Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 6 Entries. Saturday, April 13 View Page I've been on this site for 23 years-plus and I've always had one embarrassing question - butt in Searching on here for 'fertilizer works', 'how fertilizer' and 'how fertilizer works', there is NO result about it but mine entitled 'Don't Stop The Ferts', which I would have thought would have had far more responses and discussion and 'Yeah, great idea...' ...s than it did. THAT is not what THIS is about, butt it just goes to show...I mean, putting fertilizer on a plant or into the soil does not equate to the amount used being fully applied to the pumpkin's size nor weight - nor its color. Else, you COULD have pumpkins that are of 2000 pounds or more having to have had (Purely as an example: 1000 pounds or more of fertilizer added to the soil and supplemental water as well), minus the transpiration and I cannot think of anything else. My belief is that the fertilizer...fertilizes...makes the plant's life be the best it can be to do what we want, which is to grow the biggest, HEAVIEST pumpkin possible. The ferts don't grow the pumpkin - the plant does, so, yeah, to have the soil be the best for the plant in it because of, in part, the fertilizer, is the goal. It is easier to coax a cow to the milking barn with a treat of some sort than it is by trying to push it. I don't have a cow, butt, whatever. If there are any shreds of wisdom here I hope you find them and use them, if any (I got like 3, maybe including DSTF!!!) and here's to a new PB to each and all of us! eg   Saturday, April 13 View Page ...Only a week until seed-starting '24!!!   Sunday, May 5 View Page YAY!!! My season '24 has begun with a 1000.4 Barratt squash that made me go 'WOWWW?!?' as I opened up the Germ-Fridge (The Germerator) yesterday - Front and exactly in the center, like, "Hellooohhh? Yeah, you PLANTED me - Here I AM!!!" It is not even yet in the basement under fluorescents - I wanna have a few more down there to justify the lighting cost, and the 717 Connolly is lending its presence to that end result! eg PS---Exactly on time with last year's starts, so, already behind, lol!!!   Friday, May 24 View Page It helps to have a tiller guy, lol---I DO have a 9-foot-wide one butt it SHOULD have 100 HP running it and my Massey-Ferguson 65 is @ about 50, so I'd have to run it through about 4 times to even get close to the results here with two otherwise. I removed half the tines to lighten the load butt it's always a challenge for my dear, old tractor. Gotta have it running to lift the fruits with!!! eg   Friday, May 24 View Page 6000 SF of new PITA! It has been a struggle to get the manure down, the amendments applied (nothing more than Bio Grow to all and 0-0-50 granular to the first half) and right after this I applied about 70 pounds of Dutch White Clover to it all, half at a time; I've gotta get a four-wheeler with a motorized spreader attachment, lol---eg   Saturday, June 22 View Page For the few or less whom use WeedBlock or similar material to keep splashing down, sort-of protect seedlings from animals that otherwise just see a meal sitting there and are just gluttons for punishment, here is my Weed Block Station '24. Nearest us, on-ground, is the roll of 'fabric', crossing a piece of 16"+ or - X 4' walking board; There is a bottle cap under the fabric used as a point at which to cut an X into said fabric at 18" in, ,which is where the plant will protrude upon placement of this material over the seedling. Heavy speaker magnets @ back to hold corners in place and also 2nd walking board marked at 4' to denote a 4' X 3' piece of material once cut off at the lines drawn on the nearest walking board. A 2' X 4' is there to cut against. I may, from time to time, randomly add to this procedure as far as the placement onto the lucky seedling(s). eg