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Merrimack County, NH

Well there isn't any introduction board on here, so we'll put it here.

I found this website when I was trying to figure out how long my (small) pumpkins would last off the vine. This is the first year this has been an issue because it's the first year I have managed to actually get any pumpkins :)

As a side note, I have found more causes & cures for pumpkin afflictions in one hour of reading this site than I did in 2 weeks of searching the web for "pumpkin diseases". Wish I had found the site a few months ago...

First year pumpkin patch was not planned for. I love to grow things but have limited time like everyone else. On advice on my in-laws, I just threw pumpkin seed into the manure pile & awaited my large bright orange beachballs to appear. :) NOT!! I did not end up with one pumkin over 6" diameter.

2nd year pumpkin patch was on the advice of the nieghbor. "Throw the seed in that pig pen once the hogs are out" he said. I did & recieved 2 12in diameter pumpkins for my 10 minutes of effort. Now my boy was 1.5 years old at this time & my wife expected pumpkins to carve for halloween. No big deal, I went to the local orchard/farm stand & recieved 2 carvable pumpkins for $20.00. Twenty bucks?? Are you serious? I resolved to grow more pumpkins & devote some time to it. (maybe I could water them every once in a while or sumthin...)

Over the winter I perused the catalogs, (I love catalogs, anything to avoid shopping at a store) I saw pictures of pumpkins, pumpkins & more pumpkins. Oh which to get, why don't they have an arrow that says "just buy this one stupid"? That would make my life so much easier. Continued below...

9/11/2006 1:49:47 PM

Merrimack County, NH

Being that I have no measurable memory, & I forgot where I put the blasted seed packets when empty, all I can tell you is I got "jack-o-lantern" pumpkins, "white" pumpkins, & some sort of giant pumpkin.

I awaited spring with much anticipation for this would be "the year"

When spring came, I waited until the first week of may, then plopped bucket loads of manure in a large horseshoe arrangement. Topping each load of manure with a bucket of what passes for dirt on my property (mostly rock with clay for a binder) I then planted (seeds)on each end of the mounds for a total of 42 planted. Then it started to rain. When the rain was done 2 weeks later, 10 plants had sprouted.

Fast forward to today. I have harvested 4 pumpkins, 2 carvable. There is an UGO (unknown growing object) that after reading this site must be some sort of "big pumpkin", but it's only 30lbs. Most of the plants are dead, some are still hanging on, the critters have eaten their share. The season is over.

9/11/2006 1:59:43 PM

Merrimack County, NH

But reading this website has brought me hope. Now I know there are bugs that eat pumpkin vines. Nobody at the "garden center" could tell me what to spray on them, but this site did. Too late this year, but it got me thinking... Armed with this wealth of pumpkin growing knowledge maybe I too could grow a big pumpkin. (Although I would be happy with 2 pickup loads of small ones to give away) But first I would have to find a seed, they look hard to get, no internet searches turn up a seed. Wow!, this is hard to get into. No seeds for sale on the internet? I must be wrong, certainly there is a $10.00 seed somewhere, Gulp.. A $100.00 seed? Never found any seeds. I showed the wife the pictures. Big pumpkins dear, but no seeds. Must be a black art sort of thing. have to know the secret handshake & perform hours of free weeding to recieve your first seed. Then she comes home from the fair over to New Boston. "I got your seeds", she proudly proclaims & dumps a handful of small packets into my awaiting hands. oh boy, how much did this cost I wonder to myself. reading the look in my eyes she gushes FREE!!!
huh? They were giving them away? what I couldn't buy people were giving away. People that care so much about something that they will do anything including giving away their secrets just to propagate the sport. Brings a tear to my eye.

9/11/2006 2:13:35 PM

Www.extremepumpkinstore.com

Dubba, do what most of us did, get on the chat and ask as many questions as you can, there is a tremendous amount of people willing to help out with advice, seeds, and if you live close enough to other growers, maybe a visit to give you a hand.
Tom

9/11/2006 2:13:36 PM

Merrimack County, NH

So my intent of the next year is to try to grow a big pumpkin, (as well as many little ones) because someone (and I'll never know who) was kind enough to give me some seeds.

I have a spot picked out in the yard, Real dirt is coming by the weekend. I have mixed all the 2 year old manure I have with 20 bales of mulch hay. As soon as the leaves start to fall, I will mix those in to. I need to find somewhere to buy captan, & kelp. I think I already have most of the other things I need, I just didn't know how or if I was supposed to use them.

9/11/2006 2:19:01 PM

No Place Special

Dubba, I like you already! Come to the chat room someday and youll get more seeds and advice than you could ever dream of. A little work and you could be growing 500 plus lbers next season. Im sure youll find everything you need there but if not look me up and ill be happy to set you on the correct path. [email protected] Mike Frantz

9/11/2006 2:55:56 PM

Little-TON - Colorado

Dubba,
Sounds like your hooked.....cool. Stick with this and other sites and the folks will steer you right.......heck youll probably get out of the rookie stage the first year....(over 500lb......) ..lol but its fun to grow and help others grow too. I started with two seeds a friend gave me......Now I got a website, a GPC weighoff, wanting to start a newsletter, a club, growing at nurserys and garden centers, people calling me punkin man...... and a wife that threatens if I dont stop talking pumpkins Im gonna........she never finishes........
I'll have some seed November.......let me know if you want a few......you'll have seeds running out your ears soon.......especially if you join all the great clubs.....
Good Luck to you......Hey Mike.....email coming your way
Think Im changing my name from DaWiz to DaRookie

9/11/2006 3:25:10 PM

ipswich, ma usa

Dubba

Come on down to the Topsfield Fair weigh off Saturday September 30th and see 'bout 100 big ones! Chat with the growers and get some more seed. Welcome to the boards.

John (5150)

9/11/2006 3:31:27 PM

Jaffrey NH

Do I little search from Jim Beauchemin, Jim Ford, Bill Rodonis, Bruce Whittier, or Jim Kuhn. They are all in the area. If you go over to Demers garden Center in Manchester and ask for Robert Demers. He is a great grower too. They are all in the same gerneral area and they can all give you lots of advice.

DK

9/11/2006 3:49:53 PM

Massillon, Ohio

Dubba,
What a great story! You've jumped into a facinating hobby. By this time next year you will have worked hard, had a lot of fun (mixed in with a few dissapointments) and will have learned more about growing pumpkins than you ever thought possible. You will meet many kind and knowledgeable people AND have pumpkins to show for your effort. This has been my experience this year - it's been great!...Glenna

9/11/2006 4:22:57 PM

Gays Mills,WI

Dubba, you have come to the right place. I found this site a year ago and I couldnt believe it. Very nice people with a lot of advice. Good Luck, Before you know it you will be saying "How in the heck am I going to load this thing"

9/11/2006 5:41:47 PM

You're a creative writer! Welcome... sounds like you're already having fun with this.
Brig

9/11/2006 6:23:13 PM

Berlin,mi.([email protected])

too late now your hooked. lol. welcome aboard. many seeds will be available this winter. i think i might have a couple you would like.
steve zuhlke

9/11/2006 8:17:22 PM

San Jose [email protected]

welcome dubba, fyi, there is a spell check on the google tool bar, makes most of us illiterates look pretty smart

9/12/2006 3:33:14 PM

Garden State Pumpkins

Dubba....the last thing the NH posse needs is another grower ....so it's my obligation to advise you that growing Atlantic Giant Pumpkins may (and probably already has) be an addictive attraction....Having already entered into this iternet address already shows you may be leaning to (as they say in star wars) the dark side..woodchucks are no longer cute..deer are never a welcome sight..bugs you've never seen or heard of are terrorists to be dealt with swiftly..you'll find there are good fungi and bad fungi..loading your soil doesn't just mean truck loads of dirt...getting up early to see the girls..just isn't the same as college..but if you chose to persue the challenge..you're gonna meet some of the nicest people in the world!..otherwise get out now while ya still can! You have been warned!
ok
GrowEmBig!

Chuck

9/12/2006 8:43:43 PM