From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Syracuse, NY

Just wondered. Simple yes or no unless you wanna elaborate, as the question kinda hints at - eric g

3/28/2024 8:29:46 PM

Tyngsboro, MA

No, at the end of the season I take all plant parts out of the patch to a junk compost pile. I think leaving the vines/leaves in patch would be a recipe for disease.

3/28/2024 10:59:46 PM

Grittyville, WA

Yes. For me I have no conclusive evidence that it is a problem. I do try to be aware of creating reservoirs of powdery mildew and phyto. But letting a healthy plant decompost itself in place doesnt necessarily strike me as a problem so I dont worry about it!

3/28/2024 11:48:07 PM

Ironton, ohio

I enjoy pulling them up, seeing and feeling tap roots as I go just signals an end to the season for me.

3/29/2024 4:32:10 AM

Connecticut, USA

I have always removed them as they are a place for squash bugs to hide and hatch out more babies.

3/29/2024 6:25:38 AM

Billerica,Massachusetts

remove and burn

3/29/2024 6:31:55 AM

Western NY

I remove them. In theory, I don't want to be encouraging the kind of microbial life that enjoys breaking down pumpkin vines.

3/29/2024 8:07:19 AM

Westmoreland, KS

Yes...good plants go into my compost pile bad are discarded. My thought I put a shit ton of goodies in the plants maybe some of it will be in the compost.

3/29/2024 8:48:56 AM

Upa Creek, Mo

I get some sort of disease in my clay soil every year so I always remove. We have vine borers swarming around as late as October if warm enough so I want to get rid of their eggs too.

3/29/2024 8:54:43 AM

Bethlehem CT

I leave them, no big reason for it, other than it is what is easiest for me. I try to rotate, so disease is not a big concern, Although squash bug cover does concern me more.

3/29/2024 10:07:08 AM

Walla Walla Wa.

As long as there's not disease in the vines I'd definitely leave them or better yet to compost them and add the compost back to the pumpkin patch, that plant has extracted everything that it needed from the soil and by leaving them or composting them your putting a lot of those nutrients back into your soil,just like nature teaches!

3/29/2024 10:36:15 AM

Torrance, Ca.

If there's evidence of disease, remove them. If you see no disease I guess just let them compost in the patch.

I always have disease so I remove every bit of plant and into the dumpster they go.

3/29/2024 12:40:23 PM

Syracuse, NY

Thank you all thus far for the outpouring and one thing I had not thought of was that perhaps if one does leave it all in place from year to year, after many, many re-seedings by Nature itself (those rogue sprouts you see as you go to plant your 'real ones') could possibly be the start(s) of a resistant-to-what's there crop whose offspring in 5-10 years might shrug off the illness that originally hindered the original Dirty Dozen. Survival of the fittest, perhaps. This past year it was a good workout and I prolly had a better grip (not on Reality) for a few weeks after, lol---More replies expected and thank you---eric g

3/29/2024 3:35:13 PM

Kutztown, PA

I've been dragging mine over to a concrete slab by the barn and letting them dry out. There mostly water so they shrink down to nothing in short order. I figure any thing crawling in or on them is desiccated. Once there dried I burn them. However, year before last I had a burn pile going and my 11 year old grandson asked me if I'd put the fire out because burning contributes to global warming. Now I just do it when he's not around and feel guilty about it. Aren't kids wonderful?

3/29/2024 4:29:49 PM

Syracuse, NY

Maybe his dad'll get out of getting him a minibike.
'T's OK - Any kid with a giant-pumpkin-growing GrandDad will be all right. Glad you call it 'global warming' - Climate is always 'changing'; eg

3/29/2024 7:02:04 PM

Wisconsin

I've been leaving them if the pumpkin makes it to the end of season, I either rotate the patch or take a year off. Like Dan says the plant has exactly the nutrients the future crop needs. If I loose one midseason, I pull the plant, if i'm not going to rotate the patch or take the next year off Id would remove vines at the end of season.

4/4/2024 11:58:26 AM

Iowa

Pretty bad about getting the garden cleaned up in the fall so any plants that weren't pulled during the season remain over the winter. Rake up in the spring and burn in multiple piles scattered throughout the garden. Theory is to return nutrients to the soil through the ash and to get rid of any pests that may have overwintered in the vines during the burning process.

4/4/2024 7:10:41 PM

Syracuse, NY

Thank you. eg

4/4/2024 9:22:42 PM