Despite rumors of permanent closure, Lombardi Ranch will be continuing its annual pumpkin festival but will not be growing any produce this year due to the impacts of the drought.
The ranch will be open from the last weekend of September to Nov. 1, said Levi Lombardi, who oversees farming at Lombardi Ranch, in an interview with KHTS AM-1220. The ranch can’t grow any produce this year due to the drought, so the ranch will be buying pumpkins for its popular annual pumpkin festival, which will still take place.
According to Lombardi, they are planning to continue their annual scarecrow contest if possible.
California is in its third year of drought, the worst in recorded history, and wells on Bouquet Canyon have been dry for months.
The Bouquet Canyon Reservoir is not dry but years of silt have built up in the creekbed, causing the road to flood when water is let out of the reservoir.
The water that was let out last year was not enough for the ranch to sustain its crops.
The Lombardis lost about 95 percent of their corn and an unknown amount of pumpkins, according to a previous article by KHTS.
The popular ranch has been in business on Bouquet Canyon Road since the 1940s and have held the annual Halloween Pumpkin Festival since 1989, according to Joann Lombardi.
The ranch also welcomes as many as 8,000 school children for field trips every year.
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99 Comments
Tracey Sherman
John Dahlenburg
Roman Rokita
Aw that stinks
:(
What?! No corn? Bummer
Bummer. But at least they’re not closing.
Bummer
Nicole Madrigal… (SadFace)
Thomas Lindsey
Hope the drought idiots don’t screw up this long time Santa Clarita tradition. Three generations of my family have been involved in the Lombardi Pumpkin festival. And buying produce from them.
Good news / Bad news.
:(
Awww sad news :(
=(
That sucks
:(
but traditions?!?!
Sad news.
How sad
Peggy Peters
Wow, what a shame.
Britni Bruins noooooooooo
At least there’s still pumpkins!
NO CORN!
Dead
Dead
Dead
That’s awful.
So sad
Not fair!!!
Pls continue staying Open Lombardi!!.. It’s a Great time Everytime!.. It’s a little bit like back Home.. Country!!..
Can’t grow FOOD ? It’s not like it is wasting water.
Very sad
How sad.
Andrea Orloff
At least they will remain open… I heard they were not opening this year.
Noooo I love that corn!!!!
Sad but what a nice thing to do for our drought!!
:(. I’m really sorry to read this. I am really hoping we get El Niño so we can get water back in those wells.
Michelle McKnight
Damn that’s really sad! Fingers crossed for so much rain they can grow some stuff! Idk if I can drive by there without all the pumpkins!
Right?!? I love their mini pumpkins! They were one of the reasons I was happy with moving back to SCV!
Sad News
The watering is not wasting water , my neighbors waste more water washing their cars every other day , also the so called beautification project of S C V is ridicules , although it looks nice the runoff is crazy , Lombardi is a treasure to S C V , they do not waste water at all
Yeah, look at Bridgeport
Sooo sad!
I will miss the tomatoes! I look forward to those every year
Nooooooooo
Maybe they can turn the place into a farmer’s market with affordable prices.
Sally Stewart
The water used here is a very small percentage. Stop fracking, stop Nestlé to BEGIN curbing excess water use.
Domestic use is 10%.
Pat Douglas, Hannah Rose Allen, Elizabeth Szczepanek, Sandy Fuller-Allen, Shawn Allen
I need my tomatoes!!!! Lol
I am deeply saddened to hear Lombardi will not have its yummy vegetables this year. The City needs to make sure farmers are able to farm!!! Not build more housing and be putting in plants to water! People need fruits, veggies, nuts! Why have to spend money out of the area for fresh produce…
Tomatoes and their corn was the best ever!
Bummer!
Going to miss their corn. Sad.
No Lombardi Tomatoes. Booo!!
Sad.
Joanne Miller Leone!! Oh no!!
Oh no! This cannot happen!!! :-(
:(
James Edward Lombardi you have a ranch? XD
Nina Ruffalo
Nina Ruffalo
: (
Sorry to hear that.
Sorry to hear that.
Sounds like someone needs to go out and dredge the creek bed. They are blaming the drought but their explanation is a completely different story…
“The Bouquet Canyon Reservoir is not dry but years of silt have built up in the creekbed, causing the road to flood when water is let out of the reservoir.”
Refer to the stories about the Bouquet Reservoir & Bouquet Canyon. As a result of the drought and the failure to release Bouquet Reservoir water into the creek like they used to do, there’s not enough water in Bouquet Creek. It’s L.A.’s reservoir and does not serve Bouquet Canyon except when water is released downstream. It’s a longer story than that; read the previous news stories.
City should give permission to use water (not wasteful) to grow pumpkins, corn and tomatoes the community loves without penalty. Shameful! A kindergartener knows plants need water to grow
City should give permission to use water (not wasteful) to grow pumpkins, corn and tomatoes the community loves without penalty. Shameful! A kindergartener knows plants need water to grow
Kim Gibbs
Kim Gibbs
Mona House HendrixBarbara Yolanda Baldwin sad!!!!!
Yes, very sad!
Mona House HendrixBarbara Yolanda Baldwin sad!!!!!
Yes, very sad!
What????? Noooooo. I need your tomatoes and corn!!!!!!!
What????? Noooooo. I need your tomatoes and corn!!!!!!!
Yeah, I notice a new median all the way down San Fernando that is going to need lots of water. But no vegetables for people. That’s pure bullsh1t!
Yeah, I notice a new median all the way down San Fernando that is going to need lots of water. But no vegetables for people. That’s pure bullsh1t!
Ill miss the tomatoes too
Ill miss the tomatoes too
So sad
No tomatoes! :-(
What a shame.
Wth!
I’m sad.
Hammer Martinez and this is why it’s probably been closed
Andrea Kkolis
Alexandra Lambert Kimberly Lambert Page
I ran by Lombardi on SAturday and noticed no crops had been put in. It stands to reason that if LARC is having to truck water in then Lombardi Ranch, further down Bouquet Creek, doesn’t have any water either.
Bouquet’s silting should be addressed — but perhaps people shouldn’t be living on national forest land further up Bouquet and using all the available water before it gets down to LARC and Lombardi.
No water to grow the veggies REALLY? Read the story behind the lack of water being released from the Bouquet Dam. The lack of “taking responsibility” is a case of TOO many government agencies trying to place the “blame” somewhere else. Clean out the coverts, catch the Three-Spine-Stickleback if there are any left, clean the stream without taking out the old trees, turn on the water from the dam, put the Stickleback back and grow the veggies.
Especially the Silver-Queen corn.
ps . Some of the plants on the new land scape on San Fernando Road/Newhall Ave. are DEAD? And WE paid for them folks.
We keep hearing rumors your closed please tell me it’s not true will you be here for fall
The story you’re commenting on was from June 2015 … Lombardi closed its Halloween activity. Another nearby ranch has taken it over — check this website or SCVTV.com for news about it
Will there be sunflowers??
Yayyyyy!!!!!!!!!