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Framingham, MA

How did the germination/growing experiment in the following thread work out?:

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/MsgBoard/ViewThread.asp?b=19&p=105335

Does anyone know the antecedents of the 451 Ford 1976?

7/13/2005 6:47:55 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

What with a minor career alteration & the usual spring madness neither my plant propagation expert nor I could find the time to try. So the 451 Ford will be a full 30 years old when we do try.

Bob Ford tells me his friend Herb Walton, who was a rose grower in London Grove, PA gave him the seeds from fruit he was growing in the '70's.

This is likely the same line that Ed Gancarz was growing though even after speaking with Ed, this cannot be substantiated for sure. Howard Fulp might also have been into this line. Regardless, these & other seeds like them (Circleville OH, etc) are likely decended from the Goderich Giant & the other "Hungarian Giant Squash" lines of the era.

It would be a crime to start these seeds without the full attention of a qualified lab & a dilligent growing effort. So one more year in the freeze will have to do.

7/13/2005 9:44:13 PM

Framingham, MA

Best of luck with it next year when you do try. Please keep a diary on it and post pictures of your progress. Thanks for the background of the plant.

7/17/2005 5:57:24 PM

Framingham, MA

You might have a good shot at it. This is a link to pumpkin seeds that were labeled 1957 and some of them were able to germinate in 2002:

http://www.pumpkinnook.com/commune/pie1957.htm

7/26/2005 5:27:20 PM

Cologne / Germany

Assuming the average temp in a deep dark ancient egypt cave is constantly around 60 F with humidity around 10% (might be stored in pottery clay), and a seed will be viable for 2000 years or more, it should give us an idea...

7/26/2005 5:40:46 PM