Gourd-geous jumbo elephant mosaic created with 11,000 pumpkins at Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm

Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm in North Somerset has unveiled its biggest and most colourful pumpkin harvest to date – celebrated with a record-breaking jumbo elephant mosaic made from an astonishing 11,000 home grown pumpkins and gourds.

The annual pumpkin harvest is a tradition born six years ago when pumpkins were found unexpectedly growing on the elephant muck heap after the Zoo’s bachelor group of African elephants enjoyed the seasonal treats as part of their enrichment programme. From those first surprise sprouts, a dedicated pumpkin patch was created, using elephant poo as a unique fertiliser.

Larry Bush, the Zoo’s Director explained “Once we saw pumpkins thriving on the muck heap, we realised we were onto something special. Now, it’s grown into an annual highlight for both our team and our visitors. Despite the dry summer this year, our elephants’ natural fertiliser has helped us achieve our best harvest yet – from fiery red Fireballs to knobbly Warty Goblins and classic Jack-o’-Lanterns. With over 15,000 grown this year, there really is a pumpkin for everyone!”

This year, Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm invited corporate partners Albert Goodman to take part in a unique challenge of creating a jumbo elephant pumpkin mosaic to illustrate the ‘poo-to-pumpkin’ story during their recent Team Building day at the Zoo. The impressive creation took shape right beside the elephant habitat – the largest in Northern Europe, spanning over 20 acres – with the Zoo’s group of African elephants looking on with curiosity as the giant design came to life.

The colossal artwork shone a spotlight on the elephants’ unusual role in pumpkin growing, bringing together more than 34 striking pumpkin and gourd varieties. In total, an extraordinary 11,000 pumpkins were used – a scale Noah’s Ark believes could make it one of the largest pumpkin mosaic ever created.

Tom Stone Partner in the Farms & Estates team at Albert Goodman commented “Our team building day at Noah’s Ark was a brilliant way to bring everyone together. The pumpkin mosaic was a unique and a really memorable activity for our team to take part in”.

The record-breaking harvest is showcased at the Noah’s Ark Farm Shop during Pumpkinfest which runs until the 2^nd November. Visitors are invited to pick the perfect pumpkin from a family-friendly, wheelchair-accessible patch as they browse the Farm Shop’s autumnal display. To extend the family fun, the Zoo is also running a ‘Poo Done it- Dung Detectives’ trail in which visitors can uncover a whole host of fun dung facts!