Is it your dreaming to grow a pumpkin vine so big you could crawl inside of it ? Then I have effective news for you : your aspiration is totally come-at-able .
All it take is a dedicated infinite , the ripe nutrients , and deal of cheer .
And if you ’ve heard of gardeners feeding Milk River to their Cucurbita pepo to make it grow to tremendous proportions – bide tuned to get out whether this method works or not .
This local record-breaker from the 2019 Alaska State Fair weighed a whopping 2,051 pounds! Photo by Laura Melchor.
Be previse that the jumbo Cucurbita pepo farm manufacture is fiercely competitive , thanks in part to the potentiality a giant brute of a gourd has to rake in lots of hard cash .
Case in item : a single seed bring forth by a giant pumpkincan sell for more than $ 1,000 .
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This local record-breaker from the 2019 Alaska State Fair weighed a whopping 2,051 pounds! Photo by Laura Melchor.
Yeah , it ’s that lucrative , folks , and the giant squash - grow profession is popular around the globe .
In 2020 , thecurrent existence track record - holderfor the largest , heaviest pumpkin of all is Matthias Willemijns of Belgium , who in 2016 grew a 2,624.6 - pound wolf .
In 2018 , Steve Geddes of New Hampshire grow a 2,528 - pound monstrosity that bring home the bacon him a plunder of $ 6,000 . His squashcurrently holds the United States recordfor the gravid pumpkin vine ever grow in record American history .
At the 2019 Alaska State Fair , I get to see a real elephantine pumpkin for the first time , and I must admit I was expecting something beautiful . Something like Cinderella ’s magic pumpkin that change by reversal into a carriage .
The slouch , corpulent monster my son and I behold that 24-hour interval was anything but middling .
But what it miss in dish it made up for in downright wondrousness . I mean , how often does a person get to see a pumpkin big enough to dwell within ?
That day at the fair , I imagined digging a yap in the monumental gourd and grow it into a howling autumn - themed fort for my toddler boy and me .
We both could have fit inside it . Really .
My current garden is n’t turgid enough to handle growing a record - breaker of a squash rackets , but that does n’t mean I have n’t developed an interest in the profession . Or should I call it a hobbyhorse ?
Maybe describing it as a sport would be more accurate . Because how in the man does one tape transport such a pumpkin from the field to the fairground , anyway ? I digress .
If you want to produce a giant pumpkin , here ’s how to do it .
What You’ll Learn
Preparation Is Key
Do n’t just hurry out to the garden and try move around a even - sized , already - growing pumpkin into a leviathan .
You ’ll need to do some readying before you grow a with child gourd .
First , and most important of all , you postulate the right character of seed .
Unless you ’re a super - serious grower quick to shell out tons to hundreds of dollars for premier seeds , you could expect to grow a gourd of about 300 to 500 pounds with the commonly available cultivar ‘ Dill ’s Atlantic Giant , ’ ( Cucurbita maxima‘Atlantic Giant ’ ) .
‘ Dill ’s Atlantic Giant ’
you may find seeds in a variety of packet sizesavailable from Eden Brothers .
Or , for a calabash that ’s genetically primed to grow at least 600 to 1,000 pounds , examine your hand at growing ‘ Wallace ’s Whoppers . ’
Nova Scotia gardener Howard Dillgets all the creditfor breeding ‘ Atlantic Giant , ’ with which he gain the 1981 world record book for heaviest pumpkin vine .
Which , by the room , weighed a mere 493.5 pounds . It ’s incredible to think of how much the giant gourd grow theatre of operations has progressed in the last few X .
It wo n’t be long now before the world platter inches closer to the 3,000 - Irish punt Gospel According to Mark .
Despite his original gourd’srelativelysmall size , Dill is the grandpa of every jumbo Cucurbita pepo grown today : every jumbo - sized gourd vine grow in recent history is a cultivar or selectively breed version of the original ‘ Atlantic Giant . ’
When you ’ve chosen your seeds , you need to prepare a dedicated spot in your garden for your gourd to acquire . Thisfull sun locationshould experience at least eight hours of daily sunlight .
In the twilight or other outflow , clear a 10 foot by 10 foot section of your thousand and till the soil down to 10 inches deep . repair it with organically - rich garden soil from your local nursery if you call for to .
You will involve a space that ’s 10 feet in diameter – or 100 solid human foot – for a single plant life , so if you require to try growing more than one of your seedlings into a giant , you ’ll postulate to make a 20 - foot bed .
Remember that it ’s not just the size of the yield that you need to take into retainer : you also need to consider the vine , which will quickly take over every inch of space you give them .
You may need toconduct a grime testto see the pH is between 6.0 and 7.5 , and amend to resolve any nutrient deficiencies .
Add a six - column inch bed of well - rot manure or compost to the top of the integral bed and till it into the dirt .
Then , shape the entire layer into a mound , or J. J. Hill , that ’s about 18 column inch high in the middle .
This will help improve soil drainage . If you ’re make this seam in the free fall , cover it with four column inch of straw to keep it insulate and tidy during the winter .
Your bed is now ready to support that massive pumpkin !
Sowing Seeds
If you live on inUSDA Hardiness Zones2 - 5 , you ’ll require to sow ‘ Atlantic Giant ’ seeds indoors two to four weeks before your area ’s average last hoar date .
Gardeners in Zones 6 - 9 can sow seed direct into the mound at least two week after their area ’s last hoarfrost appointment .
disregarding of whether you ’re sowing indoors or outdoors , hock seed in tender body of water for 12 hour the night before . This will help them evolve more quickly – and in a slipstream to mature as big a pumpkin as potential , fourth dimension is of the centre .
To verbatim sow , create a one - column inch - cryptical hole and lay two cum monotonous inside . Cover with soil , water supply thoroughly , and keep moist until sprouting . When at least two reliable leaves emerge , thin out the weak seedling .
Tostart seed indoors , replete four - inch biodegradable bay window with seed - start commixture . It is significant to employ biodegradable pots , as they ’ll prevent ruffle of the delicate taproot when you transplant . You involve those base to get off to a healthy start !
Make a one - column inch hole with your finger and rest the seed flat at bottom . Cover with the seed - starting intermixture and water with a spray bottle .
Keep the soil moist and warm , either by station the tray in a warm windowsill or by using a heat lustrelessness . Seedlings should sprout within four to seven days .
supply at least eight 60 minutes of sunlight once sprouting occurs , either by keeping the pots in a warm , gay windowsill or byusing a grow light .
Transplanting the Seedling
If you have enough infinite to create a 20 - foot bed , you’re able to pick your two strongest seedling when they have at least two to three lawful leaves .
If you only have infinite for one , after all risk of frost has pass , pick your tallest , greenest , most robust - looking seedling to transplant .
In the center of your prepared hummock , dig a pickle the same size of it as the biodegradable pot . set the entire pot inside and backfill with dirt . ensure to cover the entire smoke .
Water soundly . If you be in a region with fierce sunlight or high winds , you could erect a smallfloating words coveror shade material over your wee industrial plant until it has become established .
you could take the protection after about 10 days .
Caring for Your Giant Cucurbit
Most of the care required is covered in ourguide to growing pumpkins , but I ’ll go over the main considerations for giant pumpkins here .
You ’ll want to give this giant baby plenty of wet – but not too much .
Set a timekeeper on your phone or make a preeminence inyour horticulture journalto water your gourd vine every day if you live in a dry area , or every two to five days for those in wetting agent locale .
Avoid applying water directly onto the leafage or the developing gourd as this can get it to rot .
you could check the wet by vex your digit into the soil next to the base of the plant ’s main vine . If it feels damp about one column inch down , hold off on tearing until the next day .
you may apply alayer of mulchto the area around the plant , leaving a 10 - inch space around the base of the chief vine to prevent it from rot .
To check that your gourd have enough nutrients , you may also require to fructify a reminder to fertilize it every five to 10 days .
As a general rule , you ’ll want to contribute a high - nitrogen plant food to your gourd in the first 55 or so days before flowers first appear .
Down to Earth Citrus Mix Fertilizer
But gourds , giant ones specially , still call for phosphorus and potassium too , so concenter on using something like this 6 - 3 - 3 NPK citrus tree mixfrom Arbico Organics .
Do n’t be fooled by the name : according to the experts at Arbico Organics , this admixture is excellent for vining plant , admit your giant gourd vine .
About a week before flower begin to appear , about 50 twenty-four hour period after germination , it ’s time to ramp up your phosphorus game .
I love toadd bone meal to the areaaround my pumpkin works .
In my experience , it undeniably helps the plant produce both manful and distaff bloom .
For more on that story , and to learn more , correspond out ourguide to fertilizing pumpkin .
Down to Earth Bone Meal Fertilizer
One of my favorite ivory meal powders is this 3 - 15 - 0 NPK variety , alsoavailable from Arbico Organics .
When you acknowledge that both a male person and a female flower are quick to bloom on your plant , it ’s time to get into action mode .
Female flowers will have an ovary , which looks like a swelling at the base of the flush . Male flowers will miss this ovary .
The day before they open , you ’ll notice that the blooms are loose and orangish non-white flower petal are beginning to peek out .
ahead of time the following morning , frighten away out to the garden .
The large , orangish , smiling face of your flowers should recognise you . If there is more than one male flower on your plant , transfer them both from the theme and rub all piece of each male stamen all over every exclusive part of the female flower ’s mark .
The more pollen you may get on that stigma , the better .
exit the female heyday and softly envelop some horticulture string around her so thatbeesor other bugs do n’t amount and raise up the pollen on the stigma .
Within a few days , you ’ll notice that the flower has die off , but the ovary is growing .
And that ’s when you roll in the hay that your loot - worthy giant pumpkin has place yield .
Learn to helping hand - pollinate pumpkin plant in this guide .
murder every single additional efflorescence you see after your take flower has been pollinate , no matter if it ’s manful or female .
The vine take to be fully focused on put all its nutrient and energy resource into that one fruit .
You ’ll also want to trim any sidelong vine once they reach a length of eight feet .
Your autumn pumpkin needs those leaves for vigour , so do n’t chop off all the vines the minute they start up turn . Bury the stinger ends of the vines in the soil .
Check out this guide tolearn how to trim your pumpkin vine .
Feeding Your Hungry Baby
You did n’t call back I ’d forget about the Milk River , did you ?
Or maybe you thought I blank out , and you felt that was probably a unspoilt affair because you ’re skeptical of the entire idea of a pumpkin vine benefiting from Milk River .
While scientific study on milk - give pumpkins are sparse , sure-enough farming traditional knowledge says that leave your growing gourd a steady superman of 2 percent milk can make it grow larger than if you simply fed it with plant food .
Part of the abstract thought seems to be that milk provides a source of atomic number 20 , which is all important to growing a giant pumpkin .
atomic number 20 strengthen the pumpkin ’s cubicle paries and helps to prevent the rind from developing deep crack , which can get the fruit to decompose .
So how do you do it ?
There are two ways to milk - feed a pumpkin . you may either water the plant with Milk River every mean solar day , instead of plain water , or …
Well , you may perform surgical operation on the vine by slicing it with a tongue , inserting a wax light wick into the cut , and lodge the other remnant of the wick into a Mason jounce full of Milk River .
But permit me differentiate you a unavowed : professional gargantuan pumpkin growers donotwater their gourd vine with milk , and they definitely do n’t contract the vine and feed it milk with a jerry - rigged homespun hairlike organization involving a taper and a Mason shock .
The vine is the umbilical cord of the yield , and trim back it makes it susceptible to pest and disease .
So do n’t do it . Just do n’t .
Instead of contribute milk to the vine , you’re able to ensure your plant gets enough atomic number 20 by use humic acids to your plant .
Humic acids are derived from ancient and very decomposed organic material , and they help your plant life ingest micronutrients – including atomic number 20 – that are present in the soil .
Do n’t skip this step ! Unlike Milk River , serious gargantuan pumpkin grower routinely use humic acids in their giant pumpkin growing process .
Down to Earth Humic Acids
you’re able to find granular humic acidsavailable at Arbico Organics . implement to your gourd weekly , according to package instructions .
And think of to keep feeding the gourd with fertilizer regularly .
It ’ll need steady doses of a high - K and high - atomic number 15 fertilizer every five to 10 days , or a mix of bone meal and kelp meal .
Maxicrop Soluble Seaweed Powder
This is my favorite water - soluble kelp or seaweed meal , available from Arbico Organics .
This ‘ Howden ’ of mine grew to this size in just a week after an program of off-white repast and kelp repast :
It ’s astonishing how quickly gourds grow with right victuals .
Those prize - winning , track record - breaking giants can even gain 40 - 60 lbf. in a single day !
Supporting the Pumpkin
After your pumpkin grows to about 10 - 15 pounds , you ’ll demand to target a wooden pallet underneath it .
This will keep air flowing around the gourd as it grows , and it ’ll make the fruit easier to move when it matter up of a hundred pounds .
When the pumpkin reaches about 36 inches in diameter , it ’s time to shade it with a ghost cloth or wrangle book binding .
Too much Sunday can induce the skin to split and crack , which can induce your hard - earned fruit to rot .
After about 120 - 140 24-hour interval , you ’ll have a whopper on your hand . Just in time for your local fair ! See if there ’s a pumpkin growing contender you could get into your giant gourd into .
Whether there ’s prize money in it or not , you ’re certain to make friends who adore the same nuts gardening Passion of Christ you do .
And do n’t block to make a fort with the beast once you bring it back home .
Enormously Squashy Fun
It ’s never a tough meter to start design your foray into the humans of jumbo Cucurbita pepo grow .
One day when I buy my dream home with a slightly larger amount of land , possibly I ’ll cordon off a section to grow a pumpkin to enter into the Alaska State Fair .
And to learn pumpkins – heavy or small – in your garden , check out these guide next :
Photos by Laura Melchor © require the Experts , LLC . ALL right RESERVED.See our TOSfor more item . in the beginning put out on August 17th , 2020 . Last updated August 5th , 2023 . Product photos via Arbico Organics and Eden Brothers . Uncredited pic : Shutterstock .
About
Laura Ojeda Melchor
