GROWING A GIANT PUMPKIN
(in 10 "easy" steps)
1 - A PLACE TO GROW - as much sun as possible - most important is the morning sun so that the plants and soil warm up fast and start growing - shade from 4pm and later is ok. How much space? - most 1000 pound + pumpkins are grown in 500 to 1000 sq ft. I tend to grow my plants wider than they are long so I prefer 30 feet wide and 20 feet long or about 600 sq ft. This allows for 15 foot long side vines and a 20 foot long main vine. The minimum area I would try to grow in is 20 feet by 20 feet, but 1000
pounders have been grown in half that.
2 - GOOD SOIL - get a soil test done and follow the recommendations, it will be the best $35 you spend - If no soil test then I usually recommend a couple
inches of well rotted manure or compost, 40 pounds gypsum, 20 pounds sulphur, and 40 pounds dolomitic lime per 1000 sq ft - all easily available at a farm supply store that sells fertilizers.
3 - GOOD SEED - not what you buy off the seed rack - good seeds can be found at Dills (online), join a club (GVGO, EGVGA, etc), ask a grower, ask online (check out the forums on GVGO.ca or bigpumpkins.com), ask at a weigh-off. Most growers will give out great seeds if you intend to grow them.
4 - HEALTHY SEEDLING - germinate the seed at 85F (29C) in barely damp (if you can squeeze water out of it, it’s too wet) seed starting mix such as ProMix. Do not use soil. File seed edges - not the pointy end and plant point down about and inch deep - KEEP WARM AND DO NOT OVERWATER. A cooler with a 15Watt bulb usually keeps temp just right - practise with regular seeds before the big day.
5 - HEALTHY TRANSPLANT - Florescent tube lights on 16 hours a day a couple inches above the plants works fine - put outside on warm sunny days but protect from wind and animals. If you don’t have a way to keep them growing inside then just start the seeds a week or two later. I like to have a 10 to 14 day old plant by May 10th that is ready to go outside in a hoop house.
6 - WELL ORGANIZED PLANT - Plant on an angle pointed in the right direction - the main vine will usually grow in the OPPOSITE direction that the first true leaf is pointing. Use crossed sticks (skewers) to gently guide the plant in the right direction - you want to end up with a main vine going straight down the patch and the secondary vines growing straight out to the sides like a Christmas tree. Lightly bury vines as they grow to promote more rooting and
give some protection from Squash Vine Borer. I like to make a slight
trench ahead of the growth that will help guide the plant in the right
direction. You want a main vine and secondary vines but prune off all growth
that sprouts off of the secondary vines. Wild, out of control vines will cause
the growth of your pumpkin to come to a halt by the end of
August.
7 - A POLLINATED PUMPKIN - without this you are just growing salad. For beginners just let the bees do their job - you can help it along by taking a male flower and rubbing the pollen from it into the end of a female flower. The main reason pumpkins will abort is extreme heat, drought or too much fertilizer - keep the pumpkin shaded to help keep it cool (laundry hamper, cardboard box, emergency blanket covering some sort of structure) - allow the pumpkins to get to volleyball size then cull to one or two best positioned ones - do not let more pumpkins set on the same plant.
8 - A HEALTHY PLANT - anything that impacts the health of the plant will slow the growth of the pumpkin. Water 1.5 inches per week minimum - your soil will tell you - not too wet, not too dry. Mist (water overhead for a minute or two) plants during extreme heat when leaves are wilted. Keep insects and disease under control - very tough under the Ontario Pesticide Ban - Products like TKO Phosphite and Silicate products like Silgaurd help prevent some disease and insect problems. With the Ontario Pesticide Ban products like Ortho Home Defense can be used in your house for ants but “technically” not in the patch for cucumber beetles. Other products no longer for sale in Ontario (but registered by the Federal Government) can legally be purchased and shipped into Ontario (Sunshine Gardens on EBAY sells all kinds of insect and disease control products and ships to Ontario all the time).
9 - A HEALTHY FRUIT - keep shaded - keep dry - protect the bottom from mice (a bed of sand, landscape fabric, mill fabric, etc). Biggest problem is stem stress - plan ahead when pumpkin is small - ideal position is at a right angle to the main vine on the outside of an “S” curve - raise the vine up as the pumpkin grows - may have to cut roots under the vine and prop up with Styrofoam. If needed just cut off vine past pumpkin.
10 - LOTS OF HELP - Hopefully the last thing you need is some help to load up this monster for the weigh-off! You will need a pallet for the pumpkin so it can be easily unloaded at the weigh-off. A lifting ring or straps may be needed for anything over 500 pounds. Under 500 pounds can be lifted with 6 people and a strong tarp.
MY FERTILIZING PROGRAM (2012)
- by John Nieuwenhoff (grew 1386 lbs in 2012)
Fall 2011
-added 1 - 50 pound bag of Black Earth Humic Acid from Bio-Ag per
1000 sq ft.
-added 40 pounds of Lime and 40 pounds of Gypsum per 1000 sq ft
-added 2-3 inches mushroom compost from Monaghan Mushrooms, South
of Campbellville (free to pick up)
Spring 2012
-did soil test and applied fertilizers according to recommendations
-applied Soil Restore Plus, Soil Life, and Green Tee monthy as per
instructions (liquid soil treatment)
-sprayed TKO, Silguard, and 3-18-18 every 14 days as per
instructions (foliar spray)
-added Myke’s mycorrhizae, Jersey Greensand, and a tiny amount
of 0-0-50 (3 or 4 granules) under leaf nodes while burying vines
-also controlled insects and disease as needed with various
products on a regular basis.
WATERING
-doesn’t matter how you do it as long as you keep the soil evenly
moist or allow to dry slightly between waterings. (I use overhead
sprinklers)
-I mist my plants during extreme heat (overhead water for a couple
minutes every half hour from 11am to 5pm) using a water timer
-keep stump area dry if possible to prevent rotting (a simple 2’X2’
table over stump area works great)
pounders have been grown in half that.
2 - GOOD SOIL - get a soil test done and follow the recommendations, it will be the best $35 you spend - If no soil test then I usually recommend a couple
inches of well rotted manure or compost, 40 pounds gypsum, 20 pounds sulphur, and 40 pounds dolomitic lime per 1000 sq ft - all easily available at a farm supply store that sells fertilizers.
3 - GOOD SEED - not what you buy off the seed rack - good seeds can be found at Dills (online), join a club (GVGO, EGVGA, etc), ask a grower, ask online (check out the forums on GVGO.ca or bigpumpkins.com), ask at a weigh-off. Most growers will give out great seeds if you intend to grow them.
4 - HEALTHY SEEDLING - germinate the seed at 85F (29C) in barely damp (if you can squeeze water out of it, it’s too wet) seed starting mix such as ProMix. Do not use soil. File seed edges - not the pointy end and plant point down about and inch deep - KEEP WARM AND DO NOT OVERWATER. A cooler with a 15Watt bulb usually keeps temp just right - practise with regular seeds before the big day.
5 - HEALTHY TRANSPLANT - Florescent tube lights on 16 hours a day a couple inches above the plants works fine - put outside on warm sunny days but protect from wind and animals. If you don’t have a way to keep them growing inside then just start the seeds a week or two later. I like to have a 10 to 14 day old plant by May 10th that is ready to go outside in a hoop house.
6 - WELL ORGANIZED PLANT - Plant on an angle pointed in the right direction - the main vine will usually grow in the OPPOSITE direction that the first true leaf is pointing. Use crossed sticks (skewers) to gently guide the plant in the right direction - you want to end up with a main vine going straight down the patch and the secondary vines growing straight out to the sides like a Christmas tree. Lightly bury vines as they grow to promote more rooting and
give some protection from Squash Vine Borer. I like to make a slight
trench ahead of the growth that will help guide the plant in the right
direction. You want a main vine and secondary vines but prune off all growth
that sprouts off of the secondary vines. Wild, out of control vines will cause
the growth of your pumpkin to come to a halt by the end of
August.
7 - A POLLINATED PUMPKIN - without this you are just growing salad. For beginners just let the bees do their job - you can help it along by taking a male flower and rubbing the pollen from it into the end of a female flower. The main reason pumpkins will abort is extreme heat, drought or too much fertilizer - keep the pumpkin shaded to help keep it cool (laundry hamper, cardboard box, emergency blanket covering some sort of structure) - allow the pumpkins to get to volleyball size then cull to one or two best positioned ones - do not let more pumpkins set on the same plant.
8 - A HEALTHY PLANT - anything that impacts the health of the plant will slow the growth of the pumpkin. Water 1.5 inches per week minimum - your soil will tell you - not too wet, not too dry. Mist (water overhead for a minute or two) plants during extreme heat when leaves are wilted. Keep insects and disease under control - very tough under the Ontario Pesticide Ban - Products like TKO Phosphite and Silicate products like Silgaurd help prevent some disease and insect problems. With the Ontario Pesticide Ban products like Ortho Home Defense can be used in your house for ants but “technically” not in the patch for cucumber beetles. Other products no longer for sale in Ontario (but registered by the Federal Government) can legally be purchased and shipped into Ontario (Sunshine Gardens on EBAY sells all kinds of insect and disease control products and ships to Ontario all the time).
9 - A HEALTHY FRUIT - keep shaded - keep dry - protect the bottom from mice (a bed of sand, landscape fabric, mill fabric, etc). Biggest problem is stem stress - plan ahead when pumpkin is small - ideal position is at a right angle to the main vine on the outside of an “S” curve - raise the vine up as the pumpkin grows - may have to cut roots under the vine and prop up with Styrofoam. If needed just cut off vine past pumpkin.
10 - LOTS OF HELP - Hopefully the last thing you need is some help to load up this monster for the weigh-off! You will need a pallet for the pumpkin so it can be easily unloaded at the weigh-off. A lifting ring or straps may be needed for anything over 500 pounds. Under 500 pounds can be lifted with 6 people and a strong tarp.
MY FERTILIZING PROGRAM (2012)
- by John Nieuwenhoff (grew 1386 lbs in 2012)
Fall 2011
-added 1 - 50 pound bag of Black Earth Humic Acid from Bio-Ag per
1000 sq ft.
-added 40 pounds of Lime and 40 pounds of Gypsum per 1000 sq ft
-added 2-3 inches mushroom compost from Monaghan Mushrooms, South
of Campbellville (free to pick up)
Spring 2012
-did soil test and applied fertilizers according to recommendations
-applied Soil Restore Plus, Soil Life, and Green Tee monthy as per
instructions (liquid soil treatment)
-sprayed TKO, Silguard, and 3-18-18 every 14 days as per
instructions (foliar spray)
-added Myke’s mycorrhizae, Jersey Greensand, and a tiny amount
of 0-0-50 (3 or 4 granules) under leaf nodes while burying vines
-also controlled insects and disease as needed with various
products on a regular basis.
WATERING
-doesn’t matter how you do it as long as you keep the soil evenly
moist or allow to dry slightly between waterings. (I use overhead
sprinklers)
-I mist my plants during extreme heat (overhead water for a couple
minutes every half hour from 11am to 5pm) using a water timer
-keep stump area dry if possible to prevent rotting (a simple 2’X2’
table over stump area works great)