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Nashville, TN

Yes, yet another question. I've been reading through many of your postings. Noticed that some strains have a problem with mutating. Birdbaths and non-pumpkin producing vines were two mutations that I've noticed.

Is this due to the original AG strain being crossed so heavy with squash?

Is my assumption that many of the current heavy-weight strains were bred from the AG or DAG - correct? Or is there another Heavy-weight strain with it's long history?

2/24/2005 2:13:20 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Cucurbita Maxima is a squash. Color be darned.

2/24/2005 2:41:59 PM

Western NY

"birdbath" is just a reflection of fruit shape, and not a mutation.

i would put double/flat/ribbon vines atop the list of mutation problems, although there may not be a totally genetic aspect to this - see "fascations"

nobody here can say if it's the breeding practices, or if we're seeing this because of the inreasing popularity of the big pumpkins has given us a larger population to observe over the last 10 years or so.

2/24/2005 2:55:24 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

True...& a lot of the mishapen fruit are the result of incomplete pollination whereby certain segements fail to produce seeds entirely. Even Dill rings may have environmental triggers though genetic code probably rules this "mutation".

2/24/2005 6:27:04 PM