Meet Justin Hergenreder | Farmer and business owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Justin Hergenreder and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Justin, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I am a Colorado native who grew up on the east side of Longmont.

I am the oldest of four children and we grew up on a farm and ranch. My mother worked in town as a book keeper, secretary and accountant while my father farmed with my grandfather. From irrigating crops, feeding cattle, checking fences, daily repairs and chores there was always something to do. At an early age my siblings and I learned the value of a hard days work but also the pride that comes a long with doing a job well done. Being a family of 6 and in production agriculture things were always pretty tight. We were a low income family but what we couldn’t afford in material objects we made up for in the love and support from our parents. We always had food on the table, clothes on our backs and the support to chase our dreams. The impact our parents had on our lives and watching them struggle to provide for us but somehow always putting a smile on our faces is what inspired us to start our business. We wanted to offer something to the public that we could not afford growing up. We wanted to provide an affordable experience for families to visit every year and enjoy. We never wanted the big flashy lights but instead an opportunity for people to have the chance to experience what we are fortunate enough to have every day.

What should our readers know about your business?
Hergenreder Pumpkin Patch will celebrate its 10 year in 2022. What really sets us apart is the simplicity of what we offer. We have a 6 acre you pick it pumpkin patch, corn maze, hay bale maze, hay bale pyramid and corn sand box. Thats it, we keep it simple, fun, and affordable. We do not charge for parking or admission. We want people to come out and experience what we do on a daily basis. We take the time to educate and answer questions on anything we do. We do not have any employees and everything is ran and operated by our family. We are very proud of the reputation we have built of being family friendly and affordable.
We got to where we are today the hard way. We grew by word of mouth and providing an experience you cant get any where else. It was not easy, we are still very much in the production agriculture business and fall is our busiest time of the year. We just finished baling hay, and chopping silage in September. October consists of sugar beet harvest and bring cows and calves home for the winter. We did not need another job to say the least! But when you have the chance to watch kids experience a real farm and you are able to see the smiles and hear the true appreciation behind the thanks you as folks leave with their pumpkins make it all worth it.
We have experienced some hard lessons. From hail in August completely destroying our pumpkin crop to drought and hot days limiting our water so we dont have a crop. Every year is different to say the least. We always rally as a family and some how charge onto the next year. Never give up!
We want the world to know we appreciate their continued faith and trust in us and their repeat business. Without them we wouldn’t be able to do what we do. We are very proud of what we offer and hope everyone can come out and experience a working farm to help better understand where food comes from on a daily basis, and maybe even get a little dirty themselves while they visit.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
This one is a little hard for me, unfortunately we dont get very far from the farm. haha I would have to start with a tour of the neighborhood. We live in a great place with an amazing view. We are fortunate to have some great neighbors with some very neat operations. From dairies, to feedlots, to big open fields of farm ground the nickel tour around our place is pretty neat. After that I would have to take them to Estes Park, its a short drive with a great view, good food and wildlife you dont get to see everywhere. We love local places to eat and love to support restaurants that buy local. The places I would take someone wouldn’t be big and flashy but more likely grilling steaks on the back patio enjoying the views and the night air telling good stories. Those are the things we really enjoy.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My father, Jerry Hergenreder. He is the sole inspiration for what we are doing today. Unfortunately we lost our father Jerry in 2019. Dad was a big kid at heart. He really enjoyed the little things in life and wanted to make sure we had the chance to experience everything in life that we could. Dad was always the first to invite a family member, friend or even stranger ( who never a stranger for very long) into our home and out to the farm. He wanted everyone to experience production agriculture and learn where their food comes from. Dad would always take the time to educate and tour anyone around who would give him the time. Dad never wanted money to be the issue for anyone or any family not to be able to experience agriculture. He was very passionate about farming and sharing that experience with everyone. Halloween was by far one of dads favorite holidays. He would always get the four of us the biggest pumpkins he could find every year. At a certain point it became extremely costly and thats when he started growing pumpkins for us. It started just for us but grew into what it is today. With the help of dad and the vision from my siblings and I Hergenreder Pumpkin Patch has grown into a tradition for families with kids of all ages to visit to pick their own pumpkins, runs around in the corn field and experience a real farm every year.

Instagram: @hergenrederfarms

Facebook: Hergenreder Farms

Image Credits
From Left to Right: Josh, Andrea, Jenna, Jett(baby), Justin Hergenreder