Large Pumpkins

Cricket, been following this thread since it started. But I may have missed. Do you have irrigation for them? Or do you hope for rain to water them?

I think they are already the size of my biggest pumpkin ever :) One of these days I will try to grow a real pumpkin, but certainly not here.

I manually water. During our 116* index days, I had to water every other day but i didn't over do it. The leaves never wilted either thanks to the shade cloth.

the patch has a little powdery mildew in two areas. All I can do is slow it down and hope for the best.( Daconil )

16 days old

Cricket,
Do you turn the pumpkin to distribute the weight? I know NOTHING about growing pumpkins. But, I was wondering if people turn them to keep soft spots from forming?

Linda

There is no way to turn the giant pumpkin. The stem is not flexible and the fruit is heavy. It would break. Where it rest is where it stays until the end.

Cricket - you might look into Neem Oil. It really seems effective against all sorts of gardening maladies, and is taking care of my own powdery mildew problems. And it has a bonus - it's organic.

Neem Oil for Powdery Mildew......wonder why that works.


side by side daily comparison

Yesterday
Today

Wow, CG. I can only imagine the joy of watching the 'little giant' grows everyday in person. How mesmerizing that could be! Thank you for sharing the joy with me and others here on DG.

Happy July 4th and stay cool everyone.

So way back at the top of this there was mention of fertilizing with seaweed or organic fertilizer,While having some trouble without re-reading this entire thread, that I eventually will ,of course.How is the fertilizer program, and what are "we"(you) doing with the fertilizer.

Well if that doubles in size during the next few days you will be at the first 100,going for two! growing nicely so far!! May be a 1,000 pds. by Aug.1. Hopefully even two!!

Crickets - Neem Oil is an oil, so it gets onto the leaf, and basically drowns the mildew. All I can say to you is that it truly has worked for me with my Jane Magnolias, tomatoes, and also Heritage Roses. But you have to keep a regular spray routine. I await my new sprayer right now - discovering Neem Oil has made me believe that I can defend against it well now! I send you my best!

Just give it a Google, and you'll find out allot of information about it. Sure works for me. I am in Zone 7a.

I was just about to ask how you manually water them but I found my answer further up the thread.

I am curious if they and how big are their tap roots/joint roots(not sure what they are called)....the roots that set along the vines. Do you water these as well as the main roots? Or does that even matter?

As far as Powdery Mildew, I was gonna suggest Sulfur dust, Copper spray or Neem. But in your heat, no way. You definitely would scorch the leaves. I've used http://www.greencure.net/ and other potassium bicarbonate products and can't say either way if it cures PM like they say. I just haven't used it enough to know but might be worth checking out.

I have used sulfur dust for minor things but i am allergic to sulfur so I have to becareful when I use it. Believe me........I wish I could dust it all with sulfur but i cant go there.
I cannot make myself go out into the public right now. ... can't go shopping so I have to use the daconil for now. Will try neem oil later in the future when hubby is home to shop for me..
(why i won't go out into the public?) I had my last 10 teeth pulled and one broke like chalk and it had to be "dug" out and left a crater in my gum structure. Anyway===personal dignity. I don't want to be seen and I don't want folks to watch me talk. I know , but I do care and have heard from other family members their opinions of what i look and sound like.

Ray........Yes, I feed and water all the vines that have rooted and they take root quickly and their roots can travel very far past the space of the plant itself. I feed the plant area and some feet beyond that until it has filled up the patch....and then I only feed and water the whole patch area. The roots beyond that will have to fend for theirselves.
I use a hose end sprayer to feed a few times a week. I haven't been able to feed lately cause my hose end stopped working but hubby bought me a new on a couple days ago. I am sure it is having a kelp withdrawl.

Never feed nitrogen during pollination and fruit set. They can and will abort.

I don't know much about growing giant pumpkins and this one is changing colors already. It's getting darker now and that makes me nervous. It makes me think that it is maturing quicker than it should. As they mature they get darker but I don't know at what stage that should happen.

cricketsgarden; Well it is difficult to grow giants, it can be even when they are not giants,especially when you do not feel well. Sometimes the garden will make you feel better after a short while though,don't lose heart, just get well ,things will work out.

I have had seven or eight times been in surgery since 2003, all except one ....have been since 2009, so I feel for you cricket , I know a little about what what i'm talking about,and about what you may probably be feeling.

As said ,just get well, you can talk with us when you feel better,And as for your pumpkins,this is a learn along session it? What some us learn might be worth passing back to you later. After all ..the people who grow those giant pumpkins and squash....They didn't learn how overnight, and for some it took years.

I am trying to refrain from being negative; although... the darker a pumpkin gets it is usually near ripe,I have grown enough of the usual and tried a giant or two often enough to know that also. I have seen a few giants that had gotten pretty dark and kept on growing though,and even a few green ones that stayed green as ripe,it happens.

CG, I'm so sorry to hear you're not feeling well. Well wishes are sending your way. I'm here if you would like to talk, only a dmail away... I didn't get to pollinate my female flower for one reason or the other. I just don't have an excuse. I just wanted a pumpkin, and it doesn't have to be a giant one. lol. Like juhur7, and many others who are cheering for you ... I'm here.

Crickets - YIKES! Reminds me of when, in High School, my wisdom teeth had to be pounded outta me...now, if you were a horseperson, I would remind you that everything is as it should be - your barn is clean, your horses lacking nothing, and you're at the bottom of the heap, likely the hosses got stuff WELL before you did...LOL but true! And, in true spirit, your house is a MESS. But you can eat off the barn floor...

But you have punkins, and I am in awe. Heal well, and quickly, dear gardener. I'm on antibiotics right now due to a doggone tick bite (HORRIBLE tick season here in Virginia - I can't go outside until I'm done with the medicine), so Hubby is our gardener these days. God bless him - he's a champ!

ty.....but I am much better now... i still wont go anywhere yet. I still have bone fragments pushing out of my gums and one was like a machete.

some giant pumpkin growers told me that some pumpkins that will turn out dark orange will start turning colors early.......some do, some don't.
as long as it is shiny, smooth, growing, then its not maturing.

OUCH Gracye and I hope you get well soon too. Don't ya just hate those antibiotics that require you to stay out of the sunlight?

Husbands can be Heroes

I leveled the pumpkin yesterday with sand and the sand will help it slide better than that ground cover.

Color of the photo looks like that is going to be a Really "BIG ONE"!!! " growing, growing ,growing, keep those pumpkins growing", Cricketsgarden.

I would add music if I knew how (lol)

Oh Cricket, I hate hear your feeling poorly, you too Grayce. It stinks not feeling well during the summer. I hope your both on the mend soon :0)

The pumpkin looks fabulous Cricket, so much fun to watch grow. How do you keep from giving them a personal name?lol The bucket/pumpkin photos just amaze me at how fast they grow, really puts it into perspective.

I just harvested our 6th pumpkin, which is a record amount. The SVB just doesn't seem to be a big issue this year in the pumpkin patch. Yay, for the small miracles.

So sorry about your setback. I think you've been a real trooper to keep going with the pumpkin, as well as keeping us posted on your progress. I'm praying the pumpkin (and tooth) journey will be well worth the pain!

And by the time the pumpkin is ready, YOU'LL be ready to sink your (new?) teeth into one FAN-TAS-TIC pumpkin pie!

Hugs!

Linda

Thank you all - Hubby weeded our veggie garden yesterday and picked 10 count 'em, 10 ticks off! I found that they can easily go through the washer, and the dryer, too.
Doc told me that I will be photosensitive for about a week after my last pill, so all you gardeners - be careful! There are three nasty tick diseases...I bet those buggers hide in the pumpkin patch, too!

LOL Linda ;) pumpkin pie is soft :) as long as i don't eat the crusty edge. I had pumpkin pie the other day (canned).

Just wanted to show you how the pumpkin pushes on the sand as it grows. The sand was smooth surface yesterday

Oh wow, apparently it's growing and growing! Thanks CG for the photo.

oh.......how do i keep from giving them a personal name???? I thought of names but not officially. The plant has no historical family tree so I thought about calling it Mutt cause that is what I call the plant. The Holland Mutt.

A pumpkin animal rescue garden? ! coooooooooooo-ooooool !!!!

Well I liked it..(lol)

Crickets -TOTALLY COOL! You know, one time, I was looking at my Morning Glory and I ACTUALLY SAW IT SHOOT OUT about an inch! No joke! I bet if you stand next to it, you'll experience the same thing, the way that thing is enlarging away...! Wow! So impressive.

As far as a name, now, is it a guy or gal? If it's a gal, I suggest "Princess Pale Moon." It's kinda eery, and still a lady...and full, like a full moon, and the color is pale...well, it's just a thought.

the color is darkening. The growth is kinda slow. I been cutting the ends of the vines this morning in hopes to put more energy into the pumpkin. It should start to grow more in a few days as the energy is shifted........I hope.

23 days after pollination.

I'd call it "Big Foot..."

VERY large footprint there...

This is a stem view on July 7th.

I was remembering about some old melon growing that applied to pumpkins besides a few other melons,How about I run it by ya and see if you have ever heard any of this?#1 Either B.soda or nitrogen as a leaf or fruit spray one slows down ripening the other speeds it up#2.I know that both salt type things and nitrogen can cause ripening to happen to quickly.That is as to info about when the plants begin to set on fruit,as root application.

I have experience with either only can't remember the first.

I know from experience the second is true.I'm believing something about the type of potassium as it is salts is playing a bigger role than the nitrogen or phosphorous. So from that I am wondering about salt absorption.
HEY cricketsgarden; How about another round of a soil and water discussion,how's yours and what is it doing these days.
As always Cricket, "That pumpkin" is fun to watch!!

I haven't been watering much. And it is dry around here. We got one nice rain a week ago and a sprinkle a couple days ago. We keep getting thunder and lightening storms but no rain. We have 30, 40 and 50 percent chance of rain all week but if it's anything like this past week with 30 percent chance that had no rain then I gotta start watering this pumpkin more often.
I haven't been feeding the plant any nitrogen until two days ago and it was only fish emulsion and the reason I did that was to see if the fruit would pick up some speed on growth. I have been feeding it kelp once a week. I should feed it more. I have not been following my original feeding plan. I got lazy during the heat drought. The plant did great under that shade cloth during the high temps.

I need to cut off the ends of several more vines this evening and feed it a mild dose Kelp . I havent give the plant any salt based fertilizer the whole time it has been growing. I only used 13-13-13 as a pre-plant broadcast a couple months ago.

We've had rain three days in a row.
Rain scheduled for the rest of this week.
And, we're having a cool front, with nights averaging 78°!

im in trouble.
i wanted to know exactly how much to water one plant and I figured by this information below that my one plant needs 44 gallons of water a day. I want to faint.


info found on net..........
12. WATERING. Giant Pumpkins require approximately 1 to 1 ½ inches per week. The amount of water required can vary greatly depending on soil type, temperature, humidity, time of year, etc. Once you get a feel for your patch you can better adjust to your own watering needs. But many growers need a good starting place. To cover a 1000 square foot garden evenly with 1 inch of water it takes 623 gallons. (1 gallon = 231 cubic inches) That’s a lot more than many growers might think. This is 89 gallons per day, or 178 gallons every other day. For 1 ½ inches of water per week it takes 934.5 gallons per week, or 133.5 gallons per day, or 167 gallons every other day.

YES MA,AM ! There is customer out front with a "BiG GLASS"

"44 gallons of water a day"

Good Lord! Those numbers are mind boggling!! Time to dam up the nearest stream :)

Isn't the truth! Time to dam up the nearest stream ... if Critket has one nearby. Best wishes CG.

Guys, on July 5th Gracye wrote " Horrible ticks season here in Virginia ... " Well folks, I'm being worked up for tick's bite as of now. Treatment is underway while awaiting for lab's result. Everyone needs to take care ... There has been increased cases down here too.

CG, we had some rain as of yesterday, have you got some? It's been tough with the drought.

Yep. Finally got some rain.....two days ago it started raining and it hasn't stopped much since then.

The pumpkin is at a snails pace . I am not completely sure why. But since it is so slow , Im gonna start feeding the plant some Miracle Grow Bloom Booster. I am wondering if it ran out of nutrients in the soil, or possible vine rot somewhere. I'll feed it as soon as the rain lets me.

Lily - Just got my lab results yesterday. No problem. Unbelievable, as I had a mess of a week with a bite that got that dread "Bulls Eye" look to it and the itching, well, kept me up at night. Finally, I decided that, after the initial bite on Monday, and it being a Friday, I just could not go through the weekend like that. So, went to the Urgent Care. Got on antibiotics right away. Doc was truly impressed with the bite site - the red was like a ripe tomato, and about 4" wide by now!

I went to my regular doc on the following Monday after the Urgent Care visit-did the responsible thing. After two weeks on the antibiotics, and it taking that long for your body to build antibodies, bloodwork can be taken. Then another week about for the results...so it takes time to figure this stuff out.

Weird thing - the site cleans up and then reappears, so you think that you're on top of things and guess what. This is what concerned me, besides the unrelenting itching.

I think that getting on the antibiotics right away did the trick. I do wish you the very best, Lily. I got tested for three diseases, and found out that a friend of mine was diagnosed with doggone Menengitus (sp) after being RUSHED to the ER three weeks after (the hospital told her this time span) a baby tick got her - she did not know it happened, but after a time, the "Bulls Eye" appeared. And went away, and being a horseperson, well...

Also found out at church that 3 others are/were on drugs for tick bites. One guy is on THREE, including weekly shots in the bu__!

So this is why I am telling the tale, I HIGHLY resent the fact that ticks seem to have gotten very diseased, and I can no longer just rip 'em offa me and go on with Life. And all of YOU are in the same boat.

Ticks hate light-colored clothing. They LOVE water. So watch your garden, if you are regularly watering it. And watch around bird baths, and spigots. I had three fall off of my sweet little dogwood tree onto my shoulder, go into my shirt, and attach to my shoulder. Nice, huh.

I ask you to please give this subject SERIOUS thought.