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I have a beast of a whatever (pumpkin or squash). It has 3 dill rings, waves in the skin all over, deep ribs, cantalope cracks on only the front of it and are leaking bad, 4 holes, 3 that I can fit my finger through and one that is 4 inches long by 3 inches wide. I can just fit my hand into it! But the thing is still growing like it always has. At the time of the major split it grew maybe 5 pounds a day, after 5 days of 5 to 10 pound gains it is now at 34 lbs per 2 days averaged out at 17 lbs per day. I thought that this was a major cull and disapointment. All the odds are against it now, but it fails to give up. It stands at 485 pounds and is my biggest by far.

Aren't holes suppost to stop pumpkins or slow them right down to nothing? Why is mine going big again? Or is this normal for a pumpkin?

8/24/2005 9:34:07 PM

Anamosa, IA [email protected]

They keep growing until they get too much rot. My 721 Pearce gained a lot of weight after it split, and might have gained for a couple more days if I hadn't cut it open. The problem with letting them go too long after they split is that the seeds could rot along with the rest of the pumpkin.

8/24/2005 10:29:15 PM

Ontario, Canada.

Kyle, they do continue to grow for up to 4 weeks if sealed up soon after the split. Last year I had one that gained over 300 pounds using the Stellpflug technique and caulking over the split blossom end.

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/ViewArticle.asp?id=52

8/25/2005 7:49:36 AM