How extreme weather in the US may have affected the pumpkins you picked this year for Halloween

HUDSON, Colo. — Alan Mazzotti can see the Rocky Mountains about 30 miles west of his pumpkin patch in northeast Colorado on a clear day. Alan Mazzotti walks through one of his pumpkin fields Oct. 26, 2023, in Hudson, Colo. Alan Mazzotti holds a pumpkin in his field Oct. 26, 2023, in Hudson, Colo. Volunteer Teena Larson works in a church pumpkin patch, Friday, Oct. 27, 2023, in San Antonio. Alan Mazzotti drives through one of his pumpkin fields Oct. 26, 2023, in Hudson, Colo. For some pumpkin growers in states like Texas, New Mexico and Colorado, this year’s pumpkin crop was a reminder of the water challenges hitting agriculture across the Southwest and West as human-caused climate change exacerbates drought and heat extremes. Pumpkins can survive hot, dry weather to an extent, but this summer’s heat, which broke world records and brought temperatures well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit to agricultural fields across the country, was just too much, said Mark Carroll, a Texas A&M extension agent for Floyd County, which he calls the “pumpkin capital” of the state. That makes it tough to maintain competitive prices with places where laborers are paid less, and the increasing costs of irrigation and supplies stack onto that, creating what Mazzotti calls a “no-win situation.” He’ll keep farming pumpkins for a bit longer, but “there’s no future after me,” he said.