Pals carve out pumpkin business in East Lothian

Two school friends used lockdown to learn about pumpkins, and have now grown their own on a farm in East Lothian.

David Grant Suttie, 21, and Alex Humphreys, 22, did some research and have now used their growing knowledge base in the pumpkin patch. They have thousands of pumpkins grown from seed, and a wide range of varieties for sale.

David explained: “Over the last number of years, we have expanded our network or public paths around the Estate linking to the John Muir Way and during lockdown we saw numbers of visitors increase significantly with lots of young families enjoying coming to the Estate.

“Balgone Estate has a track record of hosting events such as Total Warrior, therefore the pumpkin project is a good fit. We have really enjoyed the technical side of growing the pumpkins as well as the creative side such as designing the Spooky Lake Trail and making the signage as well as building the website.

"We have also linked with local quality food suppliers so we can showcase the food producers from the region. It has been very much a steep learning curve with lots of support from friends and family- all we need now are people to come and enjoy what we have created.”

Balgone Pumpkins will open 16-18, 23-25 and 30-31 October. Pre-booking is essential. Social distancing measures will be in place. Entry per car is £5 redeemable against pumpkin purchase. Prices from £2 to £8 dependent on size. balgoneestate. co.uk