Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 10 Entries. Tuesday, June 15 View Page This year I will be trying out the 854.6 Johnston 2009 (993 Vincent-McGill x self). My hope is that the shape and color of the 854.6 will be reproduced in its offspring. Soil Preparation this year was minimal. A layer of horse manure 6" thick was spread over the growing area several weeks before germination (not enough time, I fear, for the manure to have sufficiently decomposed). In addition, I added a 6"-thick layer of compost and steer manure over a 3 ft-diameter circle centered about the planting spot. Tuesday, June 15 View Page I also added 40 pounds of gypsum (to loosen up the undelying clay) and a standard dose of kelp meal. Here is a picture of the 854 Johnston on day 8 (Sunday June 13). Note: I start counting from 0; thus Saturday the 5th was seed-starting day. Saturday, July 3 View Page The 854 Johnston has been in the patch for 3 weeks now. Starting this weekend I'll do a weekly spray of chlorothalonil in order to keep powdery mildew at bay. I finally have a pump-up sprayer, which makes the task of applying fungicide far faster (and far less cramp-inducing) than before, when I used a spray bottle. Sunday, July 25 View Page The 854 Johnston on day 50. Its main vine is a 9.5' feet long, and this morning it finally opened its first male flower. In 2006 my plants reached the same size at a younger age; I'm at least 3-4 days behind right now. Then again, I haven't been babying this plant very much (no fertilization, whereas in 2006 the plants were on a regular foliar feeding schedule). Last weekend the main vine was advancing by 7" a day, but it looks like it's growing more slowly now. The weather this week has surely been less-than-optimal (overcast most of the time, and not particularly hot). Sunday, July 25 View Page The first female flower of the season. It would have opened tomorrow, but I removed it because I'd like the plant to get more time to grow before it starts diverting all of its energy towards a fruit. It looks like some ovules are stranded outside of the flower's ovary, something I've never seen before! I do wonder what effect this would have on the pumpkin, if I had pollinated the flower. Sunday, August 1 View Page The main vine is 11 3/4 feet long now; there is a female flower 15 inches behind the tip of the which should open in the next week, and seems like a good candidate for pollination. Tuesday, August 24 View Page The first female flower of the season was successfully pollinated on August 3. Here's a picture, taken yesterday (day 20 after pollination), of the resulting fruit. Today's circumference measurement is 33 inches; for comparison, my 2006 fruit measured 62" on day 20. Prospects, even for reaching a measly 100 pounds, do not seem very good! Tuesday, August 24 View Page Here's a (slightly outdated) table for converting circumference measurements to weight estimates. Thursday, August 26 View Page 37" today. Saturday, August 28 View Page 39"