GIANT PUNKIN CONTEST 2013 all cucurbitaceae!

[MontyJ]

30 to 50# a day? I had NO idea. 1000 plus pounds? I didn't think such was possible.

The current world record is held by Ron Wallace. The fruit was weighed in at Topsfield, Ma just last year at a whopping 2009 pounds. Yep, over 1 ton.

Major, mine went on display at the local Apple Festival. A local lumberyard volunteered their forklift to unload it and place it for us. At the end of the festival, we cut it up in the street. Many people thought it was fake, so it was funny to see their expressions. The pieces were then loaded into the truck and brought back to the compost pile.

Jared, the seed that grew that pumpkin came from another professional grower in Ohio. Trading seeds is how growers add different genetics to their patch.

Marshall, I've never grown competition cantelope or cucumbers. That might even the odds some. Don't start a giant cabbage or tomato contest though

 

[desertlady]

Monty J I have a question... I have a pumpkin growing right now , do I keep cutting the flowers off the same vine ? How much do I need to cut them off? below the flowers? Thanks!

 

[MontyJ]

If you are looking to grow as large a pumpkin as possible, you need to cut all of the flowers off of the entire plant. I try to cut them as close to the vine as possible, but it doesn't really matter as long as the flower itself is gone. My reasoning for cutting them short is that it's one less place for disease to start.

 

[desertlady]

If you are looking to grow as large a pumpkin as possible, you need to cut all of the flowers off of the entire plant. I try to cut them as close to the vine as possible, but it doesn't really matter as long as the flower itself is gone. My reasoning for cutting them short is that it's one less place for disease to start.

Thank you ! Im just learning as I go along ! I grew white pumkins last year it wasnt very big about 12 to 15 inches round. Im just doing this for fun !

 

[Smart Red]

If you are looking to grow as large a pumpkin as possible, you need to cut ALL of the flowers off of the ENTIRE plant.

According to my neighbor, that's the reason I never get a good tomato harvest. DH keeps cutting all the green tomatoes off so there's room for the red ones to grow.

I fear MontyJ is trying to insure that he's the big pumpkin winner! If everyone else cuts ALL their flowers off no one has a chance to beat him. Stand firm and don't listen to MontyJ. I suggest leaving the male and female flowers on the plant until one starts a pumpkin growing. Then you won't need the other flowers. Breaded and fried, those flowers are a delicious addition to the table while you tend your MontyJ beating pumpkin.

 

[Jared77]

I think he meant after you've selected which pumpkin you want to go with as your big one as you suggested. Maybe it got lost in translation?

According to my neighbor, that's the reason I never get a good tomato harvest. DH keeps cutting all the green tomatoes off so there's room for the red ones to grow.

Where did he get that idea? I never prune anything on my tomato plants and I get a TON of tomatoes off each plant. Only time I take a blossom off is if the plant was damaged from a frost and I want the plant to focus on growth rather than an early bloom. I'm bad I don't even take off suckers on tomato plants. I just feed them with compost, and let them do their thing. Especially if your growing some of the earlier ripening varieties. When its ripe I pick those ones and leave the unripe ones alone to keep growing.

I'd plant a couple of tomato plants that DH can't touch. Just to see how the yield varies between pruning styles and maybe he'll get it when he sees first hand that by not pruning how many more you could get.

 

[MontyJ]

Yes, remove all other flowers after you have a confirmed fruit set. And to clarify even further, you should actually set three fruit at first. Pumpkins will sometimes abort a fruit right after set. You can tell a fruit has set once it is about 10 days old. It should be showing growth and have a very shiny skin. If the skin is dull, it's probably an abort.

And for further clarification...I'm not entering the giant pumpkin contest. I'm just cheering on the growers and offering advice when asked

As for tomatoes, I do prune the vines some. I remove all suckers for the first half of the season, then let the top bush out. It does reduce yield, but results in larger fruit. I grow a lot of plants for canning so the reduced yield doesn't affect me much.

For competition tomatoes, I remove all suckers all season long and also remove all blooms after I set three fruit. I provide the fruit with shade since the top is not allowed to bush out.

 

[desertlady]

Got it ! I got one punkin on one vine so far. As for tomatoes I do prune my tomatoes once it get overly grown. In late summer it gets very stressed, I cut it back and I get tons of fruit for fall !

 

[desertlady]

questions for MontyJ ... wind was hard on my plant, some leaves looks damaged can I trim it off? or will it hurt my little punkin? Thanks!

 

[MontyJ]

Do not trim off the damaged leaves unless the stem is completely broken and the leaf is wilting. Even if the leaf is shredded, if it's still green, it's still making food for the plant.