Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 42 Entries. Friday, February 5 View Page Yawn----------etc. Just went into my greenhouse for the first time this year, due to work committments. We were combining 2 businesses into 1 for cost saving reasons etc, and as a result I got no time to visit my sanctuary for quite a while. Needless to say the recent very harsh weather, with snow and very severe frosts since before Christmas did nothing to encourage me to do any work, other than the most necessary. Anyway I,m back to regain my Irish title, and this is definately the last year, come hell or high water. Did a little digging in the g/house and thats why I,m yawning, but it's in good condition in spite of the bad weather and neglect. Going to change strategy this year and bring in much more quality top soil than in previous years, and to cap it all, we are promised a great summer. Yippee etc, and ---------yawn again. Going to bed to figure this out.   Wednesday, February 10 View Page Got some work done in the greenhouse today. First time I got a run at it, and I,ve also found a nice deposit of top soil, in my garden, for inclusion into the beds. I figure my beds were to full of compost, and manure, for the past 2 seasons, probably about 80%, so I,m going to reduce this ratio to about 50% soil and 50% mix of compost/ manure etc,. I,m also integrating a layer of " Rock Dust" into the beds to a depth of approx 2 inches overall. To those who dont know about Rock Dust, just key it into your browser a decide for yourself of the benefits.   Thursday, February 11 View Page Finished digging a 5 ft deep trench, x 2 ft wide, x 10 ft long, in my polytunnel. This is to challenge for the largest sunflower record in Europe. Reason for going down is that the apex of the tunnel is only 12 ft high so I needed the extra depth to get a chance of 16 ft+, allowing 1 ft for roots etc,. I still have the Irish record at 13 ft 10 inches, but want the European one as well.   Wednesday, March 3 View Page Almost finished my 2 plots, one of which is smaller than the other, simply because I will use it as the breeder Male plant, and if it is going reasonably ok during the season I,ll probably keep it going and see what happens. I,ve just to add some quality topsiol to the plots and everything is ready.Got the compost to soil ratio down considerably this year, with some added tricks to spice up the growing areas.   Tuesday, March 9 View Page Now entering the 15 week of continuous night frost, although it seems to be coming to an end this weekend. Coldest winter since 1962/63, with lots of snow, sleet etc,. and now we are running low on water in our reservoirs. Such is life in the fast lane?   Friday, March 26 View Page Just got my final selection together. It's going to be something from this collection: 1180Pukos 1149Pukos 1102Pukos 1264.9 Ghaye 1357 Ghaye 936 Byrne (1502 x self) 925 Lyons. Any suggestions to eddie195432@yahoo.com   Sunday, March 28 View Page All work on beds is completed, now all I have to do is to select which to use. Big problem that one!   Tuesday, March 30 View Page Finally got all the seeds sorted, checked for suitability etc,. I like the 925 Lyons as a potential female and a 1180.5 Pukos as the male, but that is just what i,d love to work. It all depends on which seeds do best at the germination stage. Biggest plants will get priority.   Tuesday, March 30 View Page Forgot to mention the snow is back in large quantities. temps down to -2C during the day and expected to remain below freezing for the next few days. It,s a long winter.   Wednesday, April 14 View Page I seem to go from bed to work to bed again these days. Very little time for the pumpkins, but I,ve managed to get 2 good beds ready, so it's down to choice now. I installed an irrigation system again this year, about 3 ins underground, so as to avoid excessive burn off by the expected sunny summer, and, this also keeps the tunnel free from excessive moisture, which in turn helps avoid many diseases etc,. Also having a go at the Sunflower records. I don't expect to beat the world record for these, but any improvement on my 13ft 10in Irish record will do fine.   Thursday, April 29 View Page Finally made the start today.I filed 4 seeds , all of which could be the dream for me, but my prefered cross is the 925 Lyons and the 936 Byrne, and then 1180.5 Pukos and 1264 Ghaye. All depends on how the seeds transfer into plants, as, only the best 2 will be planted into the greenhouse, the others outside into the unpredictable Irish summer   Saturday, May 1 View Page Seeds filed and soaked and put into sealed containers and into a nice warm area yesterday. Just hoping for the best from now on.   Monday, May 3 View Page All four seeds successfully germinated in a pretty ordinary way. No flashy gizmos to assist, just a good soaking, followed by a couple of days in a nice warm place. Onwards and upwards from here.   Thursday, May 13 View Page Finally the day has arrived. The 936 Byrne and the 1264 Ghaye were by far the best of the 4 seeds started, with the Pukos coming in a good third, and sadly the Lyons only bringing up the rear. Tempreature at planting a reasonable 17 degrees, but nightime temps could go down as low as 5 degrees. Still a lot of maintainance until the weather warms up.   Saturday, May 15 View Page 2 nights frost just passed by with no bad effect on pumpkins, which were securly covered with anti frost measures. Long range forecast is for nice warm weather, and looking foreward to a successful season.   Saturday, May 22 View Page First casualty of the new season is the 936 Byrne. Not doing well in the greenhouse, and was being attacked by something small, which ate holes through the leaves, and all new growth. No big problem as I have the 1180.5 Pukos as a direct replacement. This plant is actually larger than the Byrne, so, I,m not worried about it at all. Weather is fantastic for the past few days, with daily temps hovering around 25 C during the day and about 18 to 20 at night. This is due to end on monday, going back to more traditional cooler more normal weather for the time of year.   Friday, June 4 View Page Ghaye is doing very well to date, and, is putting out its first main vine, and is very healthy. Pukos is not so good but tolerable. The plot where the Pukos is planted is not performing at all this season, so I may well just use it as a pollinator and then root it out completely   Sunday, June 20 View Page Working on average about 12 hours per day, and, only get very limited time with my pumpkins. It's just as well they are both in good condition and growing very well. Weather is perfect for the last few weeks, and my No1 has her first female at about 5 feet, a little early, and will not be pollinated   Monday, July 5 View Page Finally got some time to update this diary. I pollinated the Ghaye on the 2nd July, approx 10 days earlier than is my guideline time, but so far so good.Had a small crack appear on the main vine about a foot past the pollination point, due to the weight of the vine pulling downwards, but I spotted that very early on, and, was able to raise the vine and cure the damaged spot. 3 days on, no sign of wetness, and all seems ok. This has to be my best plant ever. There is no sign os any problem, except for the crack, and, every leaf is shining with health. Must have been the weather. very warm and sunny for all of June, and while July is a little more unsettled, it's still excellent growing weather.   Thursday, July 8 View Page Pollinated 2 more on theGhaye, again both from the Puko's, which has now suffered from a huge stem split, from which I can see no recovery. I,ll give it a few days, but my modus operandi is to remove the pollinator asap, to give room to the other plant to fill out as much space as it needs.   Tuesday, July 20 View Page Did my first measurement yesterday, and, came in with a disappointing 68 inches OTT on my first pumpkin.Took radical measures, and, removed 3 newly pollinated pumpkins, and, also stopped the plant growing further, by burying the growing ends. I,ve still got 3 other pumpkins on the plant, and, will remove another next week if necessary.   Wednesday, July 21 View Page Measured this morning ,and, the pruning seems to have worked. Gone to 77 inches OTT, and quite noticable size increase. Ive also taken to covering the pumpkin both day and night, as I,m of the opinion that keeping it warm does have an effect on the ability of the pumpkin to absorb moisture, while at the same time I,m being careful to allow air circulate around the pumpin to prevent rot.   Friday, July 23 View Page Best results in many years so far. Pumpkin has gone to 112 ins OTT. 36 x 37 x 49. This represents my best increase in a 2 day period in all the years I,ve been growing, and, even though the nights have been below 9 degrees for the past 2 nights, I think that the fact that I,ve covered the Pumpkin in a blanket, has kept the vital growing "gene" operational. Pumpkin is a lovely light yellow to white colour, and , we now expect some lovely warm sunny days over the next week, with showers, and warm humid nights. You can see where I had a problem with a crack on the vive, and, if this pumpkin gets much larger I,m going to have to decide what to do about it, e,g cut or try moving the pumpkin, which I,m very reluctant to do.   Saturday, July 24 View Page 38 x 39 x 52 early this morning. I,m very happy with that, and, to reward the plant I'll give it a nice liquid feed over the weekend. A mixture of 10N 8P 12k and soluable seaweed, plus the now standard 30 minute watering per plant. The Puko's is poor, but I,m giving it every chance to produce something, but will probably remove by next weekend.   Saturday, July 24 View Page Just for the sake of "knowing" I did another OTT this evening, and , Yes it is still growing very steadily.Latest is 39 x 40 x 55, = 134 = 60.7 lbs.:)   Sunday, July 25 View Page 41 x 41 x 56= 138 inches in 24 hours. I,m happy. Everything is in good condition, no sign of cracks, splits rot etc,.   Sunday, July 25 View Page I should state that the weight gain in 24 hours is 11.7 lbs, and, is increasing slowly with every new measurement. That will put me on course fro a 1000 lb pumpkin for the first time.   Monday, July 26 View Page 42 x 43 x 57 this morning = 70.6 lbs. Dissapointing increase on a warm night, so drastic measures taken, where I removed the 2nd pumpkin on that vine, which was growing reasonably well, and, am now down to 2 on the plant in total. Will feed heavily tonight.   Tuesday, July 27 View Page 44 x 45 x 60 = 149inches= 80.2lbs. Back on track after pruning yesterday. I,m expecting a bigger weight gain over the next few days as the pruned area will have healed and sealed. GAve a liquid feed last night and a foliar feed as well, so, everything should go well for the next few days.   Tuesday, July 27 View Page Next job is to raise the vine on both sides of the pumpkin. This helps to avoid damage to the fruit as it stretches upwards. It means losing some valuable leaf, but is pretty unaviodable if the whole plant is to survive and theive.   Wednesday, July 28 View Page 46 x 47 x 63 this morning. Still a little less than I would have liked, but, I did break some of the tap roots from around the pumpkin area, just to allow the vine to rise as growth increases, so that may be another reason/excuse for the slower than average growth. Still confident.   Thursday, July 29 View Page Yipee Yapee and Yahooie it measures 48 x 48 x 67 this morning, which puts it over 100 lbs for the first time:)   Saturday, July 31 View Page 2 days and nights of cool damp weather did nothing for my confidence. This mornings measurement is 53 x 55 x 72, = 134 lbs, I feel it should be much better, but I cannot really complain. The 2nd pumpkin on the same plant is about50 lbs now, and, will be allowed to further develop over th next few weeks. Pukos is improving--slowly and has gained a repreive.   Monday, August 2 View Page Strange world, this one of pumpkin growing, as the following tale will tell. 2 days ago mine piled on lots of weight, and then out of the blue -----nothing ???? Why??? This plant is as healthy as I,ve ever seen, and still the dreaded NOTHING GAINED. This is frustration at it,s worst. Similar to a few years back when my fruit did the same thing for about a week then started growing again to my heaviest ever at 724 lbs. I suppose this is a great lesson in patience, etc,. etc,, but it gets no easier.   Wednesday, August 4 View Page At last growth has returned , even though it is very small indeed. 54 x 55 x 77 this morning. I,m convinced it is the recent cool weather spell, so, I,m going to cover the pumpkin even more from today, and also prune the main nine from around the base of the plant before it becomes a problem. 146 lbs = +8lbs in 3 days = very poor   Friday, August 6 View Page 58 x 59 x 81 this morning =174 lbs. I,m happy i,ve finally realised that all pumpkins require to be kept WARM even if the plant itself is subject to cooler weather. I covered my pumpkin with a cheesecloth blanket folded over 3 times, and an anti frost sheet, which ( I think) helped keep the core tempreature of the pumpkin at a growing level. Lesson ended for today:)   Friday, August 6 View Page Forgot to mention that daytime tempreatures in Ireland are hovering around 17 to 19 degrees, and nightime temps as low as 10/12 degrees. No wonder the plane is struggeling. Sunshine is scarce, moisture levels are high both in the air and on the ground, and , even though I grow mine indoors, it still suffers for the cool temps of recent days.June was a great month, warm, sunny, etc,. July cooler, wetter, and, August pretty much the same as July-------so far, and we live in hope of some better conditions in the near future.   Saturday, August 7 View Page 59 x 59 x 84 this morning = 202 ins = 179lbs. Just ok.   Tuesday, August 10 View Page It,s just a matter of keeping this pumpkin going to see what the end result will be. Probably nothing great, and, most likely not even going to match my previous best of 724 lbs. This morning 60 x 60 x 85 = 205 ins = 192 lbs. All I cab say is that our weather has been very cool this month, with little growth of any significance, but we are promised warmer conditions --soon. If only!!   Tuesday, August 24 View Page Been a while since I last wrote in my diary, but just to keep everything up to date, my pumpkin has recommenced growing, and in the past 3 days has gone up to 63 x 65 x 92 OTT which measures 220 inches ,or, 234 lbs. Nothing great but its the second time in recent years this has happened, and, I put it down to cold weather at nights, of which we have had about 2 straight weeks with temps down to 9 to 11 degrees between nightfall and daybreak, and only in the last few nights have temps come back to almost normal. I kept the pumpkin covered and I presume this kept the grow gene alive, until it was restarted by the return of the warmer weather.   Sunday, August 29 View Page 67 x 67 x 94 is friday mornings latest measurement. I fed again on Friday with an organic fertilizer which is quite well balanced and water soluable to boot. I,ve stopped wondering where this plant will go to in terms of pumpkin weight, but, right now, any increase is good, and, if we can get some good weather between now and the end of the growing cycle, I,ll be happy.   Thursday, November 18 View Page I suppose it,s easy to read between the lines and see how well the pumpkin is growing. Well you are correct, it,s not growing and stopped at about 300 lbs last month, so it s probably my last season. On the other hand I grew some sunflowers and probably beat my old record of 13 ft 10 ins ( to be confirmed), but I have one spectacular one which at a count yesterday had 63 flowers still on it, some gone to seed, some still growing, and at least 10 which fell off. This must be some class of a record on its own. I,m bringing in some people early next week, just to confirm the actual number still on board the plant. It would have grown approx 18 ft, but due to being enclosed in a polytunnel had only 12 ft at the highest point, and, then it grew back downwards and expanded out of all proportions.