Pumpkin Crop

[Luremaker]

How do you store your seed long term? In the refrigerator or in a moisture controlled area? I am not up on vegi seeds as much as i am up on tree seeds, but I know if you get them too dry for too long, they start to decrease in germination percentages pretty fast. The farmer next to me left his seed outside in the back of his truck on accident on a 90 degree day. Not a single seed came up for him this year. Was it because the glass hot them too hot or to dry, I do not know. Tree seeds like to stay moist or they loose a lot of their potential.

Why not keep your normal jack o lantern seeds? They are free and most times grow better than the purchased ones.

I simply keep leftover pumpkin seed in the plastic bag they came in inside a cardboard box on a shelf in the unheated section of my shop. Temperatures will vary between 40 and 70 degrees depending on time of year. I even plated two lbs of last summer's sweet corn seed and it germinated in less than a week.

I never had much luck keeping seed harvested from my pumpkins. The seed would germinate well but not produce a good crop.

 

[Ford850]

Where do you purchase your seed? I use Gurney's, Park's, and Shumway's the most often. I usually stick with Howden pumpkins, and an additional variety each year. I've never had any beat the consistency and quality of the Howden though.

 

[Luremaker]

Where do you purchase your seed? I use Gurney's, Park's, and Shumway's the most often. I usually stick with Howden pumpkins, and an additional variety each year. I've never had any beat the consistency and quality of the Howden though.

I purchase my seed from OSC seeds.
OSC Seeds - Ontario Seed Has The Best Seeds for Any Place

I usually plant Howden, Jack-O-Lantern, Connecticut Field, and 5 or 6 varieties of miniatures.

 

[butternut]

I planted three of the old favorite, large, carving varieties: Connecticut Field, Howden (a couple different ones), and Jack-O-Lantern. Here are some recent pictures. Things are doing pretty well so far. While we're talking seeds... I did end up completely pulling 3 week old seedlings of one variety which were exhibiting a bacterial disease. I didn't wait too long to find out. I'm convinced it was in the seed. They were organically-grown supposedly, a Howden variety, and fortunately I was just trying a couple of packets that I bought at the local hardware store.

Other than that, I was hit hard early with cucumber beetles. I gave up on the rotenone/pyrethrin as just not getting it done. I went back to the trusty Sevin, what can I say. The hills are just starting to vine now. We've been getting very consistent rains. I wish for a little more sun, but the plants should be poised to really take off here for the next couple weeks.

 

[Ford850]

What type of fertilizer do most of you use, and when do you apply it?

Butternut, those are great pics. You have a very clean crop there. Do you hand hoe and till, or spray for weeds?

 

[butternut]

When I make the mounds, I load up the bottom with a couple big fork fulls of composted or partially-composted manure. If I have to haul water out there during the seedling/3-leaf stage (which I did this year because it was really dry then - that's changed now), I spike it with Miracle Grow. Now as the vines are just starting to run, I'm going to sidedress (lightly scratch-in) more manure around the base of the hill. Then I'll broadcast and till-in a chemical fertilizer between the rows. I know some growers can micro-manage the feeding at the various stages, but I'll use a "balanced" 10-10-10. That will probably be it, unless I find I need to keep the vines going late season.

Ford, thanks. Until the vines run, I cultivate between the rows with the tractor and a 6 foot tiller, and yep between the hills by hand. I've got 5-6 foot hill spacing. I could run the power tiller through that way, but I only have 60 hills, so it doesn't take too long by hand.

 

[Luremaker]

What type of fertilizer do most of you use, and when do you apply it?

Butternut, those are great pics. You have a very clean crop there. Do you hand hoe and till, or spray for weeds?

I agree, Butternut, your patch is looking great.

Pumpkins are heavy feeders. I broadcast mono-ammonium phosphate (11-52-0) 165lbs/acre because my phosphate was low in this field as per soil test. Then I side dress at 80lbs/acre with 23-10-20 at planting. Pumpkins require phosphate readily available to develop strong root systems. Just before vines take off I'll side dress a blend of urea (46-0-0) and 19-19-19 for a total application of 100lb/acre N, 200lb/acre P, and 30lb/acre K. Hopefully it all comes together and produces a nice crop.

I till between the rows like butternut.

 

[barrybro]

I planted 5 acres of pumpkins and 800 mums. I planed oats before the pumpkins and mowed once. I removed the tines in my rototiller except the middle and made rows. I then planted the pumpkins, sprayed the oats and applied herbicide and laid drip tape. This is the first time for the oats and we will see how it goes.

Barry

 

[Luremaker]

I planted 5 acres of pumpkins and 800 mums. I planed oats before the pumpkins and mowed once. I removed the tines in my rototiller except the middle and made rows. I then planted the pumpkins, sprayed the oats and applied herbicide and laid drip tape. This is the first time for the oats and we will see how it goes.

Barry

Hi Barry, that's interesting. I think many of us will be very interested in seeing how your pumpkin crop turns out. Your plants have lots of wind protection and likely stay warmer during cool nights. I wonder if rolling the oats would have been better for weed control.

I tilled my pumpkins on the weekend and side dressed them last evening. They should start to vine by the coming weekend. Not a single beetle on any of my plants yet.

 

[barrybro]

I have read about rolling rye and planting into it. I have about two acres of rye right now and it is about 6 feet tall. I could see how that would work as a good smother to weeds. I did want the herbicide to reach the ground. I used strategy and sandea.

Barry