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For Houston-area families, a trip to the pumpkin patch can be about much more than finding the right pumpkin for the front porch. Sometimes, the real keepsake is a photograph of a toddler trying to lift a pumpkin nearly as big as they are, siblings disappearing into a corn maze or grandparents joining another generation for a tradition that comes around just once a year.

At Old Time Christmas Tree Farm in Spring, those moments unfold on land where one family’s agricultural roots stretch back more than a century.

And families have plenty of opportunities to make the trip. Throughout the entire month of October, Old Time Christmas Tree Farm opens its Pumpkin Patch every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, giving visitors four days each week to plan a fall outing. No reservations or advance online tickets are required; families simply pay at the gate when they arrive. 

Located at 7632 Spring Cypress Road in Spring, the family-owned farm is known for rows of Texas-grown Christmas trees, but each fall it transforms into a pumpkin-filled destination with farm attractions, food, animals and plenty of places to capture the season in photographs. 

For families searching for a pumpkin patch near Houston, a pumpkin patch in Spring or Klein, fall activities for kids or family-friendly things to do in Houston in October, the farm offers an experience rooted not only in fall fun, but also in a family history that has unfolded on the same land for generations.

A Family Farm With Roots More Than 100 Years Deep

Old Time Christmas Tree Farm is owned by Damian and Leia Prause, who opened the Christmas tree farm in 1996. The land itself, however, has been part of Leia’s family history for more than 100 years. 

Her grandfather, Milton Kleb, raised peanuts, cotton, hay and other crops on the property. Leia’s father, Wayne Kleb, grew up helping with the family’s dairy operation and still lives on the farm today, where cattle continue to be raised. 

Over time, Damian and Leia continued the agricultural tradition by growing Christmas trees on the land. Today, the farm spans more than 75 acres, with roughly 40 acres devoted to more than 40,000 pine and cypress trees. Their children, Erin and Michael, grew up on the farm and now help run the family business full time. 

That history gives a fall visit another layer of meaning. Families are not simply spending an afternoon at a seasonal attraction. They are walking through working agricultural land that has remained in one family even as subdivisions, schools, businesses and roadways have grown around it.

How the Pumpkin Patch Became Part of the Farm’s Story

The Pumpkin Patch began with a practical idea.

Damian and Leia started the fall event as a way to bring families to the farm during the Christmas tree operation’s off-season while introducing visitors to the trees they could return to choose later in the year. Over time, the Pumpkin Patch became a seasonal tradition in its own right. 

There is also an interesting Texas agriculture connection behind all those pumpkins.

Although pumpkins can grow in Spring, the Houston area’s wet, humid conditions are not well suited to producing enough pumpkins for the size of the farm’s annual event. Instead, the Prause family sources its pumpkins from other family farms in North Texas, where the drier climate is better suited to the crop. 

Visitors will find pumpkins displayed in piles throughout the farm, including Jack-O’-Lantern pumpkins, pie pumpkins, mini pumpkins and other varieties. Carving kits and accessories are also available, making it easy to choose a pumpkin and leave ready for a family carving night at home. 

What Families Can Expect at the Pumpkin Patch

The experience is designed to be easygoing: arrive at the farm, pay admission at the gate and decide how much — or how little — the family wants to fit into the day.

Visitors can browse the pumpkins, take photographs, enjoy the grounds and purchase separate attraction tickets for experiences around the farm. Among the activities advertised by Old Time Christmas Tree Farm are a train ride, hayride, one-acre corn maze, petting zoo and inflatable attractions for children. 

One of the most distinctive experiences is the train ride through the property.

The Old Time Express carries visitors around the farm and through the Christmas tree fields. Even the train has a family story behind it: Damian and his father, Benny Prause, handmade its custom cars and built a tractor designed to resemble a steam engine. 

For children, that means riding a colorful train past rows of Christmas trees in the middle of pumpkin season. For parents and grandparents who enjoy knowing the story behind the places they visit, it is another reminder that much of the experience has been shaped by the family that still lives and works there.

Families can also climb aboard a hayride, wander through the one-acre corn maze, stop by the petting zoo or give younger visitors a chance to burn off some energy on the farm’s inflatable activities.

Specific schedules and availability can vary, so families planning their day around a particular activity should check the farm’s current calendar before heading out.

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Pumpkins, Farm Animals and Plenty of Room for Fall Photos

For many families, the photographs taken at the pumpkin patch eventually matter every bit as much as the pumpkin that comes home.

Old Time Christmas Tree Farm encourages families to bring their own cameras or phones, and there is no additional photography fee for parents and visitors taking personal family pictures beyond the regular entry charge. Professional or amateur photographers bringing clients, however, must make an appointment with the farm in advance.

The rows and piles of pumpkins create an easy backdrop, but families can make the pictures more meaningful with a little planning.

For young children, consider taking the same type of photograph every year — perhaps sitting beside a large pumpkin, standing near the Christmas tree fields or holding the pumpkin they personally picked. Over time, those annual images can become a visual record of how much everyone has grown.

Another sweet idea is to let each child choose a small pumpkin and snap a portrait with their selection before it goes home.

Families bringing grandparents along can capture a three-generation pumpkin patch photograph, while siblings can recreate the same pose year after year. Parents celebrating a baby’s first fall might bring a small chalkboard or letter board with the year and “My First Pumpkin Patch” written on it for a keepsake photograph.

And sometimes the best pictures are the unplanned ones: a child studying an entire pile of pumpkins before finally choosing one, brothers and sisters laughing in the corn maze, muddy shoes at the end of the afternoon or a sleepy little train passenger riding back through the farm.

Pet owners can include another member of the family, too. Well-behaved, leashed pets are welcome, and complimentary dog waste bags are available at the entrance.

Easy Ways to Turn a Pumpkin Patch Visit Into a Family Tradition

A memorable fall outing does not need an elaborate plan.

One simple tradition is to let every child select one pumpkin completely on their own — crooked stem, unusual shape and all — then quietly write the child’s name and year on the bottom before displaying it at home.

Families can also choose one particular photo spot and return to it every October, creating an annual series that becomes increasingly meaningful as children grow.

Older kids may enjoy a simple pumpkin patch photo scavenger hunt. Challenge them to find the funniest-shaped pumpkin, photograph a sibling by the Christmas trees, spot a farm animal, take a family selfie and capture the best “lost in the corn maze” picture.

On the ride home, everyone could vote on a name for the family’s Jack-O’-Lantern, choose which pumpkin will become a pie or pick a night for the family carving session.

Another tradition is built naturally into the property itself: visit for pumpkins in October, then return during Christmas tree season.

The farm grows pine and cypress Christmas trees as a crop and plants a new seedling for each tree harvested. During the Christmas season, families can choose and cut their own Texas-grown Christmas tree, with saws and measuring sticks available at the farm. 

For children who rode through those trees during the Pumpkin Patch, returning weeks later to choose the family’s Christmas tree can make the two traditions feel connected.

Come Hungry: Fall Treats Are Part of the Experience

A few hours of pumpkin picking, maze wandering and train riding can build an appetite.

Food vendors at the farm serve familiar carnival-style favorites. The Sweet Zone offers items such as corn dogs, nachos, fried Oreos and funnel cakes, while Tikiz serves shaved ice and ice cream — a particularly practical fall treat during those Houston October afternoons when the weather still feels a lot like summer. 

Shaded picnic areas give families somewhere to sit between activities.

One planning note is important: outside food and drinks are not permitted inside the Pumpkin Patch, according to the farm. 

Families may also find handmade crafts from vendors during their visit, offering another place to browse before heading home with pumpkins in tow. 

Planning a Visit to Old Time Christmas Tree Farm’s Pumpkin Patch

Old Time Christmas Tree Farm is located at 7632 Spring Cypress Road, Spring, TX 77379, near the northwest corner of Spring Cypress Road and Stuebner Airline Road. 

Most importantly for families planning their fall calendars, the public Pumpkin Patch is open every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday throughout the month of October. Visitors do not need reservations and do not purchase advance online tickets; admission is handled at the gate. 

The farm advises visitors hoping to avoid heavier crowds to consider its non-peak dates.

The property is mostly flat and grassy with paved roads throughout, and handicap parking and an accessible portable restroom are available near the entrance. 

Families should check Old Time Christmas Tree Farm’s official website before leaving home for the latest operating hours, pricing, attraction schedules or weather-related updates.

More Than a Pumpkin Patch

For families searching for fall activities near Houston, a pumpkin patch in Spring or Klein, things to do with kids in October, a pet-friendly pumpkin patch or Houston-area fall photo locations, Old Time Christmas Tree Farm offers plenty to fill an afternoon.

But the longevity of the place may be what gives the visit its character.

Long before families arrived carrying smartphones and posing children among pumpkins, this piece of Harris County land was producing peanuts, cotton, hay, milk and other agricultural products. Later came Christmas trees. Then came pumpkin patch weekends, train rides and new generations of families returning each fall. 

In a part of the Houston area that continues to change quickly, Old Time Christmas Tree Farm offers something increasingly uncommon: a chance to spend a few hours on family farmland where the people welcoming today’s visitors are carrying forward a story that began generations before them.

Some families will go home with the biggest pumpkin they can fit in the car. Others will remember the train, the animals, the corn maze or the funnel cake.

Years from now, though, it may be that slightly imperfect photograph — a child sitting among pumpkins one October afternoon — that becomes the real reason the family keeps coming back.

Stay tuned to My Neighborhood News for more Houston-area fall events, pumpkin patches, family activities and community traditions worth adding to the calendar.

By Tiffany Krenek, My Neighborhood News 

Tiffany Krenek has been on the My Neighborhood News team since August 2021. She is passionate about curating and sharing content that enriches the lives of our readers in a personal, meaningful way. A loving mother and wife, Tiffany and her family live in the West Houston/Cypress region.