Halloween Helpers

Two family-run farms in Moorpark and Santa Paula will kick off the start of fall Saturday and celebrate the countdown to Halloween.

For 25 years, families throughout Ventura, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara counties have visited Faulkner Farm Pumpkin Patch at 14292 E. Telegraph Road in Santa Paula to search for the perfect holiday gourd and learn a little about farming.

The tradition was almost dashed a couple of years ago when the University of California system bought the farm to create an agricultural center, but school officials--spurred in part by letters and calls from the public--decided to keep the patch open to the public for three more years.

From 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, visitors can enjoy the start of the 25th annual Pumpkin Patch and Fall Festival, a monthlong celebration offering food, music and down-home fun.

Weekend activities are planned all month, and the farm is open daily to the public from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. School groups are also welcome to tour the farm for a fee during the week.

“I think we are able to give people a real country experience,” said Karen Schott, who runs the farm with her husband, Tom. “We don’t have Jolly Jumps. This is an actual farm. People come to the country and get here by driving through the middle of an orchard. They get to see it all.”

This weekend there will be an arena run by Future Farmers of America, where children can pet and hold baby animals for 50 cents, as well as hayrides, a sunflower maze and a country store.

Various other farm animals--of the honking and mooing varieties--will also be out for the party.

“You can see the pumpkins growing and learn about the animals,” Schott said.

There will be live Dixieland music both days, arts and crafts on Sunday, and refreshments and pumpkins for sale all month.

Other musical groups and arts and crafts demonstrations are planned for later in the month.

Schott said pumpkins range in price from $1 to $50 depending on size. The smallest weigh about 2 pounds, but several topping 50 pounds will also be for sale.

The 9-acre patch yields several tons of pumpkins--hopefully enough to satisfy weekend crowds that can top 3,000 people a day, Schott said.

Parking and admission to the weekend festivals are free. For more information or to make a reservation for a school group, call 525-2226.

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The Second Annual Fall Festival at Tierra Rejada Family Farm in Moorpark also starts this weekend and will run all month with special activities on Saturdays and Sundays until Halloween.

Besides the 10-acre self-pick pumpkin patch, the Clydesdales are the big draw at this event. Two teams of the horses will pull wagons for those who want to ride around the farm.

The festivities at the 170-acre ranch at 3370 Moorpark Road run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. this weekend and the remaining Saturdays and Sundays this month. They’ll include kids’ games, pony rides, a petting zoo, farm tours, a display of antique farm equipment, a craft fair, food and plenty of pick-your-own produce.

A maze sponsored by the Rotary Club and live music by country-western and bluegrass bands will be part of the festivities on weekends starting Oct. 9.

The farm is also open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. for pumpkin and vegetable picking and hayrides. School groups are also welcome with reservations.

“Less than 2% of the country’s population is involved in the production of agriculture,” said Craig Underwood, owner of Underwood Farm Market in Somis. “This is a place where young children can pick a bag of vegetables, fill a basket with berries and ride in a wagon pulled by Clydesdales. They’ll learn where the food on their dinner tables comes from and have a lot of fun at the same time.”

For more information or to make reservations, call 529-3690 or access the farm’s Web site at www.underwoodfarmmarket.com.

TIP OF THE WEEK: Art, airplanes and automobiles will highlight the First Weekend in Santa Paula on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Main Street will be blocked off for a display of antique and muscle cars and street rods from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday. New exhibits at the Santa Paula Union Oil Museum on Main Street, new murals downtown and a quilt show will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday. And from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sunday, visitors can view the world’s largest collection of antique planes at the Santa Paula Airport.

For more details, call 525-8950.

Ideas for Jaunts can be forwarded to holly.wolcott@latimes.com.