|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 18, 2005 20:16:06 GMT -6
Hello everyone. How is everyone doing? I am doing fine. I am trying to grow some giant punkins. It has been so hot down here, with little or rain that the punkin vines are drying up. Oh well, I am in the process of learning how do this chore. With the help of both Phil and Doug I think next years will be better. As soon as I get the jungle, I mean garden pics back from developing, I am gona post some. Phil sure has a phantistic forum here. Sure glad he invited me to join. I was surfing the web today and found the record size punkin is 1337 lbs. That is one HUGH punkin.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 2:41:03 GMT -6
What do you mean next year he he, pumpkin plants can take alot, don't give up. If you can get one set at least in the middle of july you will be fine; I set them in august and still had a nice size pumpkin
|
|
|
Post by Pharmer Phil on Jun 19, 2005 4:22:47 GMT -6
Actually Greg, this is the world record pumpkin from last year! 1,446 pounds, grown By Al Eaton. This thread should be in the pumpkin Chronicles, along with this pic...But, I figure it may generate some interest here! GIVE UP...never Man, those vines just be droopin' from the heat!, have you buried your VINES!!, come on back to the Chronicles Bro...After Ya pick ya self up from fallin off your chair from gazing at this pic, and LEARN some more from Us Buddy! the season is still Good, and YOU are My southern experiment here...We MUST SUCCED
|
|
|
Post by theresa on Jun 19, 2005 5:47:37 GMT -6
ok, what do you do with these BIG Pumpkins other than for fun?
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 7:22:11 GMT -6
Collect the seed or sell them for all you can get, or make a monster jack-O-Lantern........People ask where did you get that thing how did you get it in yer front yard, and I start telling them the whole story from spring till fall Maybe we can get them to turn into a Pumpkin freak as well
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2005 7:46:30 GMT -6
So if I start seeds now I still gotta chance for some punkins?
|
|
|
Post by jeanette on Jun 19, 2005 7:53:32 GMT -6
i think you would have time... they grow pretty darn fast... i'm about to get flowers on mine!! i should go out there it may have flowered already.
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 19, 2005 11:09:51 GMT -6
GIVE UP? NEVER, it is just not a choice. I am hoping I can keep them going until this fall when the temps will be cooler. Just heard on the radio that today it is supposed to be 100+. Doug had suggested that I shade them from the hot sun. I am going to try to rig something up that won't be blown away when the winds start. It is not uncommon to have 20-30 MPH winds with 40-50 MPH gusts. Part of the problem is this was a 270 acre farm that was split up between 2 developers and there are no large trees for shade. Everyone is planting trees but it will be years before they are big enough to provide shade. I planted at least 100 trees, ornamental grapefruit around three sides of the property. The largest one is now about 14 inches tall. If I can get at least one punkin I will have seeds fro next year. The vine that is growing thru the garden is looking real good. It has shade from the monster tomato plants. As I sad at first, Giving up is not a choice. What I learn from one year I apply to the next years garden.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 11:38:05 GMT -6
As I said I had pumpkins set in late August that just made it. I had many duds that start growing and then drop off so I wait for the next one Hey let us know how that goes Greg, I also heard about pumpkin growers using misters and it brings the leaves right back up, misters use very little water. Jeanette, thats great news, wish mine was that far along already. Your male flowers have a long stem and smell sort of like lilac flowers and your female have a short stem close between the stem and leaf, you should see a small yellow pumpkin attatched to it
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 19, 2005 12:22:34 GMT -6
Doug, I looked at the punkins and there are no flowers yet. I would have expected there would have been at least one by now. There are three vines growing away from the garden, and one that is growing thru the garden. They are from 10 to 20 feet long. How high do your punkins get? I am gona build a little enclose along the back of the garage and put a misting system along the top, but don't want to make it to close to the ground. Do you think 3 feet is high enough? This will be for next years punkins. I am bound and determined to grow one of them giant punkins one way or other.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 13:11:46 GMT -6
I had pumpkin plants with leaves grow up past my knees at times. These pumpkin seeds that phils been giving out should make GIANT plants with tall leaves and vines an inch or two thick. I'm sure phil has had a jungle himself in his patch Do you see any buds at all on your plant Greg? At twenty feet they should have alot of blooms by now with a few pumpkins going. What kind of soil do you have bro, maybe we can get ya fixed up. Pumpkins love alot of composted manure or compost it's self, the more the better! If I could I would have truck loads of the stuff everywhere! I'll share with you some secrets that has helped me the past few years. I put in a wheel barrow full of composted manure in a dug out hole almost a yard wide, then I mix about a half a cup of blood meal in to get the plants started. Mix in the manure with a tiller or a shovel. When the plants start to vine I use to use a liquid fertlizer, Peters 20-20-20 if you have it at hand about once a week. I know phil also has some good info as well from years of learning
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 19, 2005 13:31:27 GMT -6
Thanks Doug for the reply. This spring I tilled in about 6 inches of home made compost along with dried molasses, and horticulture cornmeal. This year I was able to till down about 3 inches. Here we have hard black clay, so we must do what we can to break it up. The first year I was only able to till about 1/2 inch down. This used to be a corn field so the farmer went down about 12 inches max. There is probably hard pan down that far. After reading your reply I went back out to the punkins and found there are no blossoms, only stems and leaves. The stems are about 1.5 to 2 inches across. What do you think I am missing? My pics should be back in a few days and I will post some for you and others to see. Then you can see my jungle. Its a jungle because of the melons and maters. So what you are telling me is that maybe 3 feet high won't be high enough. How tall do those giant punkins get? More to come a little later. Now back to digging my moat. Actually it is a trench to bury the power from the house to the garage. I only have about 2 feet left. But that is another story for a different day.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 13:34:18 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by Pharmer Phil on Jun 19, 2005 14:12:27 GMT -6
This thread is Gonna Get good, so I moved her here, XdX, go fer it, It's Never too late! Greg...Ya will succeed bro, Douglas....snithcin' Pics Huh : : : : Don't imagine anyone would care. Haven't moved into the Next Phase Yet... I believe that simply burying the vines helps the mid-day Droops, they all do it, I would build some wind protection here, but as Greg said ...the Darn wind here, I'd find it in the next county. As far as misting goes, I say if Ya got it...Use it, the overall benefit would be great, I believe tho that I would shut them down long enough before nightfall for the plants to dry.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 19, 2005 15:52:36 GMT -6
I never used the mist thing myself because as phil said about covering the vines I do the same with all my plants covered in compost using drippers every few feet down the vine.
|
|
|
Post by jeanette on Jun 20, 2005 8:04:32 GMT -6
'mr pumpkin pants' is comming along nicely he is the one i babied, i put him under growlights and planted him in my garden.. the other two that lived are in a different spot i just planted them directly in the soil, the one the cat dug up is very small i'll have to look in my journel to see what type of seeds the biggest ones are.. i'm going to get a disposeable camera to show you all my baby. .. jerry admitted he may just lose the 50 bucks he bet me that i can't grow a big pumpkin, i have had bad luck with pumpkins in the past, in fact i had stopped growing them.. i accually could use a little rain. nice slow inch would be great!! i dug a big trench around him so it would be eaiser to water, but that never works as good as rain water.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 20, 2005 9:19:59 GMT -6
Boy sounds like your coming along fine Jeanette, can hardly wait to see yer pics
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 21, 2005 18:20:58 GMT -6
I put a tarp over the dying punkin plants last night. Today when I got home from work I took a look-see and it looks like they are drying up faster. Before I put the covering over them I watered each plant real good. Two gallons of water per plant and sprayed the leaves and stems real well. I layed my compost thermeter under the covering and will will go check it in a little while and report back.
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 21, 2005 19:21:54 GMT -6
Back for the 'under tarp' temperature report. I just checked and the temp read an even 100F. It was 103F today. I checked the extended forecast and no rain, at least thru the 30th. The temps are supposed to be around 100 each day. I guess that is what is called the dog days of summer. Guess I will will continue to heavily water each day and hope they can survive until it cools off in the fall.
|
|
|
Post by Pharmer Phil on Jun 21, 2005 19:32:31 GMT -6
I ask of you again Greg, Have you buried your vines?
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 22, 2005 4:52:49 GMT -6
In covering your vines your plant should have a good amount of water with the tap roots and all. The farther the vine goes the more water it will need to keep up with the heat, so in covering them each leaf joint will produce more roots for water and growth. Greg, check a few feet near the end of your plants under the vine for tap roots and if you see white thick hairs sticking out cover it up and water it, in time when it takes root your plant should start up again, not sure what else to tell you bro
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 22, 2005 19:06:57 GMT -6
Yes Phil I did bury the vines. BTW, thanks for reminding me. I had to add more soil on top in places because where the ground is cracking, black clay when it dries out it cracks real bad, the soil I put on top is sliding down the cracks. I stopped on the way home today and bought 400 lbs of top soil and cow manure. I mixed one bag of each and spread it on top of the vines where there no longer was any or it was getting pretty thin. Guess I will have to keep up with the soil a little bit better from now on. What I have been doing is adding one gallon of water, where the main stem comes up and adding the other gallon on top of the vines and leaves.
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 22, 2005 19:13:28 GMT -6
Thanks Doug I will look. As in previous post, I had to add more soil because of the cracking clay was eating up some of the soil I put on top of the vines. Maybe 2 gallons of water a day is not enough. Maybe now that I have added more soil on top of the vines they will grow better. If you have any extra rain you don't want. PLEASE send it down my way. I was out mowing the grass today and found a crack that I measured 3.5 inches wide. It is getting real bad down here. We NEED rain BAD. Any contribution would be greatly appreciated. I have been looking for a rain dance chief, but have no luck. I guess life goes on.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 23, 2005 4:19:04 GMT -6
I'll send da gals over to do a rain dance for you bro
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 23, 2005 7:09:33 GMT -6
Hey I'll be waiting for dem. I just gotta be sure they don't fall into any of the cracks. Maybe ifin I put a rope around dem, ifin dey fall in, i can pull dem out. Make sure they come dressed in der best rain dance clothing. Don't wanna make the rain dance gods mad.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 23, 2005 7:38:37 GMT -6
Shoot, I thought dey were da rain gods put a rug over dem cracks and dey won't know : :
|
|
|
Post by jeanette on Jun 23, 2005 10:51:46 GMT -6
RAIN!! RAIN!! RAIN!! there, that oughta do it
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 23, 2005 15:22:17 GMT -6
Dere you are Greg
|
|
|
Post by Compost Pharmer on Jun 23, 2005 16:33:01 GMT -6
;D jeanette, With rain dancers like dem, I may have a flood. Keep it up, the rain should get down here B/4 winter.
|
|
|
Post by douglas on Jun 23, 2005 16:39:38 GMT -6
Disco Jeanette dere : :
|
|