Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 114 Entries. Friday, April 1 View Page Here is my greenhouse. It was built in the summer of 2002, took about 3 months total. I collected insulated picture windows, the door, and such for free from people that were throwing the stuff away. I would guess I have about $100 invested in the things I could not find for free.   Friday, April 1 View Page Inside the greenhouse I have moved some of my seedlings for the garden. Here you see 24 chili, 24 jalapeno, 12 tomato, and 2 AGs. The AGs started out as a test germination. Now they are being further used to see how they react to being in the greenhouse. You don't want to stress your competition plants so I suggest to the newbies out there (I still am one by the way), I suggest testing each phase from growing, to hardening off prior. I will then find out what problems I face prior to starting my real AGs and will be able to prevent any problems. During the day the sun heats this greenhouse to about 80 degrees this time of year, in the evening though it gets down to below 40 sometimes. I have a greenhouse type electric heater for the evenings. My intent is to keep it around 50 degrees at night. I don't want to baby the AGs too much.   Wednesday, April 27 View Page Today I start my VWO seeds. Here is my first pick.   Wednesday, April 27 View Page And my second pick.   Tuesday, May 3 View Page Five days later and my VWO plants are doing well. B vs D, only one will survive. my plan is to grow them towards each other. the one that looks the best, and throws a true greenie at birth will survive, the other gets pulled. by the way, not sure if Brent has been thanked yet for all he has put intop the VWO this year. so, thanks Brent, hope all is going good for ya! Go Orioles!   Sunday, May 15 View Page VWO update. The Beachy and Dieff squash plants have not done much due to cool weather. They both are showing a third true leaf. 2 weeks ago I was only going to let one fully grow out, but since I fried my first batch of seeds in my green house on a hot, sunny day, they are now both going to get all my attention.   Thursday, May 26 View Page VWO Squash Update Both the Beachy and the Dieff squash plants are looking healthy, just not much growth. The forecast says the weather is supposed to get significantly better. Perhaps now they will start to grow.   Friday, May 27 View Page 4 o'clock in the afternoon, 90 degrees in the shade, all plants are in shock.   Friday, June 3 View Page VWO Squash update Beachy and Dieff are doing ok, we had nice weather the last week and they did not grow as much as I had hoped, but, they are still healthy and the potential is there.   Thursday, June 9 View Page 35 degrees at night with frost, 2 days in a row. i was not prepared for that, all plants have been touched, new growth is stunted. vwo squash update both the beachy and dieff are still alive, just very small plants. if the weather doesn't get warmer soon there is no way i will be pollinating during the prime time in july. very challenging hobby.   Saturday, June 11 View Page VWO Squash Update Beachy on the left, Dieff on the right. Not much growing happening, need some warm weather.   Wednesday, June 22 View Page VWO Squash Update Beachy on the left, Dieff on the right.   Wednesday, June 22 View Page 1056 Dueck. This plant seems to thrive in any type of weather. By far the biggest in my patch, main vine is at 12 feet.   Saturday, June 25 View Page 1056 Dueck x Self, 11'   Wednesday, June 29 View Page VWO Squash Update Dieff is starting to pickup the pace, the weather has helped.   Wednesday, June 29 View Page VWO Squash Update Beachy is doing a bit better then the Dieff, the weather has helped.   Wednesday, June 29 View Page 628 Olsen is doing ok, probably will not pollinate till mid July.   Wednesday, June 29 View Page 1056 Dueck is doing great. I put in a "Stelts 90" today at the hottest part of the day. For those that are not familiar with that term, I turned the main vine 90 degrees at the point where I have a pumpkin set with one movement of the vine. Warning: Do not do this if it is your only pumpkin, and above all, make sure it is real hot outside, the plant vines will handle this better. For more info on this term "Stelts 90" put it in the "Site Search" option and hit go. Thanks Farmer Scott!   Wednesday, July 6 View Page VWO Squash Update Pollinated 471 Beachy x Self Pollinated 874.5 Dieffenbaugher x Self (Seeds in blossom)   Friday, July 22 View Page VWO Squash Update Here is the 874.5 Dieff primary squash. Great color. Only problem is that it had seeds in the blossom. Growing slow.   Friday, July 22 View Page VWO Squash Update 874.5 Dieff backup squash. These twins opened on the same day. They are about 4 feet further out, and no seeds in the blossom. I would not be surprised if one of these ends up being my primary eventually.   Friday, July 22 View Page VWO Squash Update 471 Beachy primary squash. Not as dark a green as the Dieff, but a faster grower. I am happy with this one right now.   Friday, July 22 View Page VWO Squash Update 471 Beachy backup. This is growing on a side vine. Including main vine and the side vine together it is about 25 feet from the stump. It will be cut off in about 2 weeks if the primary continues to do well.   Friday, July 22 View Page 638 Olsen primary pumpkin. At 6 o'clock this morning this fruit was just fine. It is on day 9 and I was going to do the first measurement in the morning. Six hours later I go home for lunch and this is what I find. Split open. I am positive that this is being caused by our cold temps.   Friday, July 22 View Page 638 Olsen backup (now primary, see previous post). This is a nice shaped fruit, great color, I mean why would it have been my backup? Two reasons, number 1, it is only 6 feet from the stump, number 2, it is open pollinated.   Friday, July 22 View Page 1056 Dueck x self. Best growing pumpkin in my patch. It also has problems though. Three to be exact. 1-Notice how it is curving inward, there are some cracks in it's skin there also. 2-Stem is starting to split. 3-Stem is only about 1.5 inches long, hard to handle.   Friday, July 22 View Page 1056 Dueck. Here are the cracks in the area that is not growing out. I am almost positive this is a very thin walled area, should split inwards in about 2-3 weeks.   Friday, July 22 View Page 1056 Dueck. Stem is split and you can see how short it is. If this pumpkin makes it to a weigh off I will buy all growers I know from this site that show up at the weigh off a beer.   Friday, July 22 View Page Shannon, when was the last time you were in Germany? Either I am going crazy or that is Linus, and my pumpkin is going orange. God help me............   Saturday, July 30 View Page VWO Squash Update The 874.5 Dieff, not doing as good as Christy's, but then itr did have seeds in the blossom when I pollinated it. I think this one is gonna be ugly when it is done.   Saturday, July 30 View Page VWO Squash Update 471 Beachy is doing as well as I could hope for. I think I am still in the running with this one.   Wednesday, August 3 View Page The weather over the last 7 days has been very good for growing pumpkins. Day time temps around 28 and night time temps around 17. That all changed yesterday, and is predicted to stay that way for the next 7-10 days. We now have day time temps around 20, and night time temps at 10 degrees. That is not good pumpkin growing temperatures. I will make my next post as a benchmark of how things have gone over the last few days, and then compare it in about a week to see just how much the weather plays a role.   Wednesday, August 3 View Page 1056 Dueck, Day 38, OTT=255, Est=357, Avg 18.2 lbs last 7 days 471 Beachy*, Day 27, OTT=204.5, Est=190. Avg 17.2 lbs last 7 days 874.5 Dieff*, Day 27, OTT=179, Est=132, Avg 12 lbs last 7 days 638 Olsen, Day Unknown, Open Pollinated, OTT=172.5, Est 119, Avg 7.2 lbs last 7 days 707 Toftness, Day 22, OTT=160, Est=97, Avg 12 lbs last 2 days The 707 Toftness was the only original seed from the first batch that got burned in my greenhouse that I planted in the patch. It looked so bad, that I put it in a corner to grow out into the grass. I figured I could use it for males if it survived. It never did put out a true main vine from being burned when still a seedling. It has 3 secondary vines that are all growing out from the stump area. The plant is about 200 sq. ft. The fruit is only set about 8 feet out. 628 Olsen, Day 19, 50” Circ, Avg 3.5” Circ last 7 days 642 Olsen, Day 18, 42” Circ, Avg 3.25” Circ last 7 days This post will also be my VWO Squash Update   Thursday, August 4 View Page 1056 Dueck, tucked in and ready for bed.   Thursday, August 4 View Page 707 Toftness, tucked in and ready for bed. Growing out into the grass.   Thursday, August 4 View Page 874 Dieff, tucked in and ready for bed. She is shy.   Thursday, August 4 View Page 471 Beachy, tucked in and ready for bed. The weeds have won.   Saturday, August 6 View Page I woke up to 7.5 degrees this morning. I have got to do something. Either I stand back and let the days go by, or, I do something, but what? Move to Spain?, Build a full patch greenhouse? Give up? No, I will not give up!   Saturday, August 6 View Page 1000 square feet of remay.   Saturday, August 6 View Page In this picture you can see that I left one side open, about 3 feet to allow for some air flow on warmer days.   Sunday, August 7 View Page 8 degrees and raining this morning. Even remay can't turn weather like that into something beneficial.   Sunday, August 7 View Page August weather, yeah right.   Sunday, August 7 View Page 1056 Dueck, was at Avg 18.2 lbs over 7 days, now 15 over last 5 days 471 Beachy*, was at Avg 17.2 lbs over 7 days, now 16 over last 5 days 874.5 Dieff*, was at Avg 12 lbs over 7 days, now 12 over last 5 days 707 Toftness, was at Avg 12 lbs over 2 days, now 10 over last 5 days Even with blankets and the remay I was not able to hold off a drop in weight per day. This is the time of the year when the averages should be going up, not down. Only the 874.5 Dieff was able to at least maintain her average.   Monday, August 8 View Page 1056 Dueck.   Wednesday, August 10 View Page VWO Squash Update Looks like my 471 Beachy and 874.5 Dieff may be aborting on me. Not sure what to do about it. Good to see that Tom B. may have finally set one on his 471, took long enough. What is up with Christy?   Friday, August 12 View Page Sunflower seeds from Martin, thanks! First time I have tried to grow tall sunflowers. This one is just short of 350 cm's. I know for some that ain't much, but for me that is big.   Friday, August 12 View Page Here is the top of the plant. You can see the string I have marking 350 cm's. I still do not see a flower forming yet so I have hope of getting to 4 meters.   Saturday, August 13 View Page Introducing another metric measuring device. 0.5 liters. Oh yeah, the 707 Toftness too.   Saturday, August 13 View Page 874.5 Dieff, starting to get a bit of a blocky shape. Hope she hangs in there, signs of blossom end problems have started.   Saturday, August 13 View Page 471 Beachy. Starting to develop a dent on the right side of the blossom end. This is directly opposite a shoulder that was damaged by a leaf when it was a baby. A sure sign that the damaged shoulder area is preventing the blossom end from getting a free flow of food. Does not appear to be a problem yet that would mean a split.   Friday, August 19 View Page My sunflower is now at 380+ cm's. A blossom is starting to form so it doesn't look like at hit 4 meters :-(   Friday, August 19 View Page 707 Toftness, around 270 pounds   Friday, August 19 View Page VWO Update 874.5 Dieff, something like 340, or so   Friday, August 19 View Page VWO Update 471 Beachy, 450 give or take a few pounds   Friday, August 19 View Page 1056 Dueck, about 600 or so. This one is very hard to measure because of the sag in it. I also think it is going to be light to chart because of that.   Sunday, August 28 View Page 628 Olsen 03 First time I have measured this late set. It is at 353 pounds. With over a month to go, and summer coming back here, I expect this one to still gain a few hundred pounds. This seed went over 20% heavy last year.   Sunday, August 28 View Page 707 Toftness, estimated at 357 pounds. Plenty of growing left, skin is still smooth and shiny.   Sunday, August 28 View Page VWO Squash Update 874.5 Dieff, estimated at 407 pounds. Looks and sounds when thumped solid as a rock.   Sunday, August 28 View Page VWO Squash Update 471 Beachy, estimated at 550 pounds. Blossom end is starting to cave in, hope this one makes it.   Sunday, August 28 View Page 1056.5 Dueck, estimated at a new personal best for me.   Sunday, August 28 View Page My giant sunflower has met my goal of 4 meters or 13 feet. Actually just a touch taller, thanks again for the seeds Martin, great job!   Sunday, August 28 View Page Full picture of the sunflower. You can see a second one to it's right that is over 3.5 meters and still growing.   Sunday, September 4 View Page Yesterday we had a patch tour with a few friends. Here is Martin with a side view of the 1056.5 Dueck. It has prety much stopped growing, and the stem split has gotten worse, I sure hope it holds up.   Sunday, September 4 View Page The 707 Toftness, estimated at 407 pounds.   Sunday, September 4 View Page VWO Squash update 874.5 Dieff, estimated at 452 pounds.   Sunday, September 4 View Page VWO Squash update 471 Beachy, estimated at 605 pounds.   Sunday, September 4 View Page A picture of the patch tour crowd with my 1056.5 Dueck stem view in the backgound. The patch also has the 628 Olsen in it, which happens to be my fastest growing pumpkin right now, estimated at 435 pounds.   Sunday, September 4 View Page Forgot to mention, I found this today while weeding. I sorta let the weeds get outta control in the 471 Beachy patch, as a result I never noticed that the stump had been destroyed, eaten, rotted away, you name it. This is not the first time that a plant has produced a big pumpkin with little to no stump, but it is pretty amazing.   Sunday, September 11 View Page This year has been a big success for me. My previous personal best was 642 pounds in 2003. This year I have a pumpkin and a true green squash measuring bigger then that already. Seed – Circ – SS – BS – OTT – Estimate 1056.5 Dueck – 140.75 – 92.25 – 86 – 684 lbs. This one has stopped growing 471 Beachy * – 137 – 90 – 87.5 – 656 lbs. Still growing about 7 lbs per day 628 Olsen – 125.75 – 81 – 80.75 – 505 lbs. Only growing 6 lbs per day, I expected more 874.5 Dieff * - 116 – 88 – 79.5 – 484 lbs. Still growing 5 lbs per day 707 Toftness - 123.75 – 79.75 – 73 – 453 lbs. Still growing 5 lbs per day I got the 1056.5 Dueck during one of Stunners on-line seed trade nights. A really fun evening thanks Bill! Of course I also need to thank Buckhorn for making the trade with me, thanks Dan! Pics to follow.   Sunday, September 11 View Page 1056.5 Dueck and a 638 Olsen. The 638 was a very late set, probably about 250-300 pounds, nice shape, will make a good display pumpkin.   Sunday, September 11 View Page 628 Olsen and my 642 Olsen 2003 in the front. The 642 was another late set, about 400 pounds but mis-shapen. The 628 still has very smooth young skin, I do not understand why it has slowed down so much. This seed went over 20% heavy for me last year, I still have hopes for it.   Sunday, September 11 View Page The 707 Toftness. I like the shape of this one, but it is aging quickly. Sorry I didn't do better with it Bart.   Sunday, September 11 View Page 874.5 Dieff *. This one had seeds in the blossom so I guess it has done well considering. Notice the smaller one. I am slightly color blind and it blended in with the green leaves so I didn't notice it until it was already fairly big. It is going to stay on the vine till the end for our display.   Sunday, September 11 View Page 471 beachy *. Not doing as well as Tom's, but I am happy. This one feels very solid, and is still gaining some weight, I am hoping to beat my PB by over 100 pounds with this girl. I do not often recommend seeds, but, if you put this one in the hands of somebody that knows what they are doing, you will get a 1000+ lb true green squash, I am convinced of that.   Sunday, September 11 View Page Got Salsa! I love this time of year. We had a fantastic jalapeno and chili crop this year. Here is a very small portion that we are making salsa with.   Sunday, September 11 View Page One of my favorite kitchen machines, don't use it much, but man I could not live without it.   Sunday, September 11 View Page The results! Yes, we have Salsa! I am getting the munchies just looking at it...LOL Last note, the season is winding down and I want to wish everyone a new PB at their weigh offs. Best wishes, and grow em big! owen   Sunday, September 18 View Page Time to start cleaning the patch up, we had our first frost today. From left to right, the 638 Olsen with a 272 pound and 218 pound est. pumpkin on it. Next the 642 Olsen with a 463 pound est. pumpkin. Still growing the 628 Olsen with a 549 est. pumpkin and the 1056.5 Dueck, stopped growing at 684 pounds.   Sunday, September 18 View Page The 707 Toftness still growing at 488 est. pounds.   Sunday, September 18 View Page VWO Squash Update The 874.5 Dieff, stopped growing at 512 est. pounds.   Sunday, September 18 View Page VWO Squash Update The 471 Beachy, estimated over 700 pounds and still growing. With this first frost though, I do not expect it to grow much more.   Saturday, September 24 View Page Seed – Circ – SS – BS – Estimate 471 Beachy * – 143 – 92.5 – 90 – 726 lbs. still growing, i really love squash now....LOL 1056.5 Dueck – 140.75 – 92.25 – 86 – 684 lbs. This one has stopped growing 628 Olsen – 131 – 84 – 84 – 566 lbs. still growing, this seed went 20% heavy last year, hmmmm 874.5 Dieff * - 118 – 89 – 82 – 512 lbs. and that will be it's estimated weight, stopped growing 707 Toftness - 130 – 82 – 75.25 – 506 lbs. growing very slowly I have had the best year so far. Very happy.   Saturday, October 1 View Page The bottom of the 628 Olsen looks good, but it did not feel heavy when we picked it up.   Saturday, October 1 View Page Here is the 628 being guided into the trailor. that tractor is 45 years old, it is a McCormick, the first front loader in our village at the time.   Saturday, October 1 View Page Martina was just 10 seconds to slow with the camera. This is my look after I fell on my butt after trying to move the 1056 Dueck, man it was heavy. Not sure if you can tell, but we had a constant rain storm the whole time we were loading them up.   Saturday, October 1 View Page Can you tell we are happy that the loading is done...LOL. These are the types of friends that everyone wants, streaming rain, cold, muddy, and they are here. Thanks to Martin, Mario, Marcus, Micheal and of course my soulmate Martina for being the photographer. BTW, our best friend Elke is taking care of Luke (our Lab) tomorrow, wihtout her we would have so much stress. Thanks Elke!   Sunday, October 2 View Page Today we had our German weigh off. This was 4th place and weighed in at 672.8 pounds. It was 16 pounds under the estimated weight. Grown from the 1056.5 Dueck.   Sunday, October 2 View Page Here is my new personal best, and 3rd place at the weigh off, it is the 673.3 Olsen 05.   Sunday, October 2 View Page Here is the second place pumpkin that came from hamburg. It weighed about 946 pounds, fantastic!   Sunday, October 2 View Page Here is the German Champion from 2005, Martin's was weighed in at about 1008 pounds. That is twice that he broke the 1000 pound barrier this year, great job Martin!   Sunday, October 2 View Page Bjorn, Martin and myself, what a fun time.   Monday, October 3 View Page VWO Squash update: The 471 Beachy has stopped growing. It is estimating at 726 pounds and will be weighed at the European International weigh off on the 9th.   Wednesday, October 5 View Page Here is a picture of my soulmate Martina and our best friend Luke next to the 471 Beachy....beachy never looked so good...LOL   Wednesday, October 5 View Page We found a small hole, probably from a mouse. The rest of my diary will either be why it is important to plan for these type things, or why there is nothing one can do.......   Wednesday, October 5 View Page So I decided to dig, but I never thought just about how deep I might end up digging.....   Wednesday, October 5 View Page This is sorta a good example of how deep I dug, but not how far underneath the squash........   Wednesday, October 5 View Page This might give you a better idea of just how deep and how far underneath I dug, oh my poor soulmate, she is a saint to be my stunt woman..LOL...I love her.   Wednesday, October 5 View Page This is a picture underneath the squash. I was worried to follow the dang varmits trail any further that the squash might fall in...LOL You can see the material I use to prevent any stupid mistakes like mice very good, this is a good 2 feet under the squash.   Wednesday, October 5 View Page Here is a picture of the insulation I use underneath my pumpkins and squash. It is very good.....I hope!!!!   Wednesday, October 5 View Page That last picture really shows how green this baby is, man thanks Tom for supplying this seed for the VWO. Anyhow, this is my last picture for a few days. It is a stem view, showing my attempt to keep the vine off the pumpkin,   Wednesday, October 5 View Page I believe in help from all, even if all that can be given is good wishes and a positive attitude. I know that this year I have ruffled some feathers, and I am truly sorry for that. I am proud to be a virtual member of this community, and I hold all of the other BP.COM members that have made me feel at home close to my heart. Thanks to everyone. BTW, I have a chance at the German Squash Record this year on 9 October, so if you have a second, wish for me the best, your North American friend in Germany, owen.   Thursday, October 6 View Page Whatever it is that is digging under my squash has kept on going. When I went to check today I found that the hole I had dug yesterday was almost filled in with a very loose soil, lik something had pushed it in. So I removed that soil and took this picture. You can see the hole, it is about 10 inches deep and a good 2 feet under the squash. What do you think it is?   Sunday, October 9 View Page VWO Squash Update On the left is the 874.5 Dieff *, now known as the 554 Olsen 05*. On the right is the 471 Beachy *, now known as the 792.9 Olsen 05*. Both seeds were self pollinated. BTW, the 792.9 Olsen 05* is a new European record for true green squash.   Monday, October 10 View Page The 792.5 Olsen 05* I like this picture because it gives you a good idea of it's true size. It was Circ 143, SS 92.5, BS 90, OTT 325 est 726.1. Actual weight 792.9 or 9.1% heavy. I selfed it.   Monday, October 10 View Page Here are the results of the Ludwigsburg weigh off from 9 October.   Thursday, October 13 View Page The press was here and this is one of the pictures from the news paper. The story is not really acurate, but we all know the press.   Thursday, October 13 View Page Another picture from the paper. people really like the green ones, now why did it take me so long to grow one...................   Friday, October 21 View Page We are getting more attention every year here in Germany. A picture of the biggest newspaper from the state I live in here in Germany. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and a True Green Squash on the front page(ok he has the bigger picture, but he is still sharing the front page with a true green squash..LOL)   Tuesday, October 25 View Page The Landstuhl Fisher House provides a home away from home for families and patients receiving care at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center here in Germany. The program recognizes the special sacrifices of our men and women in uniform and the hardships of military service. Because members of the military and their families are stationed worldwide and must often travel great distances for specialized medical care, Fisher House™ Foundation donates "comfort homes," built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers. These homes enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful time - during the hospitalization for an unexpected illness, disease, or injury. I have donated my 523 Olsen 05 EST to be on display for two weeks during the Halloween holidays. If the only thing that these families have to smile about all day is the sight of this pumpkin, then we here at BP.COM have done a very special thing. I would like to thank Bart Toftness for supplying me with the seed that grew this beauty; it is now fulfilling a special need that only a giant pumpkin could. If you are interested in donating and/or finding out more about the Fisher house, then please visit www.fisherhouse.org.   Wednesday, October 26 View Page The 792.9 Olsen 05* seeds have been remove today. Here is Michael having a great time. He had never cut open a squash before, much less one this big. I do not have to worry about testing to see if they germinate as a good 20 or so had already germinated inside. If you are interested in seeds let me know.   Friday, November 4 View Page These are made by the PGPGA and Marv Hicks. It is exactly like the one that lifted the world record this year. There are 2 big advantages with these things, first, they safely raise a big pumpkin, and second, I will only need one other person to help, no more having to find 6 guys at one time. Thanks Marv and the PGPGA!   Friday, November 25 View Page 480 seeds from my 523 Olsen 05 EST. I like this cross because the mother is the 707 Toftness and the father is my 628 Olsen 03 (707 Toftness x 805 Pukos). A very nice cross back that will hopefully produce a pumpkin that will have nice shape, fairly good color, and be heavy.   Friday, November 25 View Page I drop tested each seed from my 523 and had about 50 that sounded hollow. I took about ten of them and opened them up and found everything from 1/5 to about 4/5 of a seed inside. Since I found these my next test will be to see if they germinate and what the cots will look like. Even in winter this hobby gives us plenty to do...LOL   Friday, November 25 View Page We had our first snow of the year last night, got about 5 inches of the white crap. Puts finishing our carport on hold for now. All of my friends that come by have said, "carport" right, you will use it to store your pumpkins in...LOL