What a wonderful time of year Fall is. The air cools, leaves turn colors, and the fields are full of pumpkins. Perhaps you’ve watched throughout the late summer as seeds become plants, plants begin to bloom, and the small marbles of pumpkins grow large to fully dot an entire field. Gosh, how many pumpkins can grow and fill up the vast amount of land? Then one day you get a thought “I think I’ll pull over and get just one pumpkin to put on my porch”. You stop beside the field to quickly pick a pumpkin to take home. Do you know what you’ve just done?
Behind that field of pumpkins is a farmer. He plans ahead to buy seeds, rent land, and prepare the fields for planting. He plants, plows, fertilizes, weeds, and perhaps, irrigates the crops. He invests a lot of money and time (long before harvest time) to grow this precious crop. Days often start at sunrise and end at sunset with 100 degree heat during those hours. There’s fuel to buy, fertilizer to afford, and workers to pay. Some nights he’ll have trouble resting as he prays for much needed rains. Yes, there is a lot to be done before the first pumpkin is ever sold.
Finally, it’s harvest time. He’ll sell his crop to earn back his investment and hopefully make a profit. After all, this is his job and his livelihood. This supports his family. Too bad fuel and fertilizer cost more this year. His profits will already be lower since he can’t really increase his prices very much to compensate. “That’s farming” he’ll say.
Now you’ve helped yourself to his product. Sure, he has plenty but that doesn’t make them free. It’s just one pumpkin to you but unfortunately some folks help themselves to a truck-load for free. Each year he already promises some free ones to some churches and schools. The rest he needs to sell.
You, technically, are a felon. North Carolina Statue 14-78 addresses the “larceny of ungathered crops”. It states that a person who steals, “feloniously takes”, and carries away any...fruit or vegetable cultivated for food or market, growing, standing or remaining ungathered in any field or ground is guilty of a Class H felony. It can be punishable by up to 30 months in prison.
Will this all make someone think twice before taking my husband’s pumpkins the next time? Maybe, hopefully, or maybe not.
Sincerely,
Amy Bynum
9708 Old Stage Road
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-772-4081
