SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Might not feel this way in a lot of the country, but we're almost one week into fall. And that means pumpkins in everything - your coffee, your cereal, possibly even your aftershave. And like so much else that is wonderful in this world, you can thank the great state of Illinois. According to the USDA, Illinois harvests more pumpkins than twice the next five states combined. How did that happen? We turn now to the man who owns The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur, Illinois. Mac Condill joins us. Mr. Condill, thanks so much for being with us.
MAC CONDILL: You're welcome. It's a pleasure to speak with you.
SIMON: And how long have you been in the pumpkin business, sir?
CONDILL: Thirty-six years. Since I was 12 years old, believe it or not.
SIMON: Oh, mercy. Congratulations.
CONDILL: (Laughter) Yeah.
SIMON: And has it grown since you've started?
CONDILL: Oh, yes. We started as a little farm-side stand. Course, that was the mid-80s. And that's when a lot of family farms were lost in corn and soybean country, and so people diversified. We planted one acre of pumpkins by hand. It took us nine hours. I remember that day specifically. So out there, you know, crossing every digit you have on your body and hoping we could sell something. And then we were blessed that people in the community, people at our church, came out and bought the extra pumpkins that we grew that year.
SIMON: How many varieties of pumpkins, or squash, if you please?
CONDILL: (Laughter) We grow over 300 varieties, and we have grown well over 700 varieties in my lifetime.
SIMON: How did Illinois become Pumpkin Central?
CONDILL: I think the conditions are just perfect for cucurbits. Cucurbits are a fancy name for pumpkin, squash and gourds. It's a low-vining crop that likes hot and dry. So even this year, in the middle of a very widespread drought, myself and other farmers in this area are sitting on a very, very strong pumpkin crop.
SIMON: And I say this as a loyal son of Illinois. Are Illinois pumpkins markedly better than, say, Indiana pumpkins?
CONDILL: I would say yes.
(LAUGHTER)
CONDILL: Yes. Honestly, the micronutrients that we have - so the boron and the molybdenum - goes into kind of the form of the pumpkin. And Illinois-grown pumpkin is extremely sturdy, got great coloration and is just a really marketable product, more so than maybe our neighbors.
SIMON: I have to ask. I don't want to put you on the spot.
CONDILL: Yeah.
SIMON: When Halloween comes...
CONDILL: Yeah.
SIMON: ...Can you see the Great Pumpkin rising from your patch?
CONDILL: You know what? I'm usually asleep the second we close. And so I very much think it happens, but I'm never awake to see it.
SIMON: Aww.
CONDILL: (Laughter).
SIMON: Mac Condill of The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur, Illinois. Thanks so much for being with us, and our best wishes of what amounts to your holiday season. Thanks so much.
CONDILL: You bet. I appreciate it.
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