Hello, dear readers. Sean here. During my Sunday drive (a drive I take early on Sunday mornings), I began noticing an increase in festive autumn decorations on front porches around the neighborhood. 🍂🌽🎃

“What lovely pumpkins and gourds,” I said to myself (because I was alone). “I bet I could do that.”

Some of the displays had large cornstalks and warty gourds in brown, orange and yellow. One neighbor found the time to put an entire bale of hay on his front porch, which I think is too elaborate for my tastes. “Hay is for horses, not for porches” is a phrase you’ll hear me say often.

I think fall decorating is one of those natural urges that occurs as the temperature dips (i.e., craving chili, bonfires and horror films). It comes from the same place that encourages you to build forts and cuddle.

The history of the Jack O’ Lantern is steeped in legend with a man named Jack and “a deal with a devil” gone bad + his MacGyvered attempt to convert a turnip into a makeshift lantern. Later, as people had more time and weren’t being chased by the devil, they realized a pumpkin was a much better choice for a lantern. You get where this is going … 🖤

But what kind of pumpkin/gourd should I purchase? Where should I buy one?

I posed the following question to our Twitter followers: “What makes a good pumpkin?”

The results were, not surprisingly, both helpful and snarky.

“What makes a good pumpkin?”

It’s pumpkin-ness - Erin. A

God makes a good pumpkin. - Kevin D.

Carve-ability, symmetry, and color uniformity ... none of these speckled, country fair contest winning, oblong weirdo pumpkins. - Alan B.

Catapultability & Trebuchetancy - Tom M. (Tom, I like you. We should be friends)

Carve-ability for me. Too many people buy pie pumpkins and don’t realize that you can’t carve them - Andrea S.

Spice - Mike C.

Stem - Bonnie

YOU make a good pumpkin - Dean A. (Thanks, Dean … thanks a lot)

Bout as big as a head. Anything larger is wasted real estate - C. Oak

My next question: Where do you get pumpkins?

I’ve compiled a list of several regional pumpkin patches and farms. Make sure you check the websites or call ahead for up to date schedules. An easier approach (although, less fun in my opinion) would be to purchase pumpkins from grocery stores (although, the sizes are limited and you might pay a premium).

Pumpkin Patches

Blowing Springs Farm | 271 Chattanooga Valley Road, Flintstone, Georgia | Friday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. | Pick pumpkins at the Pumpkin Market - prices range from $5 (small pumpkins) to $14 (extra-large).

Weaver Tree Farms | 308 Signal Mountain Rd. | 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. | Look for the big, inflatable pumpkin along the side of the road. Weaver has TONS of pumpkins, decorative gourds and fall ephemera for every need.

Old McDonald’s Farm | 16705 Coulterville Road | Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. + Sundays, 12 to 7 p.m. | $12.50 per person | The perfect family getaway, Old McDonald’s Farm offers a pumpkin patch, hay bale maze + a hayride through the woods. Pet critters, play in a giant sandbox full of corn and tackle the 4-acre corn maze.

Guthrie Pumpkin Farm | 490 County Road, Riceville, Tenn. | Friday + Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sunday, 1 to 6 p.m. | $10 per person | Buy pumpkins by the pound and enjoy a fall festival atmosphere with hayrides, a petting barn, corn maze, duck races, tractor dig and “redneck horseshoes.”

The River Maze | 1371 Highway 64, Ocoee, Tenn. | Friday, 5 to 9 p.m, Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. | $11.90 per person | Enjoy mazes, corn hole, pumpkin painting and more. Pick your own pumpkin in a field for $5.

Mayfield Corn Maze & Pumpkin Patch | 257 TN-307, Athens, Tenn. | Wednesday to Friday, 2-4 p.m., Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday, 1 to 7 p.m. | $10 | Enjoy 3 corn mazes, hayride to a pumpkin patch and other activities.

Copper Creek Farm | 1514 Reeves Station, Calhoun, Georgia | Fridays, 5 to 10:30 p.m., Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. | $16.83 | Family-friendly events with a giant corn maze, pony rides, pig races + pumpkin patch.