Come Autumn and it is time for you to celebrate the fiery colours of nature and of course nature’s bounty of pumpkins. It is a season to decorate your house with the colours of fall, enjoy the cool weather outside and of course attend autumn festivals and events. And if you happen to visit Switzerland during this magical season, one such interesting event is the wonderful Pumpkin Exhibition at the Jucker Farm in Jona near Zurich. While the colours of autumn in Zurich are spectacular too, this exhibition is a perfect day trip from Zurich and also forms for a great idea for a family outing.
Brief History of the Exhibition
In 1997 Beat and Martin Jucker had their first experience with pumpkins on the Juckerhof in Seegräben (a village in Switzerland) where they grew up. They piled up a huge number of pumpkins in the farmyard and visitors flocked to see the “pumpkin exhibition” that had come about by chance. Two years later around 320,000 people came to see the pumpkin exhibition.
In 2004, Beat Jucker became the first pumpkin canoeist. paddling across the castle lake in a huge hollowed-out pumpkin and so the pumpkin regatta was born. This was the beginning of the story that draws thousands of visitors from Switzerland, Germany and neighbouring countries each year. Since then, Jucker Farm pumpkin exhibitions have been booked by leisure parks, shopping centres, hotels and other institutions.
Big Cinema: Theme for 2024
The theme of the exhibition this year is Big Cinema. So, on display are awe inspiring sculptures of Charlie Chaplain, Spiderman, Lucky Luke and Jolly Jumper, Star Trek and even Dracula! The pumpkin sculptures are constructed using wooden or straw frames upon which pumpkins are then hung.
The team led by German artist Pit Ruge, has been seeking out innovative ideas and designs for the objects and ways to turn them into reality, for over 15 years. First and foremost, a range of pumpkin varieties, with their different sizes and colours have to be brought together. All these pumpkins are produced locally. Ornamental and decorative pumpkins are primarily used for hanging on the sculptures. After the show, they are taken down, and brought back to the field to be composted.
On average, several hundred hours are spent per exhibition, which consist of the assembly, the hanging of the basic framework, the folding and the transport of the figures. On display are a whopping 450,000 pumpkins weighing almost 270 tonnes.
Activities Galore
Apart from admiring the numerous varieites of pumpkins which have been bought from countries as far as Japan, Mexico, Africa, USA and Spain among others, the exhibition offers several activities for children and adults alike.
There are dedicated play areas for children where they can take fun rides, watch farm animals and also play games. There is a large shop farm restaurant where you can treat yourself to fresh seasonal food as well as drinks like soups, pasta, fresh juice etc.
There is no admission fee for the exhibition at Jona which is about 2 km from Rapperswil. It is slated to be open till mid November depending on the weather conditions. Do check this site for more details.
