Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 65 Entries. Sunday, April 4 View Page Here's the first picture of the pumpkin patch for the year. The winter rye has been tilled in and a soil sample was sent out last week. Sunday, April 4 View Page Last year we battled gophers throughout the season. This year we dug a ditch around the two sides of the patch that face a park and ran 1/2 inch wiring throughout. It's approximately 32 inches deep and 4-5 inches over ground. Sunday, April 4 View Page Here's what it looks like after the dirt has been filled in. There's a little more dirt to get in but I'm sure you get the idea. Hopefully we get our soil test back and we can till the amendments in within the next week or two and then set-up the drip tape and get the hoop houses built. Monday, April 12 View Page Soil test came back in good shape. I don't think we'll be adding much to the soil this year. Saturday, April 17 View Page I added RTI mycorrhizae in the fall and I was very impressed with the my cover crop root structure. So, I decided to add more of the RTI cover crop grade mycorrhizae before tilling today. I also added humic acid and kelp meal. Saturday, April 17 View Page Here's a picture of the patch towards the end of the day. I'll be setting up the drip tape and perhaps put up the fence tomorrow. I may even get the seeds started too... Tuesday, April 20 View Page Seeds were soaked and coated with Azos - 4/20. Tuesday, April 20 View Page Seeds were put into pots and set to sprout in my high tech germination chamber. I use a probe to ensure the temperature remains around 85 degrees. Wednesday, April 21 View Page Here's a new secret weapon - BioLogic BioBrewer - More information to come... Tuesday, April 27 View Page Here are the results now sitting under the grow lights in my garage. The other containers house dahlia tubers that will be planted soon. Monday, May 3 View Page Three hoop houses with transplants planted today. Two are double planted and one single planted. Out of the 7 seeds started 5 came up. After trenching and installing the chicken wire we have not had one gopher in the patch. I'm sure they will eventually make their way into the patch but so far so good. Tuesday, May 18 View Page Here are two of the 5 that germinated. Tuesday, May 18 View Page Another 2 of the 5 that are double planted. Tuesday, May 18 View Page The 3rd hoop house with the 5th and final seed. There are a few weeds and a little leaf burn due to high temps within the house but overall everything is looking great. Sunday, May 30 View Page My daughter took this picture of the 991 Urena. A big thanks goes out to Kristine for the seed. Sunday, May 30 View Page Here is a picture of the dahlias in the foreground and an overview of the patch. It's about time to start burying the vines - let the games begin... Sunday, June 6 View Page I took the hoop houses down and started paying attention to the plants. Here is the 1288.5 Pugh 2009. The cross is 991 Urena x 961.5 Urena. Vines were buried with a liberal amount of Pumpkin Pro and everyone’s favorite Nitrogen Fixing Bacteria – Azos. Sunday, June 6 View Page Here is the 991. It is looking great. Compared to last year it’s been windy this year. Being the first day out of the hoop houses I’m a little worried the leaves may take a beating. Hopefully they do not get too damaged. Tuesday is going to be C02 spray day at the patch. Sunday, June 6 View Page I’ve not done much with these two plants. On the right is the 1333 Young 2009 – 1483.5 Werner x 1288 Wallace To the left is the 1389.5 Rose 2009 – 1370 Rose x 1161 Rodonis. I like the cross of the 1389.5 better but the plant is not as nice as the 1333. The secondaries of the 1389.5 are reaching for the sky and are not as long as those of the 1333. I’m going to give them a few more days and make a decision. I tried to research the 1161 that Jerry Rose used to pollinate the 1370 but have not been able to find anything. Does anyone know what happened to the plant? If anyone has a suggestion feel free to email me, I’m looking for a reason to keep one over the other. I’m currently leaning to keeping the 1389.5 because of the likelihood it will be throw an orange pumpkin. I have considered crossing it with the 1288.5 and doing the reverse cross as well. Like is said, please email me with any thoughts regarding the two. Tuesday, June 8 View Page RTI C02 was applied today. Here's the high-tech applicator - a spray bottle. It was applied to the underside of the leaves at a rate of 1 tablespoon per gallon of water. I'll bury vines and take more pictures this weekend. Friday, June 11 View Page Here’s the 991 Urena. It’s at 10 feet with a pumpkin at the tip. I premixed my Pumpkin Pro and Azos and applied it when I buried vines today. You can see some of the larger leaves have been beaten up by the wind but I don’t think it will matter too much. I’d rather have the wind hit the plants than the hail some of you are dealing with. Friday, June 11 View Page The 1288.5 Pugh is at 8.5 feet and it also has a pumpkin at the tip. In addition to burying vines I brewed and applied a batch of compost tea. It was only a two hour brew but it looked great. Because of the wind I applied more dirt than usual when burying the vines. Some of the vines I buried last week worked themselves out of the dirt. Friday, June 11 View Page Here are the dahlias and the rest of the garden area. Out of the 24 dahlia tubers planted I think 20 came up. We have had a couple gophers enter the patch from this side of the property. The far side butting up against the park has the chicken wire that has done a great job keeping them out. The two that did make it in were trapped within 24 hours of showing themselves. I decided to keep the 1389.5 Rose. It was a little behind the other plant next to it but I like the cross. I think that because I kept that spot double planted for so long both plants did not grow as fast as they would otherwise have. The main is at 7 feet but the secondaries have a way to go to catch up with the other two plants. Wednesday, June 16 View Page 991 Urena as it looks this evening as the sun was going down. Wednesday, June 16 View Page Female on the 991 main vine but too close and too early to be the one. Wednesday, June 16 View Page 1288.5 Pugh as it currently stands. I have to make some time to bury vines. Wednesday, June 16 View Page Female on the 1288.5, again, too early and too close. It looks like this will be a real long pumpkin. In the past most of my pumpkins have been more round so this may be a good change... I like the shape of the 991 in the previous picture as well. Monday, June 28 View Page 6/28 - First pollination of the year on the 1288.5 about 13 feet out on the main vine. It was crossed with the 1389.5 Rose. Tuesday, June 29 View Page Pollinated a 5 lobe female about 14 ft out on the 1288.5 with 2 males from a 1385 Jutras - thank you Jeff Johnson for the males. Tuesday, June 29 View Page Self pollinated a 5 lobe female on the 991 out about 14 feet. Monday, July 5 View Page I pollinated this pumpkin on the 991 on 7-5. It is crossed with the 1288.5. Wednesday, July 7 View Page 7-7-10 - Due to work I was not able to control the first pollination on the 1389.5. The pumpkin is about 11 feet out and was 5 lobes. I have not been keeping up with burying vines on this plant. Hopefully I'll be able to catch up early next week. Monday, July 12 View Page The 1288.5 is right there under the towel. Really, it is... I have 10 vines on each side leading up to both the 1288.5 and 991 pumpkins. I caught up with burying the first 9 vines today. Monday, July 12 View Page See the blue right there in the middle? That's the pumpkin on the 991. Both of the pumpkins I'm hoping to keep each on the 1288.5 and 991 were pollinated 6/29 so it's too early to take measurements. Monday, July 12 View Page Here's an overview of the patch. The 1389.5 is in the foreground followed by the 1288.5 and then the 991. I have terminated 4-5 secondaries on each side of the 1288.5 and 991. I believe there was approximately 30 feet so each secondary that is terminated is about 15 feet long. I terminated a couple 1-2 feet before the edge of the patch anticipating they will grow another foot or two. Friday, July 16 View Page 991 on 7/16 Friday, July 16 View Page 1288.5 on 7/16 Friday, July 16 View Page Emma and Ben next to the plants. Why when you have a 2 and a half year old do most of the picture come out with a funny face? You can see the terminated vines to the left of them reaching for the sky. Friday, July 16 View Page Here's a picture of the patch. The lower left shows dahlias, next are two rows of sun flowers and then the 1389.5 Rose (neglected plant), 1288.5 Pugh and 991 Urena. Sunday, July 25 View Page Here's a picture as of this morning. The 1288.5 Pugh is in the foreground. Two nights ago I saw that a gopher had eaten more than half way through the main on the 1288.5 plant. I set a trap for it without any luck. The next day the same gopher ate through a secondary. I set a trap last night and luckly caught it before it could do any more damage. Sunday, July 25 View Page Here's a shot of the 991 Urena as of this morning. It's both longer and taller than the 1288.5 Pugh that you can see in the previous entry. Sunday, August 1 View Page Here's an early evening shot of the patch. Pumpkins are growing nicely and the leaves are still in great shape. Tuesday, August 3 View Page Here's a picture of the patch. The 1389.5 Rose is first, the 1288.5 Pugh second and off in the distance is the 991 Urena. Tuesday, August 3 View Page Day 27 for the 1389.5 Rose - 84, 60.5, 59.5 (circ, side to side and front to back) estimated at 189 lbs. If it makes it to October with the concave blossom it has it's looking like it will be a wheel. This plant is in shade for half the day and I have not been burying vines or terminating the secondaries like I should. Wheel see what happens. Tuesday, August 3 View Page Day 35 for the 1288.5 Pugh - 118, 67.5, 73 (circ, side to side and front to back) for a total of 29 inches, estimated at 371 lbs. It looks like it is going to have some nice color. Hopefully the gopher did not do too much damage to the main and it keeps chugging along. Hey Vineman, are you out there? How is yours growing? Is anyone else growing this seed? Tuesday, August 3 View Page Day 35 for the 991 Urena - 124, 76.5, 78.5 (circ, side to side and front to back) for a total of 279 inches estimated at 463 lbs. At 35 days last years 991 I grew was only 234 inches and tipped the scales over 900 lbs when it was weighed (went 20+% heavy though). In my area the temperature averages 68 - 75 degrees during the day and in the upper 40's - lower 50's at night. My pumpkins have historically grown slow and steady. This year I've consistently sprayed and my plants are looking a lot better than the past. If they make it to the scales and go heavy like I think they will I think we'll be doing alright. Sunday, August 8 View Page Day 40 for the 991 as pictured - 139, 83.5, 84.5 or an estimated 611 lbs. This is by far the best day 40 measurement I've had. The 1288.5 is 129.5, 73.5, 77.5 - 470 lb estimate also on day 40. Friday, August 13 View Page My other two pumpkins are big but if I'm going to have a chance to place at a weigh-off this year I think that as long as it stays together the pumpkin on the 991 Urena is going to be my best bet. Monday, August 16 View Page I had a local grower and friend Jeff Johnson in the patch today to help with measurements. I would like to believe that it averaged 35 lbs. over the last three days but I have a feeling the jump is due to being able to take an accurate measurement. Moving forward I'll use some tape to hold the measuring tape in place. 991 Urena as of this afternoon at lunch, day 48 - 158.5, 93, 95 for a total of 346.5 inches - for an estimated 873 lbs. I had not measured in a few days but I did spray C02, kelp and a couple others on Sunday morning. I'm also spoon feeding some 0-0-25 through the irrigation system. There have been some mice chewing on the pumpkins. We have trapped a few and have put out some poison so hopefully we are taking care of the problem. Monday, August 16 View Page Day 17 for the 1389.5 Rose - 126, 81, 80 a total of 287" for an estimated 500 lbs. This is an ugly pumpkin with a stem split starting make an appearance. Monday, August 16 View Page Day 48 for the 1288.5 Pugh. 146, 79, 84 a total of 309 inches for an estimated 620 lbs. This is a long pumpkin with a low profile. Comparing it to the picture of my 991 pumpkin currently growing you can see a resemblance. The 1288.5 Pugh is the 991 Urena x 961.5 Urena. The 961.5 was a tall pumpkin that went 25% heavy. I was hoping the 1288.5 would produce a long tall pumpkin that goes heavy. It does not look like the height is coming through with my pumpkin but I’m going to bet it will continue to get longer and go heavy. Looking back at prior years’ measurements, last years 1029 gained almost 300 lbs from day 48 to harvest and my 966 put on 470 lbs from day 48 to harvest. Both had a bad case of powdery mildew that probably held them back. This year I’ve kept up with a spray program and as you can see in the picture the leaves are in good shape. Slow and steady, slow and steady... Monday, August 16 View Page 1288.5 Pugh at an angle. It is growing like a block. Ribs are just starting to show and should become more pronounced over the next couple weeks. Monday, August 16 View Page The 1389.5 entry noted above should state day 40 not day 17. Monday, August 23 View Page I have some disappointing news to report from the patch. On day 50 (8/18) at an estimated 925 lbs I found a split in the 991 Urena. It was on the rib that the night before I had told another local grower, Jack Vezzolo, was the spot that concerned me. Every time I would remove the blanket that rib was the first place I would look. We have been concerned because of the deep rib but it was a combination of a deep rib and a sag line that did it in. I’m simply covering the split with electrical tape (you can see the split in the picture and the tape besides it) and we'll let it grow until it stops or until we know its rotting and then we’ll try to get a weight on it with an in-line scale. I measured it on day 54 (8/22) and it is measuring 170, 97, 98 – despite the split it continues to put on almost 25 lbs a day. It is now an estimate 1020 lbs. I inspected the pumpkin today (8/23) and found another split on the same sag line on the rib just below the first split. I do not believe I’ve seen any 991’s with such deep ribs – I guess they come in all sizes and shapes and you never know what you’re really going to get until its growing in the patch. I’m glad to have had the opportunity to have grown it - it sure kept things exciting. For the heavy hitters a pumpkin this size is not uncommon and I imagine expected each year but for us average growers it does not get any more exciting than having a pumpkin growing in your patch at a pace you had only read about and found it difficult to believe. This event actually motivates me more for next year. I have another 991 Urena… However, we have to close out this year and we still have a chance at 1,000+ lbs with the remaining two. Tuesday, August 24 View Page 991 Urena today, day 57 - 173, 99, 100 a total of 372" an estimated 1080 lbs. and it continues to put on the weight. From this angle you cannot see the patched-up splits. Tuesday, August 24 View Page However, from this angle you can see the patches and the reason it split. There is a definite sag line/Dill ring. One of the ribs on the other side is starting to split as well. I have not tried to follow the ring around but I imagine it could have worked its way underneath as well. I could not smell anything funky yet. I think that if we're going to we better weigh it this weekend. Tuesday, August 24 View Page Here are two of the three plants - 1288.5 Pugh in front and the 991 Urena in the back. Spray program has kept out the insects and powdery mildew has not yet shown up. Saturday, August 28 View Page We weighed the 991 Urena on an in-line scale. The split occured day 50 at an estimated 925 lbs. and it was weighed day 60 - 176.5, 100, 100.5 a total of 377 inches - an estimated 1120 lbs. In those 10 days two the pumpkin split in two other ribs along the same ring. You can see the large Dill ring in the picture that led to its demise. Actual weight 1140. Saturday, August 28 View Page Last picture of the 991 Urena. Wednesday, October 27 View Page Even though I was not able to get a pumpking to a weigh-off I had a very successful 2010 season. I'll update with final pictures and summary soon. I already have next years line up (see the picture) and plan on getting a cover crop in within the next two weeks. Wednesday, November 10 View Page Here's the fall soil test. Patch is cleaned up and cover crop is in. Wednesday, November 10 View Page This is the 1389.5 Rose being weighed. If you look at the pumpkin, at about the 7 o'clock position from the stem there is a small split. This pumpkin split at the intersection of a rib and sag line. Final measurements were 158,98.5 side to side, 94.5 estimated weight of 907, actual weight was 944, about 4% heavy. I believe this would have grown to over 1000 if the split had not occured. Wednesday, November 10 View Page Rodents got to the 1288.5 Pugh pumpkin and though we tried to save it it rotted through. Final measurements were 170,90,96 for an estimate of 946 lbs. When we cut the pumpkin open there were no internal flaws within the pumpkin and it was very thick. Without a doubt it would have gone heavy and weighed over 1000. Sunday, December 12 View Page We've been Xtremely busy getting ready for 2011. Tuesday, December 14 View Page This is the BioLogic BioBrewer 15 that we quickly realized is not large enough to cover the patch. We're working on getting an upgrade. I had the 7 gallon unit last year and it does a fantastic job.