Pumpkins for a Halloween Harvest?

[vfem]

I'm curious on to when I should plant these to have them ready in time for the fall holidays? I am planting some large type pumpkins for painting for halloween, but they friend who gave them to me said she made pies out of them and they were wonderful... so I'm hoping to have enough to make into pie filling around the same time.

I do not know the amount of 'days until harvest' for a pumpkin, again, a larger one... not the small pie pumpkins?

Also, should I start these in the greenhouse and move out to the beds later? Or right in the ground?

Thanks for the advice!

 

[bid]

I think most field pumpkins have anywhere from about 90 to 120 days to maturity times...depends on variety. I would just plant them right in the ground this time of the year. If you figure say 110 days, a week to sprout, hmmmm... plant today, pumpkins ready about first week of October?

 

[vfem]

I think most field pumpkins have anywhere from about 90 to 120 days to maturity times...depends on variety. I would just plant them right in the ground this time of the year. If you figure say 110 days, a week to sprout, hmmmm... plant today, pumpkins ready about first week of October?

Wow... don't think I could get in today, but I sure can try for friday. We'll see... but I really would like to get a couple vines growing. So how far apart should I put them ?

 

[hoodat]

I'm curious on to when I should plant these to have them ready in time for the fall holidays? I am planting some large type pumpkins for painting for halloween, but they friend who gave them to me said she made pies out of them and they were wonderful... so I'm hoping to have enough to make into pie filling around the same time.

I do not know the amount of 'days until harvest' for a pumpkin, again, a larger one... not the small pie pumpkins?

Also, should I start these in the greenhouse and move out to the beds later? Or right in the ground?

Thanks for the advice!

I'd get them planted as soon as possible. The longer they have to develop the larger they will get. Pumpkins keep increasing in size till the stem dies.

 

[vfem]

I'm curious on to when I should plant these to have them ready in time for the fall holidays? I am planting some large type pumpkins for painting for halloween, but they friend who gave them to me said she made pies out of them and they were wonderful... so I'm hoping to have enough to make into pie filling around the same time.

I do not know the amount of 'days until harvest' for a pumpkin, again, a larger one... not the small pie pumpkins?

Also, should I start these in the greenhouse and move out to the beds later? Or right in the ground?

Thanks for the advice!

I'd get them planted as soon as possible. The longer they have to develop the larger they will get. Pumpkins keep increasing in size till the stem dies.

That's great! That will make the kids estatic! However, should I harvest a few small ones with the intent of baking? I would assume the smaller ones are less tough and more flavorful?

 

[bid]

How far apart? depends on how many you want to try and grow. For just a few, say 6 vines, I would probably make 2 mounds and plant 6 to 8 seeds per mound with the mounds 6 to 8 feet apart. Thin to the best 2 or 3 plants and figure on moving the vines around some. The vines will grow 15-20 feet or more, but you can always prune them after they set fruit too.

Oh and I didn't mean you had to go plant them today. That was just me trying to fix a timeline in my head. But, (there's always a but isn't there), as Hoodat said, the sooner the better. Late September/early October and the inevitable powdery mildew will be here! Pumpkins will keep for quite a while. I still have a few mini's from last year.

 

[Beekissed]

I've always planted my larger pumpkins 3 seeds to a hill and placed the hills 2-3 ft. apart. This year we did crowd our vines a little closer than this(not intentionally) and are allowing them to vine out into the corn and other beds for the needed space.

I've read somewhere that one can cut the vines after all the fruit has set to allow for all the nutrients to go into the growing of the fruit. I'm worried that this will shock the plant or keep it from getting adequate moisture from additional roots formed further down the vines.

Here's a few articles on it:

Normally, one spaces pumpkins 3 to 4 feet apart, as the plants have large and sprawling leaves; but in a deep-dug bed and with a smaller, early type like the Long Pie, 30 inches might well do--but, if you have space available, more wouldn't hurt.

Pruning pumpkin vines enhances the plant's growth. Let those main vines grow as long as possible, but trim all secondary vines (those that grow off the main vines) to about 10 feet. Pinch off all tertiary vines (those that come off secondaries) as soon as they appear. If you run out of room, vines can be trained to grow back in the direction they came from, or can be tied to a trellis or fence and so grown upward for more leaf space. As the pumpkins develop, it is wise to put something under the vines in their vicinity to raise them up a bit, so the pumpkin doesn't pull itself off the vine with its growth. It's also a good idea to clip off any vine growing beyond your chosen pumpkin.

Some gardeners promote branching to get more pumpkins by pinching the tips out of main vines when they reach about 2 feet long. You can also increase the yield on a vine by removing all female flowers (these have a small swelling at the base of the bloom) for the first 3 weeks. These practices may produce a sturdier vine that can set more, albeit smaller, pumpkins during the growing season if you have good soil, sun, and moisture. If your goal is fewer, larger pumpkins per vine, once you have 3 to 4 fruits on a vine, pinch off all remaining flowers as they form.

 

[DawnSuiter]

I spent the day hacking back my pumpkin vines which have taken over.

I scheduled a seed start on June 15th for Halloween pumpkins, but my friend said they'll just keep growing so I didn't need to wait so I have them in now.

Whatever you do, give them PLENTY of room to grow. I'm using garden staples to direct the vines just where I want them; along walkways, fence lines & around the raised beds.

 

[HunkieDorie23]

Back when I was first starting to garden almost 20 years ago, the nursey said (this is for started plants) that they need to be planted the first week of July. So for seeds, maybe two weeks before, Mid June. I planted mine last week because last year it was so cold here we really didn't get pumpkins or winter squash because they didn't have enough time. If you don't have that problem between 15 June and 1 July.

Make sure you post your decorated pumpkins. The harvest is the best part.

 

[digitS']

Of course, variety makes a difference.

I used to plant most any pun'kin seed for Halloween jack o'lanterns. Often, I had pumpkins that were still green with only few that were turning orange by the end of the growing season.

A few years ago, I grew Rock Star. It matures almost too early! Nice big pumpkins but setting out 2 or 3 week-old plants at the end of May gave me ripening pumpkins at the beginning of September.

Some of them had a problem one year making it to Halloween. But, that was related to a rind disease that I hadn't seen before nor since.

. . . mileage may vary with any variety. I hate that caveat but it applies. Just keep track of what you grow V, you may or may not want that one, next year.

Steve