A young boy in Millstadt has been anticipating Halloween for several months now as a pumpkin patch has been sprouting in his family’s yard since spring.

Amy Mosbacher said her family, like many others, threw the remains of their many jack-o-lanterns out into their yard after Halloween last year.

While some families might see just a little sprouting after they discard pumpkins, the Mosbachers were pleasantly surprised in the spring to see their tossed-out seeds turning into a full-fledged pumpkin patch.

“This kinda happened by accident,” Mosbacher said. “We honestly didn’t mean to grow a pumpkin patch. We got 12 pumpkins last year that we bought, and we carved them all last year. Some of the pumpkin guts we just threw out in the backyard, and I honestly did not think that this was gonna grow 14 pumpkins.”

The family, led by a very excited 5-year-old named Edward, has been diligently watering the patch every day for the past few months, ensuring the growing gourds received plenty of sunlight and care.

Though the Mosbachers are hardly farmers themselves, Edward seems to have a bit of an orange thumb, as the recently harvested eight pumpkins have grown tall and healthy, with one weighing in at a hefty 25 pounds.

Among this year’s patch, the family still has six waiting to be harvested, though in the long-term, Mosbacher said Edward is eager to see another patch of pumpkins growing in the yard next year.

“We are definitely gonna try to do it again next year,” Mosbacher said. “It was awesome that we got to do it this year, so I told him, ‘Buddy, we’ll carve some pumpkins this year, and we’ll throw some seeds out there and hope it grows again.’”