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Guinness World Record holder Sunnyfields Farm in Totton unveils Beetlejuice mosaic of 10,000 pumpkins – watch timelapse video




A New Forest farm which holds the Guinness World Record for biggest pumpkin mosaic has unveiled its latest creation.

Last year, Sunnyfields Farm in Totton was awarded the title for its Nightmare Before Christmas display, which measuring at a whopping 193.35sqm.

Farm owner Ian Nelson was determined to keep the world record, and this year assembled a tribute to Beetlejuice, the title character of a 1998 film and its sequel, which is currently showing in cinemas.

It took Ian and his team of helpers more than 50 hours of planning, positioning £40,000 worth of pumpkins in just seven hours to recreate the supernatural superstar, who is played by Michael Keaton in the films.

Ian said: “Our display this year is very much linked to the new Beetlejuice Beetlejuice film – it’s another Tim Burton classic ‘Halloweeny’ film and we always go for topical things, so we asked our customers what we should do this year, and 70% said Beetlejuice.

“We built it in one day with 15 people starting at 9.30am and finishing at 4.30pm.

“All of the pumpkins in the mosaic are naturally coloured, a lot of them are edible, and they’re the same pumpkins we’ve got around the fields that visitors can pick up, put in their wheelbarrow and buy to take home.”

The latest pumpkin display, Beetlejuice, at Sunnyfields Farm in Totton (picture: Steve West)
The latest pumpkin display, Beetlejuice, at Sunnyfields Farm in Totton (picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)

Ian said birds will “go and have a bit of a peck” at the mosaic, so some are replaced. “But it holds well when you see it from a distance,” he added.

“Around the field, our pumpkins are on wooden pallets, because without them, there would be hundreds rotting each day. We've gambled so much on this event so we try to take all of the risk out by putting together an all-weather site.”

Visitors can also see the second largest pumpkin in the world grown by neighbouring farmer Ian Paton, as reported in the A&T.

The giant pumpkin, affectionately nicknamed ‘Hagrid’ after the gentle giant in the Harry Potter franchise, was originally the size of a golf ball but when put on the scales, it came in at a mammoth 2,639 pounds, narrowly missing out on the title for world’s largest by just 100 pounds.

(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)
Sunnyfields Farm owner Ian Nelson (picture: Steve West)
Sunnyfields Farm owner Ian Nelson (picture: Steve West)

Ian said: “Hagrid is only about 130 days old. We grew him inside and he required about 130 litres of water a day but hardly any feed at all, just the same as a lawn or a hanging basket would need.

“We spent about three hours a day, seven days a week for three months burying the vines. We cover the vines to encourage extra roots and that helps to develop giant pumpkins.

“We grow seeds from the biggest pumpkins and we cross pollinate them to get bigger and bigger pumpkins every year and at their very peak, these pumpkins will be growing by about 70 pounds per day, but we want the world record!”

(Picture: Steve West)
(Picture: Steve West)


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