Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: mtoyne on January 03, 2009, 23:28
-
Hi, tried to grow pumpkins last year and failed miserably. How do i need to prep soil? When should i sow and are there any varieties that are easier than others?
Many thanks in advance.
-
am right there with ya.. :oops: got it growing n' flowering but that was it.. nothing!
And only one plant out of 4 planted..
-
same here, think i started off with 7 and not one produced anything. was really wanting to be able to grow our own for halloween.
-
Squashes are hungry feeders so need lots of rich soil, but last year we seem to have a lot of high winds (I lost quite a few plants from whiplash), a cool wet summer (fruits don't set or rot) and a shortfall of bees :(
-
The variety depends on what size you're aiming for, if it's for Halloween, the packets will usually say they are suitable for this. Other varieties such as "Atlantic Giant" are intend for the "see how big I can grow one" people!
I start mine in a warmish greenhouse, mid April, one seed per 3" pot. I'm not a great fan of propagators for things that ultimately are going to be growing outside. It's far too easy to produce weak, spindly seedlings.
I don't even find the necessity to put the pots in a plastic bag as a mini-propagator, but should you chose to do this, remove the pot AS SOON as you see germination.
I let them grow on until they've a couple of proper leaves, before hardening off and then planting in their final position when all danger of frost is passed.
Now - this is where I differ from a lot of others. Many chose to plant on a mound of soil, manure. I plant mine on flat, very well manured ground, and then draw the soil up in a large circle around the plant to form a wall to keep the moisture in when watering.
Others will use equally valid methods such as inverted pop bottles with the bottom cut off for watering, but' I've found in the past that it's easy to lose sight of these in the undergrowth & the "wall" method gives you a larger area to aim your hose pipe or watering can.
Other will not doubt post their methods, your job is choseing which to use use or making a combination of them!
-
I do virtually the same as D.D. Start my seeds off on the windowsill in mid April.
I dig out a 2' by 2' square hole for each plant, half fill with well rotted manure then mix in the soil i have taken out until the soil is level again.
I also like to offer a bit of wind protection for the young plants until they get established, be it a bucket with the bottom cut off or a make shift barrier of some kind.
As the pumpkins develop, I put straw underneath them just to keep them off the soil.
I had a good crop of pumpkins last year, but my butternut squash flowered but failed to fruit. Still, it was a cold, wet summer and the frosts in September finished them off.
-
Well successful with pumpkins last year, no where near with butternut squashes.
I started mine off in the house in an old ice cream container, when it got to about 2inches high and the beginnings of some leaves. Put them out in the yard for about a month till got quite big. In that time they were eating by caterpillars but managed to survive.
Took them to the plot and planted in a spot previously covered in pigeon manure. Within a month they took right off and nearly took over the my 1/4 plot. So i suggest lots of manure and keep in tub till they quite strong, compost queen gave me that advice last year.
HTH
Kez
-
Hi, thank you all for your advice. Will make sure i get hold of a load of manure. Fingers crossed i have more sucess this year.
-
The welsh bloke, Terry, off "the big dig" fed his pumpkins beer :wink:
I carved my three pumpkins for halloween this year despite them only being the size of a gala melon! I didn't water them and only gave them a couple of manure tea feeds so this year will try to give them a bit more tlc.
-
(http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q75/Aidypunk/DSCN5995.jpg)
Boris, last years pumkin, 86lbs. As with DD, I sow around mid april and transplant when I feel the weather is warm enough. The pit is prepared by digging in plenty of manure and compost, the pit this plant went in was around 4 ftsq and about 2feet deep.
This picture was taken from my daughters bedroom window and you see the size of the plant, it was taken a few weeks earlier.
(http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q75/Aidypunk/DSCN5977.jpg)
-
Aidy i am extreamly jealous. Well done tho.
-
Was the variety Boris ? If not which Variety was it ?
-
I never got round to weighing one I grew a few years ago.
The variety was Atlantic Giant. It got taken to the harvest festival. The only way to get it there was to roll it onto a ground sheet, then two of us struggled to get it into the back of the estate car.
Recently I've just grown useful ones though!
-
I never got round to weighing one I grew a few years ago.
The variety was Atlantic Giant. It got taken to the harvest festival. The only way to get it there was to roll it onto a ground sheet, then two of us struggled to get it into the back of the estate car.
Recently I've just grown useful ones though!
Sounds like fun DD. :lol:
What variety is best for useful ones ?
-
Blimey - hold on, I'll see what's in the tin.
-
This is what I've got left from last year - did quite well for the job intended.
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds1/product/630/1/
-
Great.Thanks DD.
I'll have a try with Atlantic Giant and Jack of all trades :D
-
I too have a problem with pumpkins. I tried atlantic giant and ended up with a leaf buffet for my chickens. The rotten sods.
DD how about some pictures of your pumpkins? They look good on the website, but you never know.
-
Sadly the only picture of my pumpkin was taken in the display by someone else & it was on one of those cameras that took something called "films".
The picture was given to us in the form of a "photograph" which over the last few years has got buried somewhere. Should it come to light. or I remeber who took it, I'll try & get it up here.
These were the days when this site was but a gleam in John's eye.
-
Was the variety Boris ? If not which Variety was it ?
This was an Atlantic Giant, problem was kids tried to kidnap him about 4 weeks to halloween so he never got to the ton.