Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 267 Entries. Thursday, February 11 View Page Im so excited I can hardly wait for spring to start my first (real) season. I've read 2 of Don Langevin's how-to books and read BP threads til my eyes hurt. Ive sent off a couple bubbles and Im anxiously awaiting some quality seed. I have my soil sample ready and will get that sent off ASAP. Im sooo ready to start tilling up the ground in the new patch if only the freezing temps and snow would let up. Maybe I should invest in a jack hammer instead of a tiller! LOL Thursday, February 11 View Page Sent off my soil sample today. Im sure it'll be the worst theyve ever seen lol Its been a lawn for at least the last 50 years so I can only imagine what suggestions they'll have for me. I know I cant get it up to par in one year but Im anxious to get started. Wednesday, February 17 View Page I have SEEDS! Thanks to Peace, Wayne and Tim Pennington. Now which ones to choose hmmm.... I need a bigger patch! Friday, February 19 View Page hmmm well its finally here... now what the heck do I do with it??!? Friday, February 19 View Page Thanks to Peace,Wayne (again) for a second pack of seeds! You really are too kind! :) Also thanks to John Young. Im gonna be hard pressed to make a decision with all these great seeds. Hurry up Spring!! :) Thursday, March 4 View Page Today was a beautiful day and I just couldnt stay inside! I got the lil garden turned up and ready to go. We call it the 'guinea garden' because its stuff for our guinea pig. Cherry tomatoes, various leaf lettuce and bell peppers. I know it sounds silly but why buy it if I can grow it?!? It worked great last year and we had one happy guinea pig! haha I got blood meal, lime and potassium for the pumpkin patch. Im trying to find compost/composted manure. The weather should be nice through the weekend so hopefully I can find it soon. I also got a roll of 4 mil plastic and some hoop house materials together. Its gonna be a busy weekend, I can hardly wait! :) Friday, March 5 View Page I spent most of the day on the hunt for compost leaving little time to work on the hoop house. My daughter was only interested in taking pictures. Friday, March 5 View Page "you're here to help right?!?" I guess not cause she left haha Theres my gardening buddy Miss Foxy Lady. Friday, March 5 View Page I ran out of day light but I 'think' Im on the right track. I'll finish it tomorrow. Im sure quarter inch PVC would have been better but hubby had 3 twenty foot pieces of 3 quarter inch that had been laying by the garage for years. I figure ya might as well use what ya got, hopefully the pumpkin wont mind :) Saturday, March 6 View Page On hind sight I realize I should have rolled the plastic under and stapled it from the inside. Live and learn I guess. Also using the 3/4" pvc even though I already had it wasnt the best idea either. The clips didnt fit so I had to search for clips that were big enough. They dont hold as well as Id like but hopefully they'll work Saturday, March 6 View Page As my darling hubby said.. "well it aint gonna win any beauty contests but maybe itll last through one season!" lol I dont care if its not 'pretty' its my first hoop house and I built it all by myself! If anyone sees something I need to change please let me know! Saturday, March 6 View Page My son and I tried and tried to turn it up with a tiller but it was so dang hard the tiller was beating us to death! Then here comes hubby to the rescue!! lol he did more in 5 minutes than we were able to do in half a day! Saturday, March 6 View Page He wasnt really thrilled about digging up the yard but he did it anyway. He just kept saying "I cant believe Im digging up the lawn!" Bless him, it was hard for him but he did it. Hes a keeper :) Saturday, March 6 View Page We ran into a couple tree stumps and what we think was a sidewalk that kept us from getting finished. Tomorrow we'll till it, add the compost and other amendments. I hope we have to borrow that skid loader thing again in Sept to lift a big old pumpkin! lol Monday, March 8 View Page It doesnt look like it but this was a whole lotta work! We dug it up with a skid loader bucket, tilled it, raked it, picked up rocks, and clumps of grass, added manure, lime, blood meal and potassium then tilled it again. We ran into some problems a concrete patio, a sidewalk and an asphalt driveway all just a few inches under the soil. So now instead of a square we have a 'L' shaped patch. Monday, March 8 View Page I didnt have enough tarps to cover it all, Im gonna get some black plastic to cover the strip down the middle. Hopefully this will help keep the grass and weeds from growing back as much. Monday, March 8 View Page I ended up with 20 x 28 section and a 10 x 14 section. I used some of the bricks we dug up to hold down the tarps, also a couple of my sons skateboard ramps. Use what ya got! lol Monday, March 8 View Page Miss prissy butt doesnt like to get in the turned up dirt! She sits at the edge and waits. Tuesday, March 9 View Page I feel like Im mixing a cake haha I assume I should poke holes in the bottom of the bucket? Tuesday, March 9 View Page I have one of the jiffy starter kits but they seem too small. So I got to thinking why cant I use a clear plastic tote to start? Wouldnt that be basically the same thing only bigger? I guess we'll find out soon. I'll have bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, various leaf lettuce, watermelon, indian corn and sunflowers in there. Tuesday, March 9 View Page First time filing a seed. I must admit I was nervous, I hope I did it right. Its now on a damp paper towel in a zip baggie warming under a light bulb. Im crossing my fingers :) Tuesday, March 9 View Page Im a big fan of 'use what ya got' especially since its my first year. So Im starting my seeds in ice cream buckets and Im gonna set them in two clear plastic drawers from an old cabinet. I'll put in a thermometer to keep an eye on the temp and aim a light bulb at it for warmth. This is my trial seed. Wish me luck! Tuesday, March 9 View Page I found a inside/outside/humidity gadget I bought several years ago for our hermit crab habitat. It has sensor on a long wire to put in the sand to help keep the temp right for the crabs. I figure the sensor should work just as well for dirt as sand. I dont think knowing the humidity will be of any use, but knowing the temp inside the germ. chamber as well as the temp of the soil should be a huge help! For now Im using it to check the temp of the damp paper towel wrapped seed. I also found the habitat heater but Im not sure how or if I can use that yet. I may just stick with the clip lights. Friday, March 12 View Page No movement from the first seed, which is not surprising concidering that I forgot to soak it! Duh me! I filed it and stuck it straight on a damp paper towel and into a baggie, just have to wait and see. Filed a second seed tonight and put it in to soak. Im still working to get the soil temp right and stable. I think if the temp is right tomorrow I'll put the second seed directly into the soil and skip the baggie. The air temp is 86 and holding steady, at least I got one thing right. Little by little and bit by bit I'll get it figured out :) Friday, March 12 View Page 8:00 am this morning Friday, March 12 View Page it was so thick it looked like snow. Havent been up to see the hoop house yet. I hope it survived. Sunday, March 14 View Page the hail was rough on my hoop house but it survived, a few pock marks but no holes. Monday, March 15 View Page still no movement from the first seed, guess that ones a bust BUT the second seed is up and going! It may not be the 'right' thing to do but I think from now on I'll skip the baggie. File, soak, soil, thats my plan. Also, it took a few days of adjusting but I finally got the temps right. Soil and air are holding steady at 86 degrees. Monday, March 15 View Page Today I ordered some Cyonara 9.7 insecticide and some Mycos root stimulant :) Thursday, March 18 View Page I HOPE these are good worms! I saw several of them when I was hoeing today. Thursday, March 18 View Page saw a couple of these too, not sure what they are though. Thursday, March 18 View Page the cyonara 9.7 came in the mail today. Come on squash bugs, this year Im ready for ya! Ok so I totally take that back Id much rather you keep your stinky butts somewhere else, but be warned Im armed and dangerous!! LOL Friday, March 19 View Page my 2nd test seed was growing well. My Mycos came in today and I was going to get rid of the test, add some myco and try another seed. My mother (79 yrs old) said it was an absolute sin to toss out the test seedling so she took it home with her. I hope she grows a slunger! LOL Also big thanks to Kochanny for seeds I received today. I hadnt even concidered cantelope, I just may give them a try. Saturday, March 20 View Page I know absolutely nothing about choosing seed but of the ones I have these are my favs. The 1238 Pennington because it was one of the first giants I ever saw in person and the 648 Young because it had a beautiful shape and color. Its my rookie year and Im determined to give it my best shot. Ive done my homework and prepared as much as I can so ya'll wish me luck!! Sunday, March 21 View Page 3 days later they're up! WooHoo!! I took the top cover off and started the grow light. I wonder if I should put the top cover back on or leave it off? For now its off. The temp and humidity fell a few degrees when I took the top off, I adjusted the heat light so hopefully it'll come back up. Monday, March 22 View Page there are some flaws on the leaves, is it an early sign of disease? should I abort and start another or is it nothing to worry about? Monday, March 22 View Page a closer view. It kinda worries me, Im leaning toward starting another seed Sunday, March 28 View Page It was a beautiful day so I spent most of it outside. I hoe'd and raked and pulled weeds/grass. Set up the 2nd hoop house, hung up the heat lamps and put down a couple walk boards. I put a thermometer and a 'lucky' gnome in each hoophouse. Im still worried that I wont have enough space but hey I literally have 10 times what I had last year so I dont dare complain :) Oh and I made reservations at the local campground for Spring Break. Even though there wont be any swimming or waverunners the kids (teens) are still excited. A bonus is its only 15 minutes away so I can come home often to check on my patch of dirt. haha Monday, March 29 View Page hoops at night. Im sure my neighbors think Ive officially lost my marbles! haha Friday, April 2 View Page After working in the dirt for a while I decided to go buggy riding with my lil gardening buddy....aint this just like a mean kid! Sticking her tongue out! haha Saturday, April 3 View Page its funny how happy it makes me to peek in the hoop every morning. Its impossible to peek inside without smiling :) in front is the Pennington 1238 (1209Kuhn x 1018VanHook) the farthest is the Young 648 (696Young x 1385Jutras) Everything Ive read says the vine runs opposite the first true leaf. I sure hope thats always the case because mine is leaning 'backward' from the way I want the vine to run. Im hoping the weight of the 2nd true leaf will make draw it the other way. Tuesday, April 6 View Page Im BEYOND frustrated! This leaf was perfectly fine when I left this morning but when I got back this afternoon it looked like this! I dont have a clue what it is, insects? disease? Please email me if you have any suggestions. Tuesday, April 6 View Page a closer view... I could just spit! My season hasnt even started yet and already Im having problems, this does not bode well for the coming season. Thursday, April 8 View Page Thank you!! BP members are awesome! I appreciate all the emails and advice on the previous diary entry. You guys are great :) Thursday, April 8 View Page Not sure if this is a good growth rate or not but Im encouraged by it in spite of the damaged leaf. I know its early but our county fair is scheduled for JULY 26-31 and Id really like to have something to enter :) Thursday, April 8 View Page A very kind soul pointed out that I dont have the seedlings buried up to the seed leaves. I didnt realize that could cause a problem. Thanks Bourney for giving me a heads up :) Saturday, April 10 View Page well we survived our first frost and hopefully the last one! I checked every few hours and the lowest temp I saw was 65 degrees, Im hoping that wasnt low enough to do any damage. My husband laughed at me and compared my 'pumpkin watch' to when the children were newborns. Laugh if you will buddy boy but I'll grow a slunger some day! LOL I was advised to add some nitrogen to 'green them up a bit'. I sprinkled 1 cup of 12-0-0 blood meal in a 6x10 area, raked it in and watered it down. I hope that was right. (please correct me if Im wrong) The directions on the bag suggested a little more but I decided to be safe Id add a smidge less. Like I tell my teenage daughter about her makeup.. less is more! haha Im concerned with the growth of the 648 Young. Its conciderably slower than the 1238 Pennington. The leaves are smaller and oddly shaped with ruffled edges. I have a back up started and Im concidering pulling it and starting another. Good idea or bad? Im open to suggestions. Friday, April 16 View Page Just popping in for a second. We've been camping since Sunday and wont be home (to stay) til Monday. Ive been running back and forth from the campground to home checking on my pumpkins and Im happy to say they are doing well. Honestly theyre probably doing better with me gone since Im not staring at them all the time! haha Cant wait to catch up on all the posts and diary entrees Ive missed. Im having BP withdrawals! haha Tammy Monday, April 19 View Page skipping right a long :) Thursday, April 22 View Page Found 'foam' on one of my sunflowers this morning. Theres an ant in the pic but I know hes not the culprit. I sprinkled on some sevin dust, hopefully that will take care of it. Any idea what could have caused this? Friday, April 23 View Page Browsing diarys this morning and realize I have a severe case of soil envy! lol Everyones soil looks so dark and rich and fluffy, Im still picking out rocks and debris :( I'll just keep chugging away at it and eventually it will get better. This fall will see some big changes. Its barely spring and Im thinking about fall amendments! haha Ive just about decided to pull the 648 Young, the backup 763 Young has already passed it in size in just 2 weeks. On the other hand the 1238 Pennington is doing good, but the 1094 Pennington backup isnt doing as well. I'll give them another week before I decide for sure. **I should have taken the pic AFTER I pulled weeds/grass!** Saturday, April 24 View Page Batten down the hatches! Looks like the weather is about to get rough! Hope everyone comes through it ok :) Saturday, April 24 View Page I made a bone head newbie mistake, actually TWO of them! 1st... I didnt bury up to the seed leaves 2nd... I didnt plant at an angle now its leaning the opposite direction of what I need it to go and the 2nd true leaf is not really helping to pull it the right way. I put arrows on the pic to show the direction it 'should' run. When will it lay down and run? Its getting pretty tall and I worry about snapping the stem. Should I pile up soil around it past the seed leaf to help support it so it doesnt snap when/if it does lay down to run the right way? Also, do I cut the tendrils or leave em be? Saturday, April 24 View Page On a good note, I did NOT make the same newbie mistake on the backups. The 763 Young is growing well and is headed the right direction! The vine is a lot more yellow than the others, not sure if thats good, bad or if it even matters. Tuesday, April 27 View Page well we came through the storm without any damage. Behind the storm was a cold front so temps have dropped conciderably and frost is possible tonight. Thats ok, Im ready for it :) If I werent so happy about it Id be ashamed to admit the stump on the 1238 Pennington is already as big as the stump of the eBay vine was last year at the end of the season! LOL Tuesday, April 27 View Page BIG leaf on the 1238 Pennington :) Friday, April 30 View Page fancy protection for a watermelon huh? lol another example of my 'use what ya got' mentality :) this is in a big flower bed beside the house, hopefully the cage will keep my neighbors cat (grrr) off until it gets bigger. I bought the cage for a quarter a few yrs ago with intentions of fixing it and painting it. Oh well now it has a new purpose lol Saturday, May 1 View Page Im seeing a few little tiny buds on my 1238 Pennington I'll post a pic ASAP. The weather here is horrible. Flash floods, tornado warnings, hail Im praying the hoop house will hold up. Electricity blinked out twice already... signing off for now...... update and pic later :) Saturday, May 1 View Page weather is still bad and continues to get worse. Flash floods are the horrible. There are literally buildings going down the interstate instead of cars. Hope everyone stays safe. I ran out to the hoop house to snap a quick pic between down pours, plants are all snug as a bug. Im trying to slowly slowly pin down the 1238 Pennington, its sticking up pretty high but Im afraid to move it too much too fast. Its growing faster than I can move it! LOL Inserts show the tiny buds that are popping up. Should I cut them off? and if so do I cut near the bloom or the main? Sunday, May 2 View Page woke up to MORE storms... 62 mph wind shear along with quarter size hail headed our way. Everything in the hoop is looking good, saw a few ants, lightly dusted with Sevin, still trying to pin down the main, its sticking up entirely too high, keep telling myself a turtles pace wins the race, just praying everything stays put through the storms, appologize for the randomness, very little sleep due to the weather, I think the radar is burned into my eyeballs from watching it so much. went to bed looking at it and woke up to look at it some more. SOOOO ready for it to be OVER. Sunday, May 2 View Page Just had the hardest wind yet, peeped out the window to see hoop house plastic flapping. Im heartbroken. I'll have to wait til it calms down to see the extent of the damage. I honestly cant imagine any of the plants surviving this. If all we lose is pumpkin vines I should be thankful, I know that in my head, my heart says otherwise. Sunday, May 2 View Page the end piece (door) is what I saw flapping and assumed all was lost. I was extremely lucky, the vines dont seem to be damaged. Blue clamps were blown all over the yard. The other hoop wasnt bothered, I guess the old house offered some protection for it. Sunday, May 2 View Page The road leading to my house is closed. If you look close you can see its up to the sign post (above the hood of the truck) and it gets deeper from there. Tuesday, May 4 View Page trying to get the 1238 Pennington to lay down. It looks like it wants to give me a 'high 5' every morning when I open the hoop lol We have a couple of small tears in the leaves due to the storm but all things concidered it came out great. Tuesday, May 4 View Page Im not sure if this still qualifies as a 'hoop house' since its stripped down to the bare bones, but after all the rain/flooding we've had I figured I needed to get as much air and sun in there as possible without heating it up too much. Since it was a calm day this worked. Tuesday, May 4 View Page monster leaf on the 1238 Pennington Thursday, May 6 View Page I found two pumpkins growing where we threw out jack o lantern guts last year. Of course me being me, I cleared out around them and threw a cage over them. Lets see what they do Thursday, May 6 View Page The stump on my 1238 Pennington is a hot mess! This is the bend Im working with. It looks horrible, Im not really sure what to do about it. Rookie mistakes are rough and you can bet your sweet patoot I wont ever make this one again! Thursday, May 6 View Page When do I start burying vines? The main is about 3 ft long and has a few anchor roots poking out. I worry that if I bury the vine Im stuck with the bend at the stump that could cause me major problems later. Thursday, May 6 View Page The 1094 has been culled :( it just never took off like the 1238 Thursday, May 6 View Page I planted the 763 Young as a back up for the 648 Young that was looking puny at the time. Since then it perked up and is starting to run. Now I cant decide which one to keep. The 763 is bigger even though its younger, but the 648 is a hardy, determined little thing. One of them must go... hmmmmm Friday, May 7 View Page New for the 2010 spring fashion season, rainbow scarves for your new growth baskets. Its what all the well dressed vines are wearing! Who says protection cant be pretty? Get yours today at www,iveofficiallylostit.com **this post brought to you by sheer exhaustion!** Friday, May 7 View Page Hiding from squash bugs! LOL Ok seriously, I put up silt fence yesterday but put it too far away from the vine. I planned to put up a second barrier closer but ran out of daylight. I also planned to add posts between the stakes, the rebar is temporary. This morning I wake up to horrible winds and whipping leaves. The rebar was ripping holes in the silt fence, a 2 liter soda bottle fixed that. To protect the vine I grabbed the first thing I could find, camouflage deer stand cover. If ever there was any doubt about my being a Tennessee Hillbilly, this pic should confirm it! LOL I left the hoop frame up because the weather man predicts a 45 degree night this week. Ive got to re-till the patch. The flooding and then blistering heat have packed it down :( Sunday, May 9 View Page Got a BIG surprise today... a brand new shiney red tiller sitting in my pumpkin patch! A tiller is not a typical Mothers day present, but for an atypical mother like me its PERFECT! Monday, May 10 View Page Tried out the new tiller today, didnt have a clue what I was doing but what else is new! lol Picked up some "Bayer Advanced, Tree and Shrub concentrate" it says its a systemic insecticide which is what I need and it contains 1.47% imidacloprid that I believe Ive read is good. It has 'merit' on the label, I know its not the same merit that was recommended but its the best I can do for now. Hopefully someone will email me and tell me how much to apply :) hint hint lol I have a 20'x 28' section with pumpkins and a 10'x 14' section directly beside it with watermelon, indian corn and sunflowers. Tuesday, May 11 View Page Im hoping this will be a decent wind break. Its a 2 ft piece of rebar hammered half way into the ground with a 4 ft piece of pvc pipe on it. Camo deer stand cover wrapped around it. Maybe in combination with the 3 ft silt fence it'll be enough. Ive GOT to take down the hoop frame its been such a good protector I hate to. I feel like Im leaving the vine out there naked lol Tuesday, May 11 View Page found the first female on the 1238 Pennington today :) its only about 6 ft out so no chance of pollination, but it was exciting to see anyway Tuesday, May 11 View Page also found THIS! ackkkkk!! Dont know what it is but its dead now! Wednesday, May 12 View Page the 1238 Pennington has a 7 ft main with a several secondarys the longest is 2'6" and it has a female bloom on the end. Beautiful plant. the 648 Young is 3'6" no secondarys yet but it has a female bloom on the end the 763 Young is 3 ft, no secondarys, no female bloom but the stump is larger I have to choose one of the Young plants, I dont have enough room for both of them. I cant decide which one to keep and I need to choose SOON. Thursday, May 13 View Page Finally took down the hoop house frame today. I mixed some Myco with some soil in a bucket for burying secondarys. I waited till late afternoon and buried all the secondarys that needed it. Well technically I covered them with soil, didnt do any digging to bury them because I didnt want to risk disturbing any roots. I pinned down the secondarys that need a lil coaxing. Mixed up some Cyonara and sprayed when the sun went down. Half a teaspoon to a gallon, I hope thats right! The ants didnt seem to be dying but maybe it takes a while. All three vines have a female on the end now, I MUST decide which Young plant to cull but for the life of me I just cant do it yet... maybe tomorrow. pulled a few weeds and killed a few bugs, it was a good day :) Friday, May 14 View Page Im so mad I could spit nails!! I JUST took down the hoop frame yesterday and today a big storm is on the way.. wind, hail and all! UGH I had my 16 yr old son help me hammer some rebar in the ground. peg some PVC over it and toss on some plastic...we clipped it as best we could.. I dunno how well it will hold, especially concidering we threw it together in literally 15 minutes! The hail chased us in or Id still be out there LOL Hopefully the wind breaks will help too... wish us luck!!! :) Wednesday, May 19 View Page this is the 763 Young looking all lonely without the 648 I finally had to 'just do it' and elilminate the 648 Young. I knew it had to be done but I sure wasnt happy about it. I chose to cut it at the stump rather than trying to pull it out, it was so close to the 763 I was afraid it would disturb the roots. Wednesday, May 19 View Page This is the 1238 Pennington. the main is a lil over 13 feet, Im beyond happy with this plant. Its growing so fast I can barely keep up with it! Wednesday, May 19 View Page first female bloom on the 1238 Pennington. The next few pics were taken with my cell phone (sorry). The bloom had 4 lobes but one of them was a lil odd. I pollinated it anyway just for practice. I wont keep it, as its only about 8 feet out. Wednesday, May 19 View Page first pollinated female on the 1238 Pennington, just for practice :) Wednesday, May 19 View Page another newbie mistake... when pinning down secondarys dont let skewer ends stick up too high or itll rip the leaves when the wind blows :( ouch! lesson learned and another *note* written down. Wednesday, May 19 View Page Im seeing quite a few roots sticking up out of the ground. I wonder if its because we've had SOOOO much rain and flooding or if I over did the Myco or if the soil is too compacted or maybe its perfectly normal... a million thoughts and reasons have run through my head. Any tips appreciated :) Wednesday, May 19 View Page Im seeing a few yellow spots on the 763 Young.. I wish I had a better pic. I havent noticed any on the Pennington although I have noticed the leaves are not as green toward the growing tip. Maybe its time for a foliar nitrogen spray? Wednesday, May 19 View Page Found an old newspaper clipping from the early 80's in my moms scrap book. This is my grampa, apparently he knew how to grow em big! lol I wish he was still here, I bet he'd have gotten a big kick outta me trying to grow a giant pumpkin :) Thursday, May 20 View Page this is a better pic of the odd lobe from my earlier post. Is this what they mean by seeds in the bloom?? Thursday, May 20 View Page I believe this will be my 'fair' pumpkin. Its about 13 ft out on the main of the 1238 Pennington (1209 Kuhn x 1018 VanHook) Im hoping to pollinate it with the 763 Young (1502 Wallace x 1385 Jutras) Our county fair is scheduled for the last week of July, WAY too early for a giant but what can ya do?!? Thursday, May 20 View Page MORE RAIN!! I shoulda planted in a trough with pontoons on it! lol With all this rain I wonder, do I need to start using fungicide now? I have some daconil ready and waiting. I buried secondarys at lunch today. I say buried but covered is a more accurate description. I hope the rain doesnt wash away the soil. Do I remove the skewers and plastic hangers as I go or just bury around them? The leaves are not as green as they should be (at least from my uneducated eye) The leaves closer to the stump are greener and get less green toward the growing tip. Im not sure if it needs fert. or if the color change is related to the over abundance of rain we've had. How the heck do I get rid of ants?!?! Bayer T&S didnt kill them and Cyonara didnt kill them. Maybe I have super ants that just wont die. The joke about how only cockroaches could survivor a nuclear bomb, I fully believe these ants would live and keep the roaches company! Its been over a week since I sprayed insecticide, should I spray again? Can I mix Cyonara and Bayer T&S and do both at the same time? For that matter could I toss in some Daconil too? Ok thats probably too many inquiries for one post but thats how my mind rambles LOL Thursday, May 20 View Page at almost 8 ft wide and over 13 ft long Ive come to realize my days of protecting the vine are almost out of reach. With the threat of more storms in the forecast I rearranged the pvc and 'tried' to make it big enough to cover everything. Its not pretty but it'll work, though with the way its growing it may be for the last time. Thursday, May 20 View Page Im soooo tired of rain and storms :( Its probably the most ugly and deformed version of a hoop house that ever existed LOL but if it saves the vine some stress then Im all for it! I dread the day and Im sure it will be soon when the vine is too big to cover during a storm. I foresee alotta prayin! Friday, May 21 View Page Id like to pollinate the 1238 Pennington with the 763 Young but the female bud is still a few days away from blossoming. I didnt see any male blooms on the 763 that are the same 'age' as the female so I attempted to save some pollen. I dont know if I did it right or if it will even work but Im gonna give it a shot. Im still hoping for a fresh bloom on the big day but maybe if there isnt one this will work. It cant hurt to try. Oh I put the container of pollen in the freezer, I hope thats right. Ya'll wish me luck :) Friday, May 21 View Page snapped a vine on the 1238 today, thankfully it was a secondary. I buried the end and made a promise to myself NOT to do that again! On a happy note the vines seem to be chugging along nicely :) Friday, May 21 View Page Stumps... the difference in color still amazes me. Light yellow to dark green. It'll be interesting to see if the pumpkins are light or dark in relation to the vines. Friday, May 21 View Page this is my trial pumpkin, the insert is what I hope will be my county fair pumpkin for the last week of July. I like how the vine looks like a candy cane lol Friday, May 21 View Page my sunflower is 6 ft tall and the indian corn about 3 ft tall. I planted more sunflowers but they havent come up, I'll have to try again. Saturday, May 22 View Page ***and so the battle begins*** found this lil bugger this morning Sunday, May 23 View Page Applied Cyonara yesterday. I sprayed on and under the leaves but I had a lot left over. So I wonder should I be using the size of the plant instead of the size of the patch when figuring the recommended mixing rate? Monday, May 24 View Page The 1238 Pennington had reached the end of the patch, the basket was literally pushing the silt fence. So I moved the fence to give it some room and Im glad I did, that sucker was HOT! After 14 ft I had planned to let the vine run out onto the grass but then I thought.. did I really spend all this time and energy just to set a pumpkin on grass AGAIN?!?! Monday, May 24 View Page NO! I did not! lol so I turned it all up with a spade fork and picked grass clumps till I thought Id puke, Lord I hate crab grass or whatever kind of grass that is! ugh Then I hit it lightly with the tiller.That gives me an extra 5 ft of growing space and will allow a 19-20 ft main. I hope thats enough. If I HAVE to run out on the grass I can, but I cant turn up anymore :( Monday, May 24 View Page I just moved the wind break 2 days ago and its gonna have to be moved again already. This sucker can grow! I noticed the soil was green in some areas. No clue what caused it but since it was dark green and mossy looking I assume its from all the rain. No sure what to do so I loosened it all up to get some air in there. I hand raked inside the camo and tilled outside it. I also assumed since it was mossy looking that its time to start fungicide. So I hit it with a heavy dose of Daconil after the sun went down. Monday, May 24 View Page The 763 Young is coming along nicely. Its not as big as the 1238 but its 2 weeks younger. Its doing well and is a beautiful plant. Monday, May 24 View Page Pollinated a female on the 1238 Pennington this morning. Im a little concerned as it had what I believe to be seeds in the blossom. This is 2 of 2 like this. There is another female a lil farther out, hopefully it will have a normal lobes. I think I'll let the females on the secondarys bloom just to see what their lobes look like. Tuesday, May 25 View Page added a couple more soaker hoses today. I know this is not the ideal watering system but it'll have to do for now. Im not sure if this is the proper way to lay them out, if its not somebody please tell me. Pinned down secondarys... buried vines.. moved walk boards.. and put a basket over a (hopefully) pollinated bloom. I shoulda taken the pic AFTER I pinned and buried, oh well. It was a productive day in the pumpkin patch and all is well **knock on wood** Wednesday, May 26 View Page I have a severe case of information overload! Ive read so much I dunno if Im coming or going. Its time to just make a plan and run with it! So I ordered some Neptunes Fish and seaweed and some Jacks Classic 20-20-20 I *THINK* thats a safe way to go for now..... Thursday, May 27 View Page pinned and buried secondarys, applied Bayer T&S Friday, May 28 View Page Wheres Waldo?!? my 'lucky' gnome is lost in a forest of pumpkin vine. Friday, May 28 View Page 1238 Pennington on May 28th Friday, May 28 View Page 763 Young on May 28th Friday, May 28 View Page hiding under the basket... when will it lay down? Its getting a lil big to be standing straight up like that isnt it? *I put down a bed of sand after I took the pic* Also there are 2 more females a few feet further down the main I'll pollinate them soon. Friday, May 28 View Page Im soooo sick of these pop up thunderstorms! I never feel like the vines are protected enough. Three out of four sides are ok but that one side is slightly up hill so the 3 ft fence just doesnt seem like its enough. I will admit the following ONLY to ya'll cause only pumpkin people will understand..... I admit I strategically parked my car so it would block the wind... to be completely honest, I moved my sons truck and used it as a wind block too! If the storm is over before anyone notices the vehicles I will put them back and never mention it! If I get caught using our cars as wind breaks my family will have me committed!! LOL Saturday, May 29 View Page Saw the first squash bug today also saw another cuke beetle, but I havent seen any dead bugs laying around. My Neptunes Fish and seaweed and Jacks 20-20-20 came in today, I'll be adding that as soon as the sun sets :) Monday, May 31 View Page a perfect 6 lobe female on the 1238 Pennington about 16 ft out on the main pollinated with 4 males from the 763 Young. Monday, May 31 View Page 7 days old (selfed) 13 ft out on the main of the 1238 Pennington. Monday, May 31 View Page This is the 763 Young Im having some problems with. The outer most leaves have developed bright yellow edges. I added some 20-20-20 and some fish and seaweed hoping to see some improvement but havent yet. Also growth has slowed down on the secondarys. I cant imagine what Ive done wrong, Ive treated both vines exactly the same but I dont have any problems on the other vine. Monday, May 31 View Page a closer look at the yellowing leaves. I dont know what to do about it and the icing on the cake... I snapped the friggin tip on the main! Its only about 10 ft long, Im beyond frustrated. UGH Tuesday, June 1 View Page still no improvement. What with the leaf problems and the broken growing tip I feel like just ripping it up and working on a plant for a fall pumpkin. Thursday, June 3 View Page 10 days old.. sprayed Cyonara.. added fish and seaweed to the 763 Thursday, June 3 View Page 6 lobe on the 1238 Pennington pollinated with the 763 Young 2 days ago Friday, June 4 View Page The other day I said 'that vine is a MONSTER!' my husband said 'yeah and its eating my lawn' Bless his heart the moster ate like a big dog again today! LOL Im just not going to be happy with 10 ft secondarys so I expanded just a smidge. You can see where the fence was by the grass/soil line so I gained about 4 ft. I didnt turn it up (yet) Im going to let the secondarys run out onto the grass (for now) I moved the camo wind break too, it was past due, the vine tip was growing under it. Friday, June 4 View Page Before I get emails about the skull finnials on the fence I'll tell ya, thats a section of my 'graveyard' fence for Halloween. Told ya'll we do a big haunted house every year right? PVC and 1x2's painted black make a right nice cemetery fence! haha Oh oh and the 'lies' written on the cloth is part of a sign.. the whole thing reads "Fear lies ahead" also part of our Haunt. There that explains the weird stuff... The 1238 Pennington is looking good, the secondarys are a little irregular in length but I hope thats not a big problem. Im behind on burying vines, I'll catch up on that tomorrow :) Friday, June 4 View Page Did some measuring and heres what I have so far... Im not sure why the length of the secondarys are so random. They all look healthy so Im not gonna stress about it. Friday, June 4 View Page this is the 6 lobe on the 1238 Pennington pollinated with the 763 Young. I was trying to prop up the vine to get some slack but somehow this just didnt look right. I just kept thinking when it lays down it'll snap cause the vines up too high. Obviously I dont know what the heck Im doing! LOL Friday, June 4 View Page I added more sand thinking that would help ease it down slowly.. is that right? Sometimes being a newbie really sucks! Most of the time I enjoy the learning process, but this is a 6 lober dang it! I wanna keep it and not mess it up 'learning' what NOT to do. Friday, June 4 View Page pollinated (I hope) June 2nd on the main 18 ft out at the end of the patch.. if it sets and if its a keeper I think I'll just terminate the main and not mess with the turn or the slack or the 'S' curve stuff. Saturday, June 5 View Page caught up on burying vines, made a new shade for the pumpkin, sprayed 20-20-20 and Neptunes fish and seaweed, sprayed daconil, added epsom salt to the 763 Young's spray, measured the pumpkin, the OTT is 28 lbs, circumference is 25 lbs.... grow baby grow! haha Sunday, June 6 View Page Ok Im in a state of shock (and bliss) here, Ive read about how fast these things grow but holy cow! I measured this morning and according to my measurements the pumpkin gained almost 10 lbs over night! OTT is 39 lbs, circumference is 34 lbs WOOHOO!! However the other two I pollinated are not showing any gains at all :( Sunday, June 6 View Page trying to improve the stem/vine angle Sunday, June 6 View Page I *think* the vine and stem should be level and the vine should be raised as the pumpkin grows.. someone please correct me if Im wrong. I was so concerned with getting the Christmas tree pattern right that I forgot to allow slack in the vine :( Sunday, June 6 View Page Im also trying to get a better vine angle. I hadnt planned on this being my 'keeper' but since the other two females havent shown any signs of growing it may have to be. Monday, June 7 View Page Not as excited as I was yesterday... only 1-2 lb gain this morning :( I wonder if cutting the big secondary vine directly beside the pumpkin caused the lack of growth or maybe it was cutting the anchor roots or maybe I stressed it out elevating the main? All I know is I aint happy! Monday, June 7 View Page Trimmed a few leaves and tendrils around the stump then dusted captan on the cuts. This should give me easier access so I can watch for problems. Monday, June 7 View Page yep, that big ugly 'bend' is still there, Im thankful it hasnt caused any problems (knock on wood) Monday, June 7 View Page this is where the black n slimy stuff was. I think one of the lobes rotted off. I wish I had taken a pic before I wiped it off and put on captan. I put on the powder, should I have made a paste instead? Monday, June 7 View Page afternoon measurements - OTT 44 lbs - CC 43 lbs We've decided to call her Mable! lol Monday, June 7 View Page 1238 Pennington stretching out and looking good :) even though the last 2 females didnt set I'll try again. Monday, June 7 View Page 763 Young not looking 'good' but it is looking a little better and its slowly starting to grow again. Its still very pale with yellow edges on some of the leaves Tuesday, June 8 View Page still working on the vine angle, its not at 90 degrees yet but its getting closer. Tuesday, June 8 View Page trying to keep the vine level with the stem, Im thankful it has a long stem Tuesday, June 8 View Page Traded in the sheet for a tarp and went with a different 'tent' design Tuesday, June 8 View Page I brushed away the Captan powder to see the damage Tuesday, June 8 View Page added more captan powder and put a fan to it Tuesday, June 8 View Page I was gonna be cute and use my daughters dry erase board to show the date and age of the pumpkin ... after taking the pic I realized I put on the wrong date which made the age wrong also! ugh.. thats what lack of sleep gets ya!! *edited the pic to show correct date and age* Wednesday, June 9 View Page 6:00 am while out preparing for a coming storm I whack my hand with a hammer, notice the hole Ive worn in my glove and think.... growing AG pumpkins is a lot of work! Anyone who believes its just special seed or fancy fertilizer is sorely mistaken! LOL Wednesday, June 9 View Page ***Im so exciiited, and I just cant hiiiide it...*** :D Thursday, June 10 View Page I took an OTT measurement at noon and again at 6:00 pm.. if my measurements are correct there was a 4 lb gain in 6 hours! and 14 lbs in 24 hrs! HOLY SH*T BATMAN! Thats a grand total of **drum roll please** da da dadumm..... 87 lbs! woohoo! :) **Snoopy happy dance** Ok all sillyness aside... the blossom end is dry and firm, Im hoping thats a good sign but Im keeping the fan and captan just in case. Im beginning to see some faint yellowing of the leaves. Im using fish/seaweed mixed with 20-20-20 foliar spray once a week. I wonder if theres more I should be adding, but at the same time I worry about adding too much. I put down another 50 lbs of sand and made a bigger 'bed' the pumpkin has gotten so big I dont dare try to move it anymore, the vine angle is as good as Im gonna get. Its been mercilessly hot with more in the forecast, but the leaves are holding up pretty well in the heat with VERY little flagging. Ok, thats all for now :) Friday, June 11 View Page attempted pollination on the 763 Young this morning, crossed it with the 1238 Pennington Friday, June 11 View Page on a secondary vine on the 1238, pollinated w/ the 763 Young has a nice shape to it Friday, June 11 View Page perfect 5 lobe on the 763 Young Friday, June 11 View Page ***happy happy joy joy*** Had to get a longer tape measure, the 5 ft one wont reach around it anymore :) Sunday, June 13 View Page Hes cute but he better not piddle on my pumpkin! haha Sunday, June 13 View Page Sadly, the shoulders are growing ever closer to the main. Sunday, June 13 View Page Hoping to get a better angle on the 763 fruit Sunday, June 13 View Page The main is just 2 inches from the shoulder of the pumpkin. Im undecided as to whether I should risk moving the vine or just cut it. I have 14 secondarys before the pumpkin and some of them are quite long so I *think* it should be ok but again Im just not sure. Its unGodly hot outside! 94 degrees in the shade without a hint of a breeze. I misted the leaves and rearranged the soaker hoses. Not sure if I rearranged them cause they needed it or because I wanted to get wet to cool off! LOL Sunday, June 13 View Page while inspecting the vine for problems I saw this... I didnt see any 'frass' like from a borer or anything like that. I'm gonna keep an extremely close eye on it! I dont know whether to put fungicide or insecticide on it. Im due to spray cyonara this afternoon, I'll make sure to hit that spot and hit it well! Sunday, June 13 View Page thats a 22 lb gain overnight! Im floored! Sunday, June 13 View Page fish/seaweed drench this morning... sprayed cyonara this afternoon. Ordered CO2 and nutri-cal on Friday looking forward to adding that to the schedule :) Also have another bag of sand on order, hubby should bring that in the morning when the builder supply opens. I need to get some under the 763 fruit asap and add more to the 1238 fruit bed. I added another 75 ft soaker hose and a splitter so I can choose which vine to water or water both etc. Next up will be some kind of sprinkler. Im thinking the sprinker on a tripod at walmart cause it fits my budget haha Running around with the hose set to 'mist' is getting old and theres still plenty of hot weather to come! This weekend Ive seen a couple cuke beetles and 2 squash bugs, no SVB's (yet) *knock on wood* Ok thats all for now :) Monday, June 14 View Page I checked on the 'holes' in the vine, doesnt appear to be any difference. Also used a powerful little led flashlight to shine 'through' the vine but didnt see any dark spots. The vine looks perfectly healthy and is growing. I filled the holes full of cyonara yesterday afternoon maybe that will kill anything that might be in there. I thought about covering the holes with a captan paste but if there IS a borer in there wouldnt that just lock him in? Im open to suggestions here :) Monday, June 14 View Page managed to get a few more inches of space between the pumpkin and the main. I chose to move the main past the pumpkin instead of cutting it. There was some wilting but Im hoping it will perk back up. I figure even if it doesnt I havent really lost anything since my only other option was to cut it. **I tried to slide the pumpkin away from the but its just too heavy for me, if it gets too close to the main again I'll have my son help me** Monday, June 14 View Page I *think* the stem angle is still ok Monday, June 14 View Page We call her Mable but I think Belle (Bottom) woulda been better LOL Monday, June 14 View Page 16 lb gain today Tuesday, June 15 View Page Im pretty sure Mable is gonna be a birdbath. Wednesday, June 16 View Page Today I went on a hoe hunting expedition! No typical lazy hoe would do, I needed an action hoe! LOL I went to 4 different stores and ended up driving 30 miles but I FINALLY found one! I havent tried it yet but its gotta be better than pulling weeds by hand like Ive been doing. I also got some liquid copper fungicide, I'll spray that on this evening. I plan to use it in rotation with Daconil. Does that sound right? Please email me if Im wrong! Whew this is getting to be an expensive hobby to get into, thankfully a lot of it I will use next year too. At least thats what I keep telling my hubby! "Its an investment Honey, next year I wont have to buy this stuff" but hes a smart man and after 20 yrs of marriage knows me too well so he smiles, winks and says "Thats true Dear, next year you'll be buying different stuff!" LOL Wednesday, June 16 View Page fruit on the 763 Young Wednesday, June 16 View Page trying to set a back up on a side vine of the 1238 Pennington, something took a bite out of it! Wednesday, June 16 View Page only gained 12 lbs, yesterday she gained 21 lbs, uh oh Thursday, June 17 View Page When my husband dug up the lawn for a pumpkin patch I agreed to grow him some watermelons. So far he is NOT impressed with my melon growing skills! LOL Thursday, June 17 View Page chugging right along Thursday, June 17 View Page Is this what they call a 'vine blow out'? I wasnt sure what to do with it and I was terrified of disease so I just cut it off. It pained me to do it, it was about 6 ft long (secondary) Thursday, June 17 View Page This is Hugo, 6 days old on the 763 Young Thursday, June 17 View Page This is Wicked Wilma, 8 days old on a sidevine of the 1238 Pennington Thursday, June 17 View Page Me and Marvelous Mable Friday, June 18 View Page As my pumpkin gets bigger its leaning toward the stem and putting pressure on it. A week or so ago the vine was straight (top pic) today its bowing down (middle pic)there is no pressure at all on the leaf nodes before and after the stem, just on the stem. I left the blue foam just to support the vine and keep it from hanging free. The bottom pic shows the shape of the pumpkin and how its leaning toward the stem. Is there something I can do to ease some of the pressure off the stem? Should I remove the foam and let the vine go back down to the ground? Monday, June 21 View Page this was yesterdays measurements. If Im taping correctly thats 100+ lbs in 6 days! Monday, June 21 View Page to reduce stem stress should I.... scoop out sand from under the blossom end? try to raise the stem end and put more sand under it? or maybe its too late to do anything other than dig out under the actual stem when the time comes. It still has a little way to go before its at ground level but the way its going it wont be too long. Id love some advice :) Monday, June 21 View Page another angle Thursday, June 24 View Page Not much to report... *Marvelous Mable is chugging along nicely *Im not sure if shes starting to get some color or if its sunburn or something else *1238 leaves are starting to show some age/damage *I added CO2 yesterday *Wicked Wilma didnt make it (on a side vine of the 1238 Pennington) *Put a shade cloth over the 763 Young today, could only find a 6'x15' piece Im trying to find more. *Hefty Hugo (on the 763) is on day 12 and OTT is 25 lbs hes on a side vine cause I snapped the main. *Im behind on weeding, its been miserably hot. Today it was 97 with a heat index of 102, all I know is it felt like hell on earth! *33 days til the fair, Im praying Mable can hang on that long. Thursday, June 24 View Page thick stem on the 1238 Pennington Thursday, June 24 View Page had a pretty severe thunderstorm come rolling through, had a few vines roll over but for the most part everything came through ok. Thursday, June 24 View Page fruit on the 763 Young Saturday, June 26 View Page somewhere in my neighborhood theres a cat with a death wish!! grrrr Saturday, June 26 View Page I give up! Grrr chat keeps freezing on me, maybe its my internet I dunno. Anyway sorry for repeatedly popping in and out everyone :) Maybe I'll have better luck next time. Tammy Sunday, June 27 View Page Live and learn and Im certainly trying! Im determined NOT to repeat the same vine position issues. I've allowed a generous amount of slack in the vine and a quite dramatic 'U' shape as well. Ive propped up the stem end to (hopefully) avoid the 'stem growing into the ground' problem. My other pumpkin was bigger at this age but the vine was in better health. We'll see what happens, wish me luck! :) Sunday, June 27 View Page This is Marvelous Mable on the 1238 Pennington, Ive posted several pics of the blossom end but not many of the stem end so heres another view :) OTT 260 - 365 lbs - Day 33 Sunday, June 27 View Page its really pitiful how happy this makes me! LOL Grow Mable Grow!! Monday, June 28 View Page Not one but two thunderstorms came rolling through this afternoon :( several broken leaves and at least one rolled vine. I'll have to wait til tomorrow to get a closer look, but right now it aint lookin' good! Tuesday, June 29 View Page I hit the patch with a frenzy this morning! I was a weed pulling machine, a weed slayer! I viewed every foreign leaf as a blood sucking parasite draining life from my pumpkin! Ok so that was a bit overly dramatic but I really did pull a lot of weeds haha I also trimmed some broken leaves from the storms yesterday and some 3rd stage growth. Cleaned up around the stump, added some captan and pinned down a few vines. It was a good morning :) Tuesday, June 29 View Page I promised hubby if hed tear up the yard for a pumpkin patch Id TRY to grow him some melons. I had vines running out my ears but no melons, I was just about ready to buy one fake it! when I found this gourdy looking thing. My first thoughts.. "yea! its a melon!"..... "sure is an ugly little thing"... "I dont dare show it to hubby, he'll laugh at me!".... Tuesday, June 29 View Page thankfully I found this one and 8 more that actually LOOK like melons are supossed to! haha So now I have tomatoes, green peppers, lettuce, pumpkins, indian corn and watermelons! woohoo! Just you wait and see, I'll be a gardener some day! haha Saturday, July 3 View Page The leaves on the 1238 Pennington are dying but, Mable is still slowly growing and turning a lovely shade of orange :) My 'model' was a bit PO'd at having to sit in sand, shes just too prissy for that. LOL Saturday, July 3 View Page Hugo on the 763 Young is trying to be a pentagon, if he cant be a giant at least he'll be an original haha Saturday, July 3 View Page First time growing indian corn.. first corn of any kind to be honest! haha How do I save the seed/kernels? I wanna grow a bunch of it next year :) Monday, July 5 View Page well this aint something Ive seen before or even heard of! A 2 lober?!? Monday, July 5 View Page Im REALLLLY hoping this isnt what it looks like... powdery mildew rubs off right?!? This doesnt, so Im hoping its some kind of damage instead of disease :( Thursday, July 8 View Page looking at the calender and realize the county fair is only 18 days away! Where did the time go?!? Will I have the nerve to cut Mable free of the vine if shes still gaining then?!? Shes on day 43, OTT is 503 lbs. Friday, July 9 View Page Ok I know this isnt about pumpkins but my baby girl did some modeling for a bridal/prom boutique. These are 3 of my favorite shots. Im so proud of her :) Saturday, July 10 View Page too late now but for future reference.. this is the preferred shape, right?!? Saturday, July 10 View Page Marvelous Mable OTT 295 = 529 lbs estimate Saturday, July 10 View Page looks good to me :) Saturday, July 10 View Page appears to be a perfectly normal stem with no hint of the horror that lies beneath.... Saturday, July 10 View Page the horror and heartbreak :( 15 days til the fair, can she hang on that long? Saturday, July 10 View Page its now packed full of captan with a fan blowing. A hug a kiss and a pat on the booty. Wish us luck :) Sunday, July 11 View Page Hugo (763 Young) has a super short stem, shoulda called him Stubby LOL (est. 115 lbs) Sunday, July 11 View Page Hugo (763 Young) has a super short stem, shoulda called him Stubby LOL (est. 115 lbs) Sunday, July 11 View Page Hugo (763 Young) has a super short stem, shoulda called him Stubby LOL (est. 115 lbs) Sunday, July 11 View Page Hugo (763 Young) est. weight is 115 on day 30. Hes not going to be a monster but thats ok. My goal was to grow a 100 lb pumpkin and to grow not one but TWO pumpkins that weigh over 100 in my rookie season, Im happy with that :) at least until next year! Of course if Hugo decides to gain a couple hundred more pounds I'll be happy with that too! LOL Sunday, July 11 View Page Disecting culled pumpkins... is this how a dill ring starts? Sunday, July 11 View Page its kinda hard to make a fan blow UNDER the stem but I tried. Im keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best. 14 days to the fair, hang on Mable, hang on Monday, July 12 View Page more storms, more wind, more broken leaves, raining cats n dogs, how the heck can I keep the stem split dry in this weather?!?! The 1238 Pennington vine looks like death valley, I cant afford to lose more leaves but yet ANOTHER storm is rolling through now, no doubt I'll lose more by morning. My husbands brilliant suggestion of putting JB weld in the stem split is sounding better all the time! LOL Monday, July 12 View Page rained all night and half the morning... what was a split stem is now a weeping stem... re-applied captan and put the fan back on it... it aint looking good :( Monday, July 12 View Page Miss Mable had 7 visitors today! I know its silly but it made me so happy to see people who were really interested. They oooh'd and ahh'd, took pics and asked questions. I gave out some seeds (that were given to me, hope thats ok) and you'd have thought I was giving gold pieces! lol There may be a few new AG growers in Middle TN next year especially if Mable makes it to the fair :) Monday, July 12 View Page Good Granny Grunt! Here we go AGAIN!! 60+ mph wind is expected along with heavy rain and flash flooding!! and theres another line of storms behind the one thats hitting now!! ARRRG!!! Poor Mable, she cant possibly heal her stem in weather like this! Wednesday, July 14 View Page Mable is hanging on. The stem stopped weeping, the split doesnt look any worse but Im sure that doesnt mean much. Shes still showing some very slow gains, 49 lbs in 4 days est. weight is 578 lbs. Count down to the fair.. 11 days. Thursday, July 15 View Page Ugly aint it?!? :( Thursday, July 15 View Page and now we have this lovely lil gem :( Im beginning to wonder if Marvelous Mable is going to make it to the fair or not. The local newspaper reporter came by today, he said one of Mable's visitors called him. He took pics and asked a lot of questions. I dont know if it'll make the paper but it'll be cool if it does. Friday, July 16 View Page going out to check on Mable this morning and see something new, a big wet splotch.... I have a sinking feeling in my gut, this is BAD. Friday, July 16 View Page I got a pallet yesterday and was planning to paint and pad it today. It may be a waste of time... since I found this in the patch this morning. http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=drip.mp4 Friday, July 16 View Page mixed up a paste and painted it on maybe this will slow it down. Would this be a disqualification in a real weigh off? Sunday, July 18 View Page No more drips since I added the paste so I decided to be optimistic and work on Marvelous Mable's chariot haha Sunday, July 18 View Page well its official, I have powdery mildew :( I tried so hard to avoid it but it just wasnt enough. I'll be able to invest in better quality products next season, its hard to purchase 'everything' you need in one season. On a more positive note, Im winning the battle of the bugs! Next year I'll beat bugs AND mildew and I'll hit 1000 lbs! bahhhahha well if your gonna wish, might as well wish BIG! lol Monday, July 19 View Page My neice gave me this lil plastic pumpkin. Im gonna use it to soak seeds next year :) Monday, July 19 View Page ooops, I need to learn how to 'thump' melons for ripeness. So much for impressing hubby with my first melon! lol Monday, July 19 View Page got my big pumpkins.com shirt :) Wednesday, July 21 View Page Im beyond excited!! Marvelous Mable made the front page of our local news paper!! I'll have to wait til tomorrow to get a copy of it, I'll scan and post the article :) Im so excited! I cant stop smiling! hahaha http://www.carthagecourier.com/ Wednesday, July 21 View Page this is the pic on the front page of the news paper Wednesday, July 21 View Page somehow what I said and what he heard didnt match up.. snails and slugs turned into "rocks and bugs" and a home made hoop house turned into an 'outdoor greenhouse' plus the fan comment is completely wrong. Oh well Im still happy about it. No one around here will know the difference anyway! lol Friday, July 23 View Page never seen this before! I'll keep my thoughts to myself LOL Friday, July 23 View Page Its gonna be one of those days!! Not even 8:00 a.m. yet and Im already bout to pull my hair out!! The fair official came by to tell me we dont have a scale!!! He went to the tobacco warehouse to check the scale only to find out its BROKEN! The scale at the co-op only goes to 300 and apparently there are no other scales around here except truck scales!!! GAH!! We'll have to weigh the trailor, pallet, straps etc THEN load the pumpkin and weigh everything again, subtract the weight of the 'gear' and hope thats the weight of my pumpkin AND its got a 20 lb window.. REALLY!?!?! 20 lbs?!?! 20 lbs is alotta pumpkin people! I simply can not believe that an agricultural county doesnt have a large scale more accurate than that! GRRRR OH OH and let me not forget to mention that Mable's stem started dripping again today! I brushed away the old paste and added new paste, Im praying it'll hold on a few more days, even if we cant get a truly accurate weight! I never dreamed it would be this big of a problem. I honestly thought getting it lifted and loaded would be my biggest issue. Todays bonus: my boxer is having surgery to have a mass removed that the vet thinks is cancer. I should just go back to bed!! Monday, July 26 View Page Cant sleep, tomorrow is gonna be a busy busy day, its moving day for Mable. I have a half dozen construction workers and a skid loader on stand by. None of us have ever loaded a pumpkin, for that matter Im the only one whos even seen one or seen one being loaded! whew, I hope my nerves can take it! Ya'll wish us luck, Lord knows we're gonna need it. My Boxer is doing well after her surgery, the vet is fairly certain that the tumor was cancer but we'll have to wait for lab results to be sure. The incision is much bigger than I was expecting. Its about 9" long, seems awfully big for a quarter sized lump. Ok its 1:00 am we gotta start loading at 8:00, Im gonna try to go to get some sleep and try NOT to dream of exploding pumpkins Monday, July 26 View Page Those poor men, straps in a tangle, a bossy crazy lady taking pics and barking out orders while an amused fair official takes in the show! LOL Monday, July 26 View Page they finally got an approval for lift off... at this point I was so nervous I could barely breath! Monday, July 26 View Page shes up and shes solid!!! YEAAAAAAAAA!!! and I can breath once more! Monday, July 26 View Page since we only had a short ride they said she would ride just fine without sliding... "Ohhh HELL NO"! and the pallet was quickly strapped down to the trailor :) Monday, July 26 View Page God bless my husband, he worked his butt off getting Mable loaded and weighed :) Monday, July 26 View Page certificate at the scales they were very nice about weighing us twice. Once with the truck,trailor, pallet, straps etc then again with the pumpkin. Super nice people. Monday, July 26 View Page this was before they got the display set up, I'll add a better pic later. I was so nervous, there was about 25 people standing around looking and asking a thousand questions and that was just the fair officials and helpers! lol Monday, July 26 View Page the 763 Young weighed in at 170 lbs :) Monday, July 26 View Page WAY beyond excited!! So far passed it, it aint even funny!!! lol I got the 1238 Pennington weighed today.. 740 lbs!!! OTT was 312 or 624 lbs (using the old chart)I was just hoping to meet the estimate! I bout sh*t myself when they yelled out "740!!" they had to tell me twice! LOL I did it! I did it!! I grew a slunger!! I just wanna jump up n down and hug everybody!! I think Im gonna cry! hahaha Monday, July 26 View Page Pics are awaiting approval but I uploaded a short video of the loading. I was so nervous I accidently hit the button and stopped recording too early. lol http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=MVI_4829.mp4 Thursday, July 29 View Page heres the other video I took, I forgot to post it before we left to go camping... http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=MVI_4839.mp4&newest=1 my husband was driving the skid loader thing, the man in red is a fair official. The other guys are on my husbands construction crew. Thursday, July 29 View Page the fair board wanted me to do a demonstration and talk to a group about how I grew Mable. Well anyone who knows me knows I dont 'talk' to people, I tend to trip over my own tongue and I certainly dont know enough about pumpkin growing to tell anyone anything. We compromised and I made a 'how I grew Mable' display board thing. Tim, I used a pic of you and your 1238 that Mables seed came from, I hope thats ok :) *notice my bigpumpkins.com shirt* hehe Thursday, July 29 View Page Snow Bird, mascot of a Nashville news station visited Mable and posed for a pic. Thursday, July 29 View Page Miss Mable made the front page 2 weeks in a row! Its a much smaller picture this week but shes on there, I feel like a proud parent! lol Sunday, August 1 View Page digging for seeds Sunday, August 1 View Page I assume these should be tossed? Sunday, August 1 View Page we got Mable home from the fair but we were gonna have to wait for the skid loader thing to get her off the trailor ... Im impatient and wanted seeds NOW, sooo how do ya unload a 700+ lb pumpkin without heavy machinery?..... http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=mableslide.mp4 Sunday, August 1 View Page well we could have taken the sawzall and cut it for her but hows she ever gonna learn like that?!? I just realized how 'country' we all sound! LOL http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=hugocut.mp4 Sunday, August 1 View Page ya'll will definately get a giggle out of this!! I never used a sawzall in my life, my BFF (who has laryngitis and can barely talk) took the video, my husband and his best bud were off to the side laughing like hell! Oh well, we got the job done! http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/?action=view&current=mablecut.mp4 Monday, August 2 View Page my first watermelon! well besides the one we picked too early haha My debt is officially paid! **Hubby and I made a deal, if he dug up the yard for a pumpkin patch I would grow him a big fat watermelon** Monday, August 2 View Page the girls got creative Monday, August 2 View Page they had too much fun! lol Mable had reasonably thick walls but the blossom end was very thin Monday, August 2 View Page I think we picked miss mable just in time. The walls varied in thickness but the blossom end was VERY thin and there were a couple of internal splits that Im sure wouldnt have lasted much longer plus a lot of the seeds had germinated inside so probably half of them will have to be tossed. Monday, August 2 View Page dozens and dozens of fingernail marks. I was warned that this would probably happen.. it did. Monday, August 2 View Page ok so I picked out all the seeds that were germinating and the ones that didnt look mature, I rinsed them in a bleach solution and spread them on an old window screen to dry. I put the screen on an upside down table's legs for better circulation and put a fan on them. Is there anything else I should do? This is in the old house next door, Im praying mice dont mess with the seeds. I havent seen any signs of them before but Id be willing to bet they are some in there some where! Monday, August 2 View Page a few of the seeds are darker than the rest and a few have white tips, almost like part of the seed coat is missing. Are these any good or should I toss them? Monday, August 2 View Page ran next door to 'flip' seeds.... rubbing the seeds and watching those little paper thin skins be blown away by the fan made me happy. I dunno why but it made me smile :) Sunday, August 22 View Page Im back! lol Ive had some major computer problems and lost quite a bit of data but Im back up and running! :) Wednesday, August 25 View Page seeds are ready, shoot me an email if ya want some of them :) Monday, August 30 View Page reading posts, looking at diarys and its KILLING me! It almost hurts to come to BP.com! I miss Mable! lol I gotta plan to have a fall pumpkin next year. Early pumpkins are great but they are over just when everyone else is getting started :( **still have plenty of seeds, email me if ya want some** Tuesday, September 14 View Page Anxiously waiting for the weekend! Its gonna be a great one. Hubbys 40th birthday is Friday then Saturday we're off to Bear Wallow :) Thursday, September 16 View Page well maybe it aint gonna be such a great weekend after all. Last night someone broke into our shop and stole my sons 4 wheeler, my rhino, a couple of my hubbys chain saws and tools etc. about $15,000.00 worth of stuff. Im so mad I could spit! Lord what I wouldnt give to catch whoever did it in a dark alley with a ball bat! Only thing worse than a liar is a thief. Saturday, September 18 View Page Pics of the Bear Wallow Weigh off in Nancy, KY today... http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y248/crzyJJfan/Bear%20Wallow%20Farm%202010/ Monday, September 20 View Page Had an absolute blast at Bear Wallow and met some awesome people. I cant wait til the next one :) Ive decided my goal for next year is to have a pumpkin to enter at the Nancy weigh off even if I end up wearing the skunk cap! lol