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That State Up North

Just some preliminary pondering, hoping for more comments from growers who are paying closer attention;

Some crosses just seem to do well, and it may be in our best interest to take advantage of that:

898 x 845 and the reverse did well in several cases

1420 x 1446 has done very well in several different cases

the 998 Pukos (or 1231) x 1068 (or sib/self 1068 seed)
this can be seen in 1385 Jutras, 1446.5 Werner, 1462 Gibson, 1161 and 1566 Rodonos

currently

1370 Rose x 1068 Wallace seems productive in 904 Stelts and 1207 Young

1207 Young x 1385 Jutras saw some success in 1288 Wallace and 1483 Werner, could this be a new line of combination working to look out in the future?

And some combinations just turn out well as was the case in the 985 Werner, but maybe this was similar re-combination to the success also seen in the 1370x1068 crosses


Just makes for a different way of looking at the 1300+ for the year and how many different seeds produced them, maybe there are some larger groups that are contributing the majority of the success based on combinations that do well, and our foccus should be in that direction... Or maybe in that small group that made it in the 1300+ outside this group as "new material"

Any other thoughts on 1207x1385 or similar combinations?

10/22/2009 10:29:46 PM

Sacramento, Ca

I grew the 1462 Gibson this year (first time grower). I was really impressed with this seed/plant. I grew an estimated 200 pounder and a weighed 309.5 pounder on the same plant in about 350 sqft of space. This plant took every mistake a rookie could throw at it and just kept on going. Finally towards the end of the season it succumbed to stem rot, aphids, white flies and downy mildew. It took all of that to kill it. But it still did not kill all of it. There was some green left right after the rotted, mildewed stumped. About a week before I pulled the plant I found a female blossom, the thing was actually trying to produce another pumpkin. I busted the 200 pounder up and tilled it into the patch, yesterday what do I find but a few of the seeds I left in it had sprouted. All in all this is one amazing seed. In the hands of an experienced grower, look out! I have one original seed left. I have two patches for next year and it will be seeing dirt, I just need to decide what to pollinate it with.

10/23/2009 1:25:54 AM

Bristol R.I. USA

Good post. I grew a 1180 pukos. Also a 1st time grower. The plant was a great grower however it appeared that the fruit stopped growing a month before weigh off. I kept it on the vine and monitored it. The weeks passed and no noticeable changes. There was slight damage to the leaves from powdery mildew. The weighoff arrived and the pumpkins weight was est. At 524. The scale had it at 679. 30% heavy. I was totally stoked. The genetics where awesome. I also think that the off season addition of gypsum and greensand gave it the pounds I wanted. The genetics where great.

10/23/2009 8:22:30 AM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Kenny,

Genetics don't prevent late season growth.

10/23/2009 8:57:01 AM

Joliet, IL

did some homework nic on my rain day, and couldn't come up with any really. the only thing that i could find close would be the success of the 901 hunt this year in producing the 1677.5 hunt. the 1093 in the 901 is the 1068 x 842. the 842 x 1068 matched up well in the 1041 mckie. the 901 just did this year what the 1041 did in 2007 by producing not only a monster, but monster heavy as well. not too many 1041s left to consider in crossing or to get a chance to grow. the 901 maybe the closest thing to it for the same or even better results with very similar genetics.

10/23/2009 9:39:33 AM

Western NY

hmmm... might be easier to list combinations that *don't* work out well.

10/23/2009 10:10:17 AM

Joliet, IL

the 1385 x 1207 crosses have matched up nicely like you said, and if you are following that trend, how about the 1,341 Wallace 2009 (1288 Wallace x 1483 Werner) x 1333 young 2009 (1483 x 1288) in 2010?

10/23/2009 10:15:41 AM

Frankfort Ohio

buddy conley made the 842 x 1068 cross also it grew 2 over 1000 with verry few plantings this seed can be found it was the 1177 conley

10/23/2009 5:20:48 PM

Somerset,Ky

Shazzy we have a 864 Van Hook 842 Eaton X 1,450 Wallace if
you need one.

John

10/23/2009 6:19:26 PM

Joliet, IL

thanks john, but i am going to try one of my 1147 shenoha 2008 seeds in 2010. (1041 x self). that is a nice cross though you made brother and hope it does well for you ever tries them in 2010.

10/23/2009 11:31:12 PM

Joliet, IL

who ever tries them in 2010. doh!!

10/23/2009 11:32:08 PM

Team Munson

I really liked what I saw in the 1,424 Werner '08 904 Stelts X 1363 Werner - big orange and heavy we had 2 in. 1 had a small split on 9/5 and weighed 1,278 still putting on 25#'s a day. The other was our 1,333.5 that went 8% heavy we showed at Oakland Nurseries.

I would also look for any 904 X 1385 cross I think that will be a good one for the future if you can find one.

10/24/2009 8:47:29 AM

Las Cruces NM

I think Nic may be trying to get us to think -- not a good thing for me LOL. I believe the reason some crosses seem to be better is probably due to recesive and dominate nature of genes. But I also think the “Giant” gene is not just one gene (it would be a mistake for us to think so) as in all likelihood it is several genes working in concert. One gene might be a gene governing maturity rate and the other gene governing growth rate, yet another govering heavy etc. I’m sure you have seen, given the same patch, same environment etc, that some pumpkins growing faster, others growing longer, others growing heavier (but you don't know that till the end) … and it is when the faster and longer and heavier is combined that we see the giant. So at least one or more genes in the giant series must be resesive. Just my thoughts ... like I said it is bad when I think LOL. Way to go Nic, now I'm going to be amoung the clouds for days!

10/24/2009 5:19:05 PM

Brooklyn Corner, Nova Scotia

I don't really buy into this "some crosses do better". There are 50+ different seeds in the 100 heaviest fruit for 2009, all over 1200 lbs. I think some growers do better than others.
No offence to anyone.

10/24/2009 5:51:53 PM

nOVA sCOTIA

Thanks for speaking your mind Andy.

10/24/2009 10:04:11 PM

Tinykinville

thanks for speaking your mind andy h but you let me grow the seeds considered the best and you raise some atlantic giants from a catalog and i will destroy your weight not to mention what a real hh would do. yes i agree there is a huge number of good seeds that are never tried but any seed will not do it.

10/25/2009 4:06:49 AM

Joliet, IL

many great crosses out there andy h for sure. and growers do make a huge difference. but i believe that selective breeding over many years has put the power genetics into those 50+ different seeds you are refering to. the choices are now wide open for many to have success with a wide variety of crosses because so many good crosses were made from top producing seeds percentage wise in the past. but to win the big race, say the kentucky derby, you still have to have a great horse to put a world class jockey on to win the derby. horse racing has been using selective breeding for thousands of years to get the genetics right for speed and endurance. and they pay millions of dollars to breed certain lines, not a couple hundo at an auction when seeds get thinner. there is no doubt in my mind that following successful trends and percentages in breeding pattterns has put this hobby where it is today genetic wise. following these trends and percentages through selective breeding will advance the hobby in the future and will continue to be one of the major factors for a continued rise in weights. and the other factor is growing techniques. like you said, "some growers do better than others." just cuz a world class jockey is on the best horse in the derby, doesn't mean they will win the race every time. the jockey still needs to know when to go to the whip at the right time to win, and that takes skill and instincts. it's a combo of skill and genetics in my opinion.

10/25/2009 4:33:57 AM

nOVA sCOTIA

wouldn't i love to have a piece of land in Ohio.

10/25/2009 7:52:49 AM