A visit to East Grange Farm Durham sunflower and pumpkins fields.

What to expect at East Grange Farm Durham Sunflower and Pumpkin Fields

The sunflower fields at East Grange are a pure delight in County Durham. This year we were lucky enough to visit twice. Our first visit was on a sunny Saturday morning and I have to say we were all excited to wander through the 2.5 million sunflowers. It’s hard to believe that so many sunflowers are in one place, it really is a spectacular sight. We strolled through pathways cut through the sunflowers and were surrounded completely by a sea of yellow. There were plenty of spots for photo opportunities for you to snap a memorable photo or two. We loved the blue paddle boat in a clearing surrounded by a wash of yellow sunflowers. There was also a viewing platform which provided a wonderful aerial view across the sunflower fields and gave an idea of just how big it all was. There were secateurs available to borrow to cut a few sunflowers as you wandered to take home which was a lovely touch.

Our second visit was one of the evening trails. We arrived early evening and wandered through the sunflowers as the sun went down. This was such a beautiful experience and so relaxing to walk and talk with friends amongst the giant yellow flower heads. We then headed back to enjoy woodfired pizza from Two J’s Pizza and a live musician who was fantastic. It was such a perfect summer evening and a great alternative to a couples or girls’ night out. We headed home happy, well fed and with a few sunflowers to brighten up our home.

If you fancy visiting next year keep an eye out on East Grange social media in the summer time for information on the ticket release dates.

It wasn’t long after the sunflower fields closed that the excitement began again for the pumpkin fields. Pumpkin season at East Grange runs through all of October and as with the sunflower fields, ticket information is released via social media. Tickets were £5 each, however this was taken off the price of our pumpkins.

Set over 20 acres of space, this year it had doubled in size which meant we had lots of space to hunt for our perfect pumpkins without feeling overcrowded. We were amazed to find out that there were over 70000 pumpkins and 17 varieties. There were tiny white baby boos that sat perfectly in the palm of your hand as well as enormous orange ones. There were warty ones and even an elusive golden one which we weren’t lucky enough to find. There are lots of places to take gorgeous photos, from a farm tractor to a giant hay bale stack. Plus, lots of space in the field to take as many pictures as you can with the thousands of pumpkins!

I did wonder as I walked around the fields how on earth the owners managed to successfully grow this amount of pumpkins! I later found out that the beautiful fields are a labour of love. The seeds are sown and planted out as seedlings into the field which takes around 7 days. Once they are fully grown, the pumpkins are cut by hand which takes 10-14 days.

To add to the festivities, there was pumpkin themed food and drinks at the end of the trail. We had a delicious pumpkin curry and a sweet autumn themed cake before we headed home to begin the carving and soup making with the flesh.

If you wondered what happened to all of the 2.5 million sunflowers after the fields closed like I did, you’ll be delighted to know that all the heads are left as feed for the local birds. A gorgeous Autumn festival of food for all our Durham feathered friends!

I hope this blog has given you an insight into why a visit to East Grange Farm Durham sunflower and pumpkins fields are a must see and if you are thinking of visiting next year keep a close eye on their social media. Hopefully see you there !