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Canada

Well I'm HOOKED after reading and doing re search on growing large pumpkings i am SET on growing large ones for my first time next year :-) ive always grown nice portch sized ones for halloween but want to try my hand at the larger ones next year :-)

My current growing season is comeing to an end my tomatoes are about done and same with my corn and peppers all i got left in the garden is my mellons :-)

Probably by 1st week in Oct i'll have everything pulled and soil turned over for next year..

is there any things i can do to help inrich the soil this comeing fall so its full of nutrients for next growings season?

maybe dig in a few pails of fresh cow manure from the farm or what do you suggest?

thanks in advance DaveM

9/7/2003 11:24:08 PM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

Order an analysis to know which amendments your soil needs, while waiting the results to come, look for a cheap source of a looooooooooooooooot of manure, bring it, spray it and plought it. Get the amendments your soil analysis recommend, like gypsum, dolomite... and plough them too. Then plant a good winter cover crop, in Ontario I guess you have to choose winter rye. In spring add more manure, a complex fertilizer and plough it all under, one month before planting, if you can. That is mainly what I did this year.

Carlos

9/8/2003 2:49:48 AM

Canada

Whats Rye? when to plant it and were would i get the seeds for this and how you plant it ext ext and of course whats the main purpose for planting winter rye

thanks again

DaveM

9/13/2003 11:26:22 PM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

A cereal, good to grow in winter. It'll protect the soil against the heavy rain, keep it working and produce some organic matter. With cover crops you are not going to increase OM, but at least you'll avoid it to be reduced, as is the tendence in agro soils.
I use to buy those seeds in agro stores, trough them by hand over the patch and plough the ground after with my big black friend, Goliath. Only I have to reserve some grain for him, LOL.

Carlos

9/14/2003 1:12:25 AM

North Ga

What do you spray your manure with Carlos?

9/14/2003 1:40:45 AM

North Ga

And what does it do? Thanks!!

9/14/2003 1:43:30 AM

Chico, Ca

be careful of what kind of manure you use. horse manure is high in salts, and they do not have all the stomachs that cows have so weed seeds are still viable and can germimate.

9/14/2003 2:00:02 AM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

I spray manure with a dump truck of a friend, Bill.
Even sheeps and goat through out viable seeds, Robert. I used 2 years old sheep manure, and weeds sprout over any number you can imaginge all the year round. If the animals feed freely, weeds will always be there, whatever you do. Of course in a very well composted manure they will be less than in a fresh one, but still being a lot.

Carlos

9/14/2003 7:20:22 AM

Garden State Pumpkins

Still not sure, is that a basamid type product on your compost pile Carlos?

9/14/2003 9:26:05 AM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

No, but maybe I should experimenti it.

9/14/2003 9:49:17 AM

Mastic Beach, New York

when were talking about lot of manure ,are we talking about 10 yds per plant or more?

9/14/2003 11:35:12 AM

Canada

Well I took a drive in the country today and stoped by a
farm ( which the farmer was outside doing some work )
told him i was sorry to bother him but asked him if i could
buy some Manure off him for my city garden.. He was MORE then happy and told me to help myself and grab as much as i could he showed me a pile behind the back barn that had been sitting there for a bit over a year now he told me id be better off grabbing a few buckets of that stuff seeing its had time to brake down some and wont burn my plants.

so i grabbed a truck load of the stuff ( ford ranger sized pick-up size) brought it home ( and pissed the neaighbours off already ( Sorry about your luck i told them)
brought it into the back corner of my yard and put it in a pile and shoveled in a few buckets of garden soil and gonna let it sit there till Nov and thats when i'm gonna dig it into my garden well and plant a winter crop and hopefully
this helps my garden out some for 04's growing season


As far as one of these tests go to get my soil tested can i go to any graden center and get one or do i have to go to the local collage were they study this kinda stuff?
thanks again

Dave

9/14/2003 2:22:55 PM

Montoursville, PA

I would start at the local garden center and ask how you can
get a soil test. Secondly I would go for another load of the manure. Four to six inches over all is not to much. Anything is a help. Here it only takes a few days to get a soil report except in the early spring when everyone wants them. Till that manure in this fall and add as many leaves as you can work into the preparation for the cover crop.

You ask what the value of a cover crop was. My words are that it is equal to a load of manure, it holds your soil in a good condition and it tills under early spring without to much work.

If you could get a gallon of cattle grade molasses any liberal amount you could add this fall and till in will help the biological underground build up of things that will help you next summer. Add more in the spring at the rate of one ounce in a gallon of water sprayed on and tilled under. It is very inexpensive here....like $3.00 a gallon.

If your budget permits consider putting in about twenty pounds of blood meal to help digest your manure and leaves.

When you get the soil test we will help you understand it if you need help. The major issue will be to adjust your PH to a range of 6.8 - 7.0. Pumpkins like it best in that range. Unless you have a very difficult change to make the cost will not be great.

If you can manage all this getting ready you are going to have an exciting first year. Keep coming here and let us coach you along the way.

This is an unusual site! Just today you were helped by growers from Spain, California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Welcome to Giant Pumpkins.com.

9/14/2003 5:29:15 PM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

You said it, Dwaine!

9/15/2003 1:47:04 AM

Canada

Just curious has anyone had any good luck with the Cow Manure you buy at the garden center that are in bags ?
or is the Farm stuff the best to get?
Reason I ask is because in 2 weeks time i'll be spreading
in the rest of the "FRESH" stuff i just got from a local farmer and come spring i was thinking of just adding say 10 bags of teh store bought stuff seeing its not as strong and wont burn the roots of the plants that why i ask

thanks again
dave

Thanks

9/23/2003 2:00:30 PM

Montoursville, PA

Stick with your local manures. The store bought stuff is at best very expensive. Load up the patch this fall and compost any you can get in the spring. Plant a cover crop which is roughly equal to another load of manure and easier for your patch to digest in the spring.

9/23/2003 4:28:32 PM