Pumpkin-pickers say they had a “horrible Halloween” after finding a field empty except for rotting vegetables.

They turned up at Pumpkin Moon at Bapchild, Sittingbourne, at the weekend only to discover little was left.

Julie, a grandmother from Maidstone who did not want her full name revealed, said: “It was atrocious. I understood there wouldn’t be many left come October 30 and 31 but they were still charging people to walk around a muddy field. It was criminal and just greed.”

She said she and her husband collected their two-year-old grandson from Surrey to go pumpkin-picking as a treat. But she said: “He just looked bewildered. It was a waste of money. We certainly won’t be going back.

“There was just squashes and rotten pumpkins. It was very disappointing.”

After complaining on social media, others agreed and said their visits had also been a Halloween 'nightmare'. But some said visitors should not have left it so late before going to get their pumpkins.

One said: “I don’t see how people can expect such a good choice so close to Halloween. Supply and demand is just that. Once they’re gone they’re gone.”

Another added: “We went to Bapchild on Saturday. Admittedly it was slim pickings but then it was Halloween eve and we still managed to get six for the family.”

Julie, 57, said: “I really didn’t want to go picking pumpkins on October 1. It would have been like buying Christmas vegetables now. I didn’t want my pumpkin to go rotten. In the end, we went to Asda and bought two huge ones for £2 each.”

Pumpkin Moon boss Charlie Eckley, who also runs sites in Rainham and Sandling, said: "I'm sorry the lady was disappointed. There were still some pumpkins and squash on Saturday although it was right at the end of the season.

"On Sunday we realised there was little left and gave everything away to visitors. It is very difficult trying to gauge how many to plant. Perhaps we'll plant more next year."

The company's website had also warned visitors to Bapchild that there were more pumpkins at the Maidstone site and that the £1.50 tickets would also be valid there.

Mr Eckley said: "We discovered early on that we needed to manage visitors by issuing tickets in advance. Without them, people all turn up together which leads to queues everywhere."

On Monday, the fields were opened up so any unused vegetables could be taken away by community farms to be used for livestock feed.

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