FREDERICTON — The pumpkin patches on a number of Canadian farms are starting to look a bit frightening across the country, but not in a way that makes them ready for Halloween.

"It's sure been a spooky season," said Greg MacKenzie, the owner of Mackenzie Produce in Stratford, P.E.I.

He said his own farm has a reduced yield of pumpkins this year. A number of vines have died off and the jumbo-sized orange fruit does not weigh as much as it should, he said.

Most of them might be too small to harvest this year, he added, which could cut into how much he is able to export to the United States.

"Normally we count on September rains to kind of save us," MacKenzie said. "If we don't see something in the next couple weeks, it's going to be pretty hard to make it up."

MacKenzie isn’t alone. Acr

See Full Page