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Post by john on Nov 7, 2017 6:19:24 GMT -6
Hi Ron
Thanks for the article, I enjoyed reading it. It is very true. Growers share their knowledge with each other, many years ago no one shared a thing. I think that it is unusual to see those in competition with each other, help each other out. I feel that a lot of the ground work for the sharing started when the Don Langevin Wrote his first book "How to Grow World Class Giant Pumpkins". In the book he expressed that all growers should look to the "golden rule", to do unto other as you would like done unto you. The spirit of generosity started early on with many top growers and it has been contagious! Don't get me wrong there are still many who are less than open about what they do, but for the most part everyone works together to advance the weights.
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Feb 5, 2019 23:45:24 GMT -6
How do you guys keep weeds under control in your pumpkin patches?
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Post by macmex on Feb 6, 2019 8:23:37 GMT -6
That's a wonderful attitude to have! More than a generation ago, there were gardeners who wouldn't share a tomato with anyone, unless they, first, removed all of the seed. They didn't want competition for the best tomato, etc.
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Post by john on Feb 6, 2019 8:24:43 GMT -6
Great question Ron. This will probably be more info than you expected! LOL
There are so many different growers and so many different approaches to weed control. Many growers simply cultivate their plants by hand with a scuffle hoe. (The scuffle hoe cultivates very shallowly, just beneath the soil surface.) Other growers till around the perimeters of their plants as they grow, the plants then "run" out onto clean tilled soil. (with this method you have to be sure to stay out about three feet from the vine tips as the roots spread further out than the canopy.) .
Weeds do still grow under the leaf canopy of a mature plant, but they are far less vigorous because of all the shade thrown by the pumpkin's leaves.
Some growers pull the weeds under the leaf canopy by hand, others carefully spot treat with glyphosate and others hoe very shallowly under the canopy.
Another successful method is to buy cheap clear plastic drop cloths and lay them out tightly covering the tilled and moistened soil. As the plant grows, the plastic is pulled back so that the pumpkin can put down it's roots. The high soil temps under the plastic will kill any weed seeds near the surface and as long as the soil is not re-tilled or cultivated the patch should be free from most weeds for the remainder of the season.
Some growers use a combination of all the techniques.
Many pumpkin growers like to rotate their patches and heavily use cover crops over a period of years to reduce the weed population. Sudan grass is a really good summer cover crop that they employ. Many growers also like to bio-fumigate their soils using a type of mustard called "mighty mustard". When the mustard gets tilled into the ground it releases gases that kill soil borne diseases. The bio-fumigant cover crops are used to help build the soil's organic matter and also to clean the soil of diseases that reside in it.
I have grown my biggest pumpkin (1063 pounds) using a permanent mulch of hay, manure, shavings etc. The mulch was laid down at least 6" thick and the pumpkins grew right over the top and set down roots right into the rich moist soil beneath. This method is not used by most serious growers. I am not aware of any top growers that are currently using this method. I am not sure why not. I think it has special merit in climates like Oklahoma where it is very hot and dry. The mulch really helps to protect the soil and keep it evenly moist and also cooler. I learned of the method from a grower out in Australia who lives in a sub tropical climate. He was growing pumpkins in the 1400 pound range. That is very impressive to me. Most growers in the US do not believe big pumpkins can be grown south of the Mason Dixon. However there are several really good growers down south that have grown above 1500 pounds. The world record is currently held by a young man from Belgium at 2624 pounds! They use greenhouses in most of Europe to provide the ideal summer temps. The weather in most of Northern Europe tends to be cooler than the temps we see in our Northern states. Ideal temps for these pumpkins would look something like this. Daytime high of 85 with a low of 70 degrees. The problem is that in the US if you have a night above 70, the chances are your day was well above 90.. Temps above 90 are hard on the plant and many growers irrigate in the hottest parts of the day to help with this. Grower who live in extremely arid sunny climates like San Diego and Phoenix like to use shade cloth. Actually the grower in Australia that I know uses shade cloth. Currently the biggest pumpkin grown in the US was by a man in New Hampshire at 2500 plus pounds. Other good states with good climates include Most of New England, New York,Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan and out west like Washington, Oregon and California.
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Post by john on Feb 8, 2019 7:17:17 GMT -6
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Sept 23, 2022 9:37:22 GMT -6
New World Record, Nebraska gardener floats 38 miles down Missouri River in an 846-pound pumpkin.
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Post by macmex on Sept 23, 2022 10:54:36 GMT -6
Who would have thought of such a thing?!
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Post by woodeye on Sept 23, 2022 13:37:36 GMT -6
Hope he took a can of Flex Seal along. 
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Sept 27, 2022 22:45:18 GMT -6
Why you don't want elephants in your pumpkin patch.
(And I thought squash bugs were bad).
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Post by rdback on Sept 28, 2022 9:43:04 GMT -6
Ya know, with Ron posting all these giant pumpkin videos, I think he might be dreaming about (contemplating) a giant pumpkin patch next season, lol.
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Sept 28, 2022 10:06:29 GMT -6
When I was a kid, I grew Big Max Pumpkins that weighed a little over 100 pounds each, which was about average for that variety. Ever since that time, I've loved seeing other people grow giant pumpkins. We had much better soil where I lived as a kid though. I can barely grow baby pumpkins in the poor soil that I have here. Back when we lived in Hulbert, I could grow just about anything I set my mind to, but we had soil deeper than 8" inches there. As long as I'm at this location, I'll just have to be content with growing Jack-Be-Little gourds.
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Post by woodeye on Sept 28, 2022 17:51:00 GMT -6
heavyhitterokra, I've never grown any pumpkins even close to a 100 lbs. I would consider a 100 pounder a giant pumpkin. Somewhere near 40 lbs. was about the biggest I've grown, and Big Max does sound familiar, I imagine that's what they were.
When you wrote about Hulbert, it made me think about a fishing buddy I had back in the late 70's and early 80's. I never went to his house, and now I can't remember if it was Hulbert, or Muldrow that he lived at. If it was Hulbert, you might have heard of him, his name was Charles Pratt...
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Sept 28, 2022 22:12:52 GMT -6
I went to school with a girl named Louann Pratt. I don't know who her parents were though. Sadly, Louann passed away a few years ago.
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