Two Months Until Planting Time

Just two more months until pumpkin planting time. That means that final patch prep and soil analysis will be some of the main tasks over the next 6 weeks. I got two yards of some really good compost today that will be rototilled in around the end of March or the beginning of April. I'll be getting a soil test in the next couple of weeks to find out exactly what I need to put into the soil to get it ready for planting around the first week of May. Rigth now I'm not very happy with the soil tilth and the depth of the soil until I hit hard pack so that will be some of my main focuses. I'll also be building some hoop houses around the end of March which I'll put out around the middle of April to start warming the soil.

Top Producing Pumpkin Seeds

Using the data on pumpkinlink.com I pulled a report to find out for a given seed what the total number of pumpkins over 1,000 pounds where as compared to the number of seeds grown. These two numbers give you a percentage of pumpkins grown over 1,000 pounds. This number is significant because it gives a grower an idea of the likelihood that a seed will produce a big pumpkin based on past results. The following is a snippet of the results. Full results can be found on the pumpkinlink.com homepage.

Seed | Percent over 1000+ pounds
1068 Wallace 75%
1689 Jutras 70%
1566 Rodonis 69%
500 Wallace 67%
1041.5 Mckie 64%
998.6 Pukos 60%
1450 Wallace 60%

Worm Castings & the Wife

A while ago I suggested to my wife that I'd like to get some worms to collect worm castings for the pumpkin patch. Worm casting are rich in microbial activity and put fertilizers and minerals into a form that plants can readily absorb. I have to admit there wasn't full disclosure before our marriage about things like compost, worm castings and pumpkins. I didn't start to grow pumpkins until a few years after our marriage. The conversations didn't go well in regards to the worms needless to say. If you ever read Amber's blog you would know. There were some concerns, however unfounded. Things like smells and worms running around the house at the top of her list.

Not to challenge the marriage, but as a little experiment I got the worms. Will, a grower in Colorado Springs, was kind enough to give me a few of his 1.5 million composting worms. They are now sitting in a garage tote bin with a lid on it. We will now find out how often Amber either reads my blog (I don't blame her for not reading it often because if you don't grow pumpkins it has to be really boring), can "smell" the worms or stumbles upon the bin. Details to come.

New 2009 Pumpkin Seed Lineup

Okay, I said I wouldn't change my mind about my seed lineup but I did. A very kind grower sent me some additional seeds that rocked my lineup. I now plan on growing the following:

1566 Rodonis (1450 Wallace x 1231 Pukos)
1450 Wallace (1068 Wallace x sib) - thanks Thad!
1363 Werner (985 Werner x 1450 Wallace)
1528 Starr (1350 Starr x 1041.5 Mckie)

Trying to decide the crosses for these seeds make my head spin. At this point the following are my best thoughts. Let me know if you have any suggestions.

1566 Rodonis x 986 Pukos (pollen from another grower)
1528 Starr x 1566 Rodonis
1450 Wallace x 1363 Werner
1363 Werner x 1566 Rodonis

Composting for Your Pumpkin Patch

The best stuff that I believe you can put into your pumpkin patch is compost. I'm no expert on composting but there really isn't to much too it. Basically I like to take manure, alfalfa pellets, leaves and build them up into a nicely layered pile. I then spread some organic fertilizer in the pile (I used some leftover Happy Frog brand fertilizer that has some bacteria in the mix) and then poured 5 gallons of compost tea over it to help heat it up quickly (this step isn't necessary, but I think it might help the process go faster). The heat in the compost pile is generated by mesophilic microorganisms which rapidly break down the soluble, readily degradable compounds. The heat they produce causes the compost temperature to rapidly rise.

As the temperature rises above about 103°F, the mesophilic microorganisms become less competitive and are replaced by others that are thermophilic, or heat-loving. During the thermophilic phase, high temperatures accelerate the breakdown of proteins, fats, and complex carbohydrates like cellulose and hemicellulose, the major structural molecules in plants. As the supply of these high-energy compounds becomes exhausted, the compost temperature gradually decreases and mesophilic microorganisms once again take over for the final phase of "curing" or maturation of the remaining organic matter.

You should turn or lightly mix the compost about once every two weeks to keep this process going so the available nitorgen becomes available to the bacteria. Adding a little water to the pile during dry periods can also help with the breakdown of the materials in the pile. After about 6 months the compost is usually ready to be tilled into the soil if you don't plan on eating your pumpkin. If you are planning on eating it you may want to wait up to a year.

Pumpkin Link - A New Online Pumpkin Seed Genetic Cross Search Tool

I created a new pumpkin website. It is at http://www.pumpkinlink.com/. The website gives Atlantic Giant pumpkin growers the ability to search pumpkin family trees. This tool is a great research tool for growers to help them plan which seeds they would like to plant because they can search by pollinators, crosses, weight and grower. Over 8,900 pumpkins are in the database. Choosing the right seed is an important step to growing a really big pumpkin.

The (Pumpkin) Iceman Cometh

While in Canada for the Holidays with my inlaws the Iceman was was kind enough to swing by and pick me up and take me out to his home and pumpkin patch. Eddy is a super nice guy and I really enjoyed time with him talking everything pumpkins and touring his 4 acre property. Eddy's seed collection is extensive (to put it mildly) and his generosity is legendary. He has at least 4 large boxes full of great and classic seeds and his patch setup is very impressive.

Eddy grew a 1011 pound pumpkin two years ago which beyond impressive. When you live in a place with a short growing season, cool days and cold nights you have to do something special. Especially when there is a risk of snow as late as June. Eddy has 6 green houses with an additional one being built that has heating cables throughout the ground, diesel powered heaters, and an extensive watering system. That is the only way a person could grow a pumpkin that far north and at that altitude. It was fun comparing challenges of growing in Colorado and Alberta and what needs to be done to grow in high altitude locations. Got some good ideas from the Iceman that I'm going to try next year.

Even with the extensive seed collection that Eddy has he has decided to start growing his own seed lines and he is starting with the classics. He has acquired some of the best seeds from 7 to 12 years ago and he is going to start with some of the origional genetic lines in the hopes of creating some powerful seeds with some very interesting crosses. It will fun to watch to see what happens in Alberta over the next few years.

Thanks for the time and the advice Eddy!

Pumpkin Sophmore Slump

The Biz passed the torch to me. The 2nd year curse. Thad Starr brought it up to me this last week and previous to that I had never really thought about it. I believe the 2nd year curse comes as a result of trying to do to much in the second year and not re-doing all of the good things you did in the rookie year. To avoid the sophmore slump my plan is to mitigate risks by adding hail netting, growing great genetic seeds and growing more plants. Outside of lowering my soil ph (it was very high at 8.0 this last year), starting a new patch and doing a new vine pattern I'm not planning to change anything else.

Thad explained to me the pattern that he has been using and I really like the idea. Last year I kind of used the Christmas tree pattern, but I liked the idea of a diamond pattern that Joe Scherber talked about which in theory would push the main out faster by shortening up the first couple side vines and putting more leafs closer to the pumpkin. Thad's pattern is a variation of that where you curve the vines back towards the stump before the fruit and then bend then up close to and after the fruit. This will allow me to better use a somewhat limited space and give me the diamond vine pattern that I think will push the pumpkin better late in the season and get the main out quicker.

Obsessive Pumpkin Grower Needs Your Help

In order to keep me from changing my mind AGAIN on what seeds to plant next year I am posting it here and asking that you make sure I give dirt to the following next year:

1566 Rodonis (1450 Wallace x 1231 Pukos) - grew the biggest pumpkin in 2008, 9 pumpkins over 1,000 pounds this year. The 1156 seems to grow very well in cooler weather which is great for Colorado's cool nights, it throws a lot of female flowers and seems to be a good steady grower. I think the 1450 has all of the best of the 1068 Wallace but has worked out some of the reported flaws.

1363 Werner (985 Werner x 1450 Wallace) - Two pumpkins over 1,000 pounds this year and rumor has it that Quinn Werner liked it so much he will be planting it again this next year. I really like the cross. Both the male and the female have produced pumpkins over 1,500 pounds.

1269 Hunt (901 Hunt x 1631 Mckie) - The dark horse of my seed lineup. The 901 this last year tried to make a run at the world record but blew up the last week of August at 1269 pounds. It would have been interesting to see what would have happened if it made it to the scale in October. It may turn out that the 901 just grows to fast and will always blow up. I'm hoping that the 1631 will thicken it up a little and make it a more steady grower. We will find out.

The crosses I'm planning right now are 1566 Rodonis x 1363 Werner, 1363 Werner x 1566 Rodonis and 1269 Hunt x 1450 Wallace (Joe Scherber kindly offered to let me have some pollen from the 1450 he is planning on growing). My backup seeds right now are the 1161 Rodonis, 1000 Grande, 1004 Mohr, 1059.5 Hooker, 1154.8 Doucet and 1180 Deletas. I wish I had one more growing spots to grow on so my 1161 Rodonis could see dirt this year too.

Which Would you Grow for Your 3rd Seed in 2009?

I've decided I'm going to grow the 1556 Rodonis and the 1363 Werner next year. I like the look of that cross with the heavy 1450 genetics and the fact that all of the parents on both sides have grown pumpkins over 1400 pounds. The following are the seeds that I am considering for my 3rd spot. I'd love your input on which seed you would grow and the crosses that you like from it. The cross for this 3rd spot would be the most important thing for me.

1269 Hunt (901 Hunt x 1631 Mckie)
1000 Grande (1470 Wallace x 1041 McKie)
1010 Daletas (998.6 Pukos x 898 Knauss)
1180 Daletas (898.0 Knauss x 846.0 Calai)
1154.8 Doucet (1566 Rodonis x 1689 Jutras)
1138 J Johnson (1180 Daletas x 1420 Larue)
546.4 Zaychkowsky (898 Knauss x 1068 Wallace)
924 J Johnson (1231 Pukos x 1028 Sherwood)
1108 Giarrusso (1225 Jutras x 1068 Wallace)
925 Giarrusso (904 Stelts x 1385 Jutras)
1197.5 Hooker (1385 Jutras x 1470 Wallace)
939 Hooker (1566 Rodonis x 1470 Wallace)
1059.5 Hooker (1207 Young x 1385 Jutras)

Pumpkin Blog!?

For those first time visitors to my pumpkin blog who would ask why a pumpkin blog, I ask why not! This pumpkin blog represents my entire 2008 season. Everything I did during the growing season can be found in the many posts on this site. 3,290 happy unique visitors to the site since May can't be wrong. lol

Feel free, if you have a lot of free time or if you are a pumpkin lover, to take a look through the site.

2008 Pumpkin Growers Survey

I just completed the 2008 Pumpkin Growers Survey. Not a small task. The survey that I came up with consisted of building an online form, database and a fair amount of time pouring through the data trying to make sense of it. I'm not sure, but I think this was the first such survey and report of its kind. It was a great learning experience for me. About 6.4% of Atlantic Giant pumpkin growers participated in the survey with a number of heavy hitters included. If you would like to participate in the survey and receive the final report you can do so by clicking here. After completing the survey you will be given a link to download the 12 page final report.

Ginger Bread House Pumpkin Grower Style

Merry Christmas from the ginger bread pumpkin patch!

The Next Great Pumpkin Grower?

My 2-year-old son just ran up to me exclaiming "Big pumpkin, daddy!" He then lead me into the kitchen where I found a butternut squash that my wife had bought wrapped with a tape measure. "Big pumpkin, daddy! Big pumpkin." For the good or the bad I seem to have some influence on my child.

Pumpkin Seeds Available for Trade

Please contact me if you have any interest in the following pumpkin seeds at jamie@wedpagedesigns.com.

925 Giarrusso (904 Stelts x 1385 Jutras)
1108 Giarrusso (1225 Jutras x 1068 Wallace)
1197.5 Hooker (1385 Jutras x 1470 Wallace)
939 Hooker (1566 Rodonis x 1470 Wallace)
1116 Hooker (1470 Wallace x 1385 Jutras)
725 Lewis/Marrone (998.6 Pukos x self)
813 Lewis/Marrone (1195 van Kooten x 998.6 Pukos)
1138 J Johnson (1180 Daletas x 1420 Larue)
1075 Scherber (1407 Hemphill x 1450 Wallace)
1053 Pappas (1340 Kline x 1110 Wallace)
1095 Pappas (1110 Wallace x 1340 Kline)
546.4 Zaychkowsky (898 Knauss x 1068 Wallace)
924 J Johnson (1231 Pukos x 1028 Sherwood)
1003 J Johnson (1173 Macari x 1420 Larue)
709.5 Lovelace (869 Calai x 1370 Rose)
1005.5 Sawtelle (1180 Deletas x Sibb)
755 Johnson (300-500 Dill est x self)
489 Mohr (1446.5 Werner x self)
1175 Andrews (1370 Rose x 603.5 Muller)
997.9 Andrews (1334 Daletas x 692 Andresws)
975 Andrews (848 Mackenzie x 894 Hebb)
813 Andrews (873 Andrews x 878.8 Andrews)
810 Andrews (878.8 Andrews x 873 Andrews)
663.5 Andrews (845 Bobier x 1370 Rose)
555 Andrews (641 Andrews x 500 Northrup)
445 Andrews (641 Andrews x 940 Mombert)
575 Lewis (1314 Beauchemin x 1248 Ford)
1010 Frantz (1083 Frantz x 581 Young)
523 Landry - (689 Beauchemin x 1420.5 Larue)
477 Hopson (1010 Frantz x 1097.5 Beachy)
1144 Horton (1314 Beauchemin x 735 Pukos)
759 Paton (1002 Paton x 867 Vincent/Gill)
829 Minix (419 Pukos x Self)
827 Minix (1025 Bobier x Selfed)
954.5 Mackenzie (1163.5 Mackenzie x 1250.5 Kline)
857 Myers - (1180 Daletas x 1233 Reiss)
793 Ebbett (757 Ebbett x 840 Parks)
1110 Sawtelle (598 Swartz x Self)
1037 Ornskov (1019 Megechelsen x 825 Foss)
800 Seymour (1180 Deletas x Sibb)
683 Dettweiler (1043 Lyons x open)
504 Chenier (1301.5 Eaton x 1355.5 Marion)
466 Hopson (695 Handy x 1097.5 Beachy)
1043 Lyons (842 Eaton x 953.8 Kennedy)
791 Sundin (880 Sundin x 947 Hunt)
916 Sawtelle (1057 Hebb x Self)
956 Sawtelle (771 Stellpflug x Self)
968 Giarrusso (1108 Giarrusso x 1006 Giarrusso)

Pumpkin Patch Cover Crop

Cover crops are a great thing to get started in October in Colorado. The cover crops can add additonal nitrogen, build organic matter in the soil, and help areate the soil. In October I put down a cover crop of annual rye grass and white clover. The white clover is a nitrogen fixing plant which will pull nitrogen from the atmosphere and fix it in the soil. The annual rye grass is what is called a green manure. Both the clover and grass will be rototilled in at least 4 weeks before planting the pumpkin in the spring. Cover crops are an inexpensive and great way to build your soil.

Pumpkin Patch Fall Soil Prep and Amendments

50% or more of the work for growing a giant pumpkin isn't done during the growing season. It is done in the fall and early spring. It doesn't matter how great your pumpkin seed genetics are if you don't have a great soil to grow it in. I'm starting a new patch for 2009. My good neighbor Chris is allowing me space on his 3 acre property to grow 4 plants next year. A BIG thanks to him for letting me do this. He has gone above and beyond by having his employees use his earth movers to help me move the soil and compost piles.

Soil preparation starts with a soil test. Unless you know what is in your soil you don't know what you need to add. The soil for my new patch was pretty poor. It was compacted, low on NPK, low organic matter and had a high ph of 8.1. To build the soil I added poultry compost, alfalfa meal, bone meal, green sand, humic acid, organic 10-5-5 fertilizer with calcium, tree leaves, elemental sulphur, peat moss and aluminum sulphate. That was all rototilled in deep.

After that I put down a cover crop of annual rye grass and white clover seed. I then spread a 4-4-5 fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi and sprayed it all down with Neptune's Fish & Seaweed, compost tea, molasses and some fat free milk. The last 5 items were added to help build the microbiology in the soil. The good bacteria and fungi will then start working those soil amendments and turn them into great soil. After that was completed I then ran the sprinklers and covered the main growing areas with 10x25 clear plastic sheets to help build warmth in the soil to get the cover crop going before we get a hard freeze.

In early spring I will do another soil test and will probably add additional composted manure and other amendments as needed. I will also add some worms to the soil as I didn't see any in the dirt today.

As I re-learned today, if you think it will take 3 hours to get your patch prep work done count on it taking 6 hours. Man am I sore and tired tonight.

Pumpkin Contests Round 2

Congrats to my daughter and dad on both getting 3rd place in the Arvada Festival of Scarecrows pumpkin competition in the adult and junior divisions! Dad's came in at 183 pounds and my daughter's came in at 82 pounds.

2008 Proven Pumpkin Seeds

After sorting through the weigh-off results this year I have come up with the following list of proven hot seeds. The criteria to make this list was that at least two pumpkins had to weigh over 1,000 pounds in 2008 to qualify. Many of the seeds on this list have been hot seeds for a while. Some are new. There are probably twice as many good seeds out there that are not on this list that will never see dirt. Pumpkin seed selection is all about mitigating risk. Growers only have so many spots to grow on so they have to make decisions each growing season. The seeds that get selected more often is a result of a popularity contest (growers with famous names tend to get grown more), marketing (seeds that get talked about tend to get grown more) and proven results. The following list just shows the seeds that tended to grow big pumpkins in 2008 based on weigh-off results:

275 Van Hook
904 Stelts
985 Werner
998.6 Pukos
1041 Mckie
1058.5 Timm
1066 Starr
1068 Wallace
1119 McMullen
1123 Gervais
1161 Rodonis
1178 Lovelace
1207 Young
1231 Pukos
1272 Hilstolsky
1350 Starr
1363 Werner
1370 Rose
1385 Jutrus
1408.5 Daletas
1446 Werner
1462 Gibson
1502 Wallace
1537 Stelts
1556 Rodonis
1631 McKie
1689 Jutras

Of these seeds the biggest newcomer standout for 2008, in my opinion, is the 1566 Rodonis. Almost every pumpkin grown on this seed hit over 1,000 pounds and it saw a lot of dirt. The other two seeds to watch are the 985 Werner and the 1566's little brother the 1161 Rodonis. The 1156 is the reverse cross of the 1566. This seed saw less dirt but did equally as well this year growing two pumpkins with an average weight of 1,365 pounds. Steve Connely's pumpkin grown on the 1566 hasn't hit the scales yet, but if it makes it this Saturday as a new world record the demand for these two seeds will rightfully go through the roof. I and Bill have an ongoing argument as to whether he knows how to pick genetics. He says it was just luck. I believe the 1566 and 1161 are going to be the next 1068 Wallace of pumpkin seeds. Time will tell. What other seeds do you think were the hot seeds of 2008?

Super Bowl of Pumpkin Contests

This weekend my wife and I went out to Topsfield, MA to attend one of the largest of the GPC pumpkin contests. The Topsfield Fair. Last year's world record 1,689 pound pumpkin grown by Joe Jutras (pictured left) was presented at the fair along with some other monsters. This year there were no new records (those will be presented in Rhode Island next week if they hold together) but there were still some massive pumpkins.

The growers in the greater Topsfield area are some of the best in the world. I also found them to be some of the nicest in the world. In the week before the event more than one grower offered travel tips while in Massachusetts and I met probably ten of the nicest guys and gals you could want to meet anywhere while at the fair.

I think a guy traveling out from Denver to Topsfield was a bit of a novelty. At least one reporter from Salem who interviewed me thought so. All I know is that I like big pumpkins and the 1,464 pound pumpkin grown by Wes Dwelly was quite a sight to behold. Makes the biggest ones in Denver look like child's play.

Bill Rodonis and his wife were at the event and it was great talking with them. Super nice guy. Bill grew a 1,566 pound pumpkin last year that was a world record holder for 20 minutes. Bill couldn't grow this year because of a knee problem, but you saw a sparkle in his eye every time a pumpkin went to the scale that was grown on his seed. You would of thought he grew it himself. Thanks Bill for taking the time to talk with me!

Steve Connley was at the event and I had a chance to be introduced to him. Steve has a pumpkin taping out at an estimated 1,900 pounds on the vine right now. If it can survive another 5 days it may be a new world record. Jutas says he has a 1,600 pound pumpkin on the vine that is still growing so it will be interesting to see who goes heavy and who goes light.

I also had a chance to get to know Hooker, Sperry, Ed, Craig, Duff, John and a bunch of other really nice guys from all over New England who share the same passions as I do. Thanks to all of you too!

In the end it was all about the pumpkins however. Lots and lots of them at a really well run event. At the very last it came down to these three big ones. I'm hoping for something like this next year in my patch. Send me some of those seeds guys!