A year after the Buckweed fire devastated Lombardi Ranch, business is booming once again.

[view:node_ad=5] This October will mark one year since the Buckweed fire taunted and endangered the Santa Clarita Valley. The damage was widespread, and many local businesses in the fire’s path did not emerge unscathed.

 Lombardi Ranch,  a family-owned produce farm and pumpkin patch was not an exception.

“The fire came through here and took out some of our attractions and a lot of our pumpkins,” Rob Lombardi, son of owners JoAnn and Bob said. “It just made a mess of the place.”

Business shut down when the disaster hit, but went back up on a much smaller scale for a few weeks after the fire.

Now, a year later, Lombardi Ranch has risen through the devastation and resumed business as expected.

“Everything is back to normal. You pretty much can’t tell that there’s been a fire,” Lombardi said.

As for changes to the ranch, “We’ve rearranged a few things around here, and kind of opened up some spaces a little more,” Lombardi said. “There’s more seating, so it won’t be as crowded.”

Located off of Bouquet Canyon Road, Lombardi Ranch has been selling pumpkins since 1968, and began their famous Halloween Pumpkin Festival in 1989.

A local favorite, Lombardi Ranch is host to many attractions such as a sunflower maze, scarecrow contests, a petting zoo, wagon rides, live entertainment and of course, pumpkin picking. The ranch also sells locally grown produce such as corn, tomatoes, squash, peppers, onions and other fall harvest items.

According to Lombardi, being back in business a year after such a traumatic disaster is truly a marvel.

“We couldn’t have done it without a bunch of good friends and people in the community.”

For location and business hours, visit http://www.lombardiranch.com/