Glenn Anderson might not toil in the fields like he used to, but nothing will keep this retired farmer’s hands from the earth.

On a recent sunny afternoon, the 95-year-old grabs his walker and nimbly treks from his apartment to his senior living community’s garden beds to show off the small pumpkin patch he has grown.

Here, among towering sunflowers, fresh vegetables and autumn-colored mums, the bulbous, bright-orange gourds can hardly be missed.

“My great-grandson was over last Sunday, and he lifted the biggest one,” said Anderson, who farmed for decades in the Kempton area. “He said he would guess it was well over 60 pounds.”

Growing pumpkins is more than just a hobby that keeps Anderson active.

It’s also a way for him to give back to his neighbors and fellow gardeners at Riverside’s Westwood Oaks Independent Living in Kankakee.

He grows and auctions off pumpkins every three years to benefit the senior garden club.

This year’s auction will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, at the 100 Westwood Oaks Court location. The sale will be made by cash or personal check.

His first pumpkin auction in 2022 raised more than $500, which was used to install benches for residents to sit and enjoy the outdoor space.

Anderson and his neighbors have not yet decided what they’ll do with the funds from this year’s auction.

“We’re trying to get this to where people can come down here and sit and socialize,” he said of the communal garden space.

Sowing smiles

To Anderson, the reactions he sees from others enjoying the garden are his biggest motivation for wanting to keep it going.

The garden was started by another resident and lifelong farmer, Virgil Sencken, who has since passed away.

Residents of nearby Miller Healthcare, Riverside’s long-term care facility, frequently come on a connected path to visit the garden.

One woman in particular, who suffers from memory problems, is one of Anderson’s favorite regulars to see because of how much she seems to appreciate it.

“She can come up here, and you can give her a flower or a little cherry tomato, and the smile [that] will come on her face, to me, that makes all the work worthwhile,” Anderson said.

Grace Rosalius, a Westwood resident originally from Crescent City, said she grew up gardening and ran a farm with her husband.

She has two garden boxes with flowers and okra.

For her, the joy of gardening comes from seeing the final products of their hard work.

“The fresh produce is wonderful, and the end result is wonderful,” Rosalius said. “It’s nice to watch things grow.”

Pumpkin growing 101

A virus that afflicts pumpkin crops prevents Anderson from growing them every year, as the virus lasts for three years.

He begins by planting the pumpkin seeds in egg cartons. This way, he knows he’s got live sprouts when placing them in the ground.

When it’s time to plant, he digs a hole about a foot square, puts down a bit of fertilizer at the bottom, and fills the hole with fine soil.

He then transplants the pumpkins from the egg cartons into the ground.

“It will root down and get to the fertilizer,” he explained. “That’s the big point is to feed that plant all during the growing season.”

He’s careful not to water the pumpkins too early, so the roots will grow down deep enough.

“After they’re established, I then give them a good soaking,” he said.

He noted this year was very dry, so he probably could have started watering a bit sooner. He was hoping for more rain.

But everything worked out, and the pumpkins are looking great.

“For me, the hardest part is bending over and getting back up,” Anderson said with a laugh.

Fortunately, he has had no shortage of help.

A local Boy Scout troop came to raise some of the pumpkins and place straw underneath to help them from rotting because of too much moisture.

Everyone from the maintenance staff to a physical therapist has lent hands with pulling weeds and other tasks.

“I’m very thankful for the help,” Anderson said.

Farming roots

Glenn Anderson and his wife, Esther, celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary this year.

They lived together until about a year ago, when Esther moved into an assisted living unit, but they are still close by.

Together, they have four children, eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

They sold their rural Kempton farmhouse a couple of years ago, but they still own some of the farmland, where corn is grown and sold to Frito-Lay.

They also grew pumpkins on their farm and would donate food from their garden to a local food bank.

Anderson is certainly not alone in carrying fond memories from his farming days.

“It’s surprising how many people here, either they grew up on the farm or they remember their parents or grandparents [farming],” he said.

Anderson is proud of his pumpkins and hopes to see more people stopping by to watch them grow, particularly people with kids.

“People can walk around and look at them, and I welcome them,” he said.