kind of what it’s like to farm, grow, cut them off the vine and harvest them in person.”
The Patch has been operating in Woodland for around 27 years and has added on several attractions as it’s grown.
Free parking is available in the field directly across the street from the farm and admission to The Patch likewise has no charge.
“You can pick, a la carte, what you want to do,” Matt said. “We have the hay maze, hay pyramid, the corn maze, we have hay rides on the weekend. We also offer the chance to do photo ops all over the place.”
Optional items at The Patch include the marketplace, where pumpkins and apple cider are sold, pumpkin bowling for kids and food cart vendors who open up on the weekends.
“Whether it be a weekend you come and spend the entire day and do everything, or if you just come for an hour and pick up things from our marketplace, there’s a good variety to meet all needs,” said Kim Donald, operations manager at The Patch.
The Donald family has been on the farm for three generations, with it originally being a dairy farm under Matt’s grandfather.
The dairy farming eventually phased out of the farm and it was Matt’s father, David, that originally started the pumpkin patch tradition.
“The Patch started in 1999 with a small one acre plot of gigantic pumpkins that were planted by my dad, David Donald,” Matt said. “He put up a sign by the road ‘pumpkins for sale’ and it was born.”
From a simple patch of pumpkins, to the attraction speckled space it is now, Matt and Kim continue to add reasons to visit.
“We had our first go with a night time corn maze walk last year,” Matt said. “You could come out after dark and walk the maze, some people without flashlights just walked it by moonlight.”
For Matt and Kim, the reward of running The Patch outweighs the work that it takes to put it all into production.
“We start in May, it’s a lot of work, a lot of investment initially, but it’s a passion for me personally to be able to still practice farming in this day and age where we live,” Matt said.
Both Matt and Kim maintain regular day jobs in addition to producing The Patch each year.
Putting on this event yearly allows them to channel a part of themselves they don’t get to use in their daily work.
“To work the land, there is a part of Matt that comes alive, being able to work with his hands,” Kim said. “Watching that come alive in him and then being able to pass that down to our kids, it’s really valuable and something you just can’t quite explain.”
At the heart of it all, the time and energy spent putting The Patch into action each fall stems from a desire to make a great space for the community.
“The families make their memories and that’s why we keep doing it. It’s allowing people and families to see opportunities to make those core memories that will last forever,” Kim said.
Whether on a rainy day or when the ground is dry, The Patch provides a place for personal time with those who are precious to life.
“Consider the idea of coming out to a local farm like us where you can just wear your boots or your flip flops, grab your kids and take a stroll,” Matt said. “Just enjoy nature, enjoy something like a pumpkin patch to take your mind off everything else.”
The Patch is located at 636 Whalen Rd, Woodland, WA 98674 and operates from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
More information can be found on their website whalenoaksfarm.com/the-patch and you can follow them on Instagram @thepatchwoodland and Facebook at facebook.com/ThePatchWoodland
