By Steven Sandberg
 
October 6, 2009
 
CENTRAL POINT, Ore. - Recent cold nights and frost advisories could take a toll on the Southern Oregon pumpkin harvest.
 
As pumpkins mature they can resist cold conditions better. However, pumpkins that aren't ripe yet are softer, meaning they can freeze and spoil after thawing.
 
Normally, early frosty conditions at this time of year would have a dramatic impact on the pumpkin harvest. However this year, some pumpkin crops ripened earlier than normal, meaning that most pumpkins had matured enough to fight the cold temperatures.
 
Farmers say that as long as the temperature doesn't drop to an extreme low, this year's pumpkin crop should survive.
 
"Unless we had a frost that went down in the teens and stayed that way for two or three days, I think our other pumpkins will be fine," said Doreen Bradshaw, Co-Owner of Seven Oaks Farm in Central Point.
 
The quantity of pumpkins is the same as last year, the only difference is they're just a little bit smaller.