Super Freak gourds and pumpkins have arrived at Scheuermann Farms & Greenhouses

Warwick - After a hot, dry summer and just enough rainfall to allow their unique personalities to emerge, the 2010 crop of Scheuermann’s Super Freak gourds and pumpkins have arrived, bred specifically to become heavily warted, with unusual color, and to be so incredibly misshapen that they almost look diseased. The ghoulish gourds are the product of generations of horticultural experimentation — and much patience — to produce a final product that is creepy-looking; so fiendishly frightening that they even come with instructions for handling. The Scheuermann Farm has been growing pumpkins since the early 80s, but it wasn’t until last year that they began planting these more unusual varieties of fall vegetables. “Everyone knows that the Black Dirt is a rich medium for growing sweet corn, onions, potatoes, and dozens of other varieties of vegetables,” said farm owner Bob Scheuermann, “but these things push the envelope a bit.” This year’s crop of pumpkins is much stronger and healthier than last year’s, according to Scheuermann. “We even have some giant pumpkins that are nearly 100 pounds.” But the Super Freaks™ are creating such a stir that he has had to create a special area that allows customers to take their picture in front of the “wall of weirdness,” that is, quite possibly the world’s largest array of Super Freaks that rivals anything that Edward Gorey or Edgar Allen Poe could have created. More information about Scheuermann Farms & Greenhouses can be found online at www.warwickinfo.net/scheuermann. This story and photo were provided by Peter Lyons Hall, president and creative director of Business Demographics Inc.