By Shane Mead | Reporter
Just three years ago, Taylor Huffman and her family moved from Maryland to Waco, starting their farm and opening it to the public for its first festival in May 2022. Now, the Western Belle Farm is thriving because of the unique experience the Huffman family brings to the table.
Their pumpkin patch, one of a handful of seasonal experiences the Western Belle Farm offers, gives event-goers from all over Texas a taste of all things fall as the Huffmans look to spread awareness about farming.
Pumpkins of all different colors, shapes and sizes are offered for purchase, but that’s just the beginning.
Western Belle Farm has opportunities for festival-goers to feed animals, ride a tractor to where the pumpkins are harvested, complete a Sudan grass maze, play different arcade-style games and even shoot out of apple and pumpkin cannons.
“Where else can you shoot a pumpkin from a cannon, right?” said Huffman.
On top of everything, the farm offers homemade food plus live music and plenty of activities for kids like tricycle races, slides, zip lines, train rides and more.
This immersive experience Western Belle offers is what Huffman describes as “agritourism.”
“It’s when you invite the public to the farm to try to involve them in agriculture and educate them,” Huffman said. “We have a heart for bringing awareness to farming and how hard it can be, especially here.”
Central Texas’ unforgiving weather is something Huffman said makes farming here very difficult. But what keeps them just 15 minutes north of Waco is their desire to keep the public invested in farming through their agritourism practices.
“We saw a need here for an actual U-pick experience,” said Huffman. “The extremes in the weather make it so much harder than it needs to be, but we fight so hard to do it because it’s wanted. People want that experience here.”
Huffman said that every year, they make improvements to their seasonal events. This year, a pavilion was added for guests to enjoy their meals in the shade. According to visitor Sean Moreno of Hubbard, who attended the pumpkin patch in years prior, that wasn’t the only addition this year.
“It seems to grow every year,” he said. “I don’t remember the carnival games… They’re just adding a little here and there. I don’t remember them having a lot of music going.”
All of these additions have the purpose of aiding the agritourism approach the Huffmans take with their farm. It’s further expanded upon by their other seasonal events they have planned, many in the spring.
In spring of 2025, guests can expect a U-Pick strawberry patch followed by a two-weekend Easter festival and a sunflower festival that will end right around Memorial Day. On top of their seasonal events, Western Belle Farm offers field trips for schools. This fall season, students will visit the pumpkin patch while Hubbard teaches them about how the farm grows its pumpkins.
