Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 86 Entries. Friday, January 7 View Page Well, what better way to start a new diary than with pictures of the snow and with dreams of spring. Getting to see the driveway would be nice too! LOL Free nitrogen from the gods. Friday, January 7 View Page Current snow depth in the patch right now is about 9" or so. I've decided to grow 6 plants this year, 4 in the same patch I grew in last year and 2 more "genetics" plants in the front yard. Final lineup to be posted when I have it! LOL Thursday, February 10 View Page Here's a link to my new pumpkin website. I now have more than enough server space to update my diary there regularly and still get to play around with some cool website stuff that I couldn't do at my old site. If you want me to add your site to my Links section, feel free to send me an email. Your comments and future content suggestions are appreciated! Thank you! Click Here Sunday, May 1 View Page So it begins! The following seeds have been filed and are soaking in their H2O2 solution: 783 Daletas(500 Hebb x 801.5 Stelts), 869.5 Calai(846 Calai x 801.5 Stelts), 857 Rivard(783 Daletas x 960 Kline), 1048.6 Companion(810 Dill x 801.5 Stelts), 810 Dill(920 Cole x 715 Dill), 765 Reid(1230 Daletas x 801 Black). A big thank you to all who gave what you gave and best of luck this season! Wednesday, May 4 View Page Well, the 1048.6 Companion, 765 Reid, 857 Rivard, and 783 Daletas have all popped a root and were transferred to their pre-warmed pots yesterday. Unfortunately, I'm still waiting on the 810 Dill and the 869.5 Calai but they look to be plumping up nicely. Have an 846 Jutras, 670 Daigle, and a 1205.5 Larue waiting in reserve just in case they don't pop but I sure hope I don't have to use them! Really want to make that 810 x 869.5 Calai cross. Thursday, May 5 View Page The 810 and 869.5 finally decided to get the lead out and germinate. Looks like the backups will have to wait until next year to see some dirt. Wednesday, May 11 View Page As usual, no time for pictures. Sadly, the 810 Dill I have going is moving slower than molasses in the middle of a Klamath Falls winter. It took 3 days longer to emerge than all the others and still isn't completely above ground. The crazy thing is that it took so long to break ground, it already had two immature true leaves when it finally emerged. I'm really hoping it pulls through but it's not looking good for this 810. If anyone has one to trade, please send me an email. I want to make that 810 x 869.5 cross!! Monday, May 23 View Page It's been a rough May for me here. I lost my 783 Daletas to seedcorn maggots and the remaining plants were severely stunted, including the $300 810 Dill. Thanks to the unbelievable generosity of another grower, I now have the following plants out in the patch: 1247 Handy, 2 1016 Daletas', 695 Handy, and a 961 Daletas. They're beautiful plants and are already starting to vine. Thank you!!! Fighting for a spot in the patch are the following replacement seeds I started a few days ago: 670 Daigle, 857 Rivard, my 833, and my 765. The backup 783 has yet to germinate so it's doesn't look good for that one. I would love to give them all a spot but I just don't have enough room. Each spot will get double planted and if any of these plants happen to catch the replacements I was given, they deserve a shot! Pumpkin growers are the greatest bunch of people out there. If it hadn't been for the generosity of another grower, my season would have been over before it started. Thanks again! Saturday, July 2 View Page Pollinated a female at 10 feet on the 1016 on July 2nd with the 961 Daletas. Nice stem length and position and I've got a big curve going in the main just in case this is "the one." The 1016 was feet behind the others and decided it got tired of just sitting there. It is now my best plant at close to 15 feet with the secondaries growing like weeds. This plant is insane! Also selfed a female at 8 feet on the 695 Handy on the same day. There's another nice female around 10 feet that looks like it will open in a few days that I will probably self. The plant itself is around 12 feet in length with the secondaries also growing well. Both pollinatons were covered before and after to ensure a controlled cross. The 1247 Handy and 961 Daletas are around 9 and 8 feet respectively so I hope to pollinate a keeper or two on these plants soon. A huge thank you again goes out to the generous grower who gave me these plants and saved me from myself! Hopefully I'll get some pictures up soon but it seems the digital camera battery charger has grown legs and walked away. Best of luck to you all!! Friday, July 8 View Page Pollinated a 1016 Daletas female at 13 feet this morning with the 810 Dill. The lobes weren't very symmetrical but I didn't see any seeds in the blossom. The set at 10 feet on the same plant was a nice symmetrical 4 lober. The 810 Dill was one of 6 plants hit by seedcorn maggots and totally stunted. I just didn't have the heart to pull it considering what I paid for it at auction so I watered in some Triazicide and left it. Miraculously it has snapped out of the funk and is actually growing well. It's way behind but I hope to pollinate a keeper on it by the end of the month. Saturday, July 9 View Page Pollinated a 4 lobe female 10 feet out on main of the 695 Handy this morning with the 1016 Daletas. Not my first cross choice but both the 695 and the 1247 Handy didn't have any flowers opening today. Not as far out as I'd like but time's running out to get a keeper pollinated. The 1016 is still the best plant in the patch right now, followed by the 695 Handy, the 1247 Handy, and the 961 Daletas. Should be pollinating a female on both the 1247 and the 961 within a week. As long as I end up with a boat pumpkin at the end of the season, I'll be a happy guy. I got plans for that thing! Tuesday, July 12 View Page Well, I woke up yesterday morning to find that I had gotten some help with vine termination. A deer was desperate enough to enter the only 2 foot gap in the 8 foot tall windbreak around the patch, walk its way through the maze of smaller windbreaks tight around the plants, and prune the tips off just about every secondary on my 961 Daletas and 1247 Handy. Of course, he/she just had to have the main vine tips also! Luckily the maze of windbreaks kept it out of the 1016 and the 695 but it's still rough to be set back like this. I lost the female at 12 feet on the 1247 Handy but still have one main vine female on the 961 Daletas. I'm now retraining the nearest secondaries as new mains and training some tertiaries at the ends of the now terminated secondaries to keep the plants growing. So much for thinking I've covered all the bases. Yet another lesson learned.....deer will enter a confined space if they're hungry enough! The entire patch is now completely sealed off at a height of 8 feet so if the deer want to taste another vine tip, they better sprout some wings. Tuesday, July 12 View Page The good news is the 1016 and 695 are still growing well. Have a set at 10 feet on the 695 and two on the 1016.....one at 10 and one at 13 feet. I have yet to ever see a cucumber beetle here but I gave the plants the proper dose of Merit this weekend via the t-tape system just in case the ladybugs aren't doing their job taking care of any aphids that show up. Tuesday, July 12 View Page And last but not least, the 810 Dill. It's definitely decided that a few seedcorn maggots ain't gonna stop it from growing. It's just shy of 5 feet this evening and is putting on 5-6" per day. There's still hope for a 400-500 pound neon orange beauty from the 810 after all. :-) Wednesday, July 13 View Page Pollinated the one and only main vine female left on the 961 Daletas this morning with the 1016 Daletas. There's not much to see, but I finally retired the dinosaur of a camera that I lost the charger for so I'll try to get a few pics uploaded today. Thursday, July 14 View Page The 695 Handy yesterday. Not a huge plant but considering when it went in the ground, I think it's doing well. Thursday, July 14 View Page The female on the 695 Handy at 10 feet, pollinated with the 1016 Daletas. I had planned on selfing it or crossing it with the 1247 Handy but the flowers just weren't cooperating. Thursday, July 14 View Page The largest plant in the patch, the 1016 Daletas. Have three pollinated on this plant, one of which was pollinated this morning with the 810 Dill. Thursday, July 14 View Page The female at 10 feet on the 1016 Daletas. A bit behind last years numbers but that's OK!! Long way to go until October. Thursday, July 14 View Page The 1247 Handy in front and the 961 Daletas behind it. Not much to look at on these plants at the moment except terminated vines! The secondaries and tertiaries being retrained to make up for the loss of limb are finally starting to do their thing Thursday, July 14 View Page The one and only main vine female on the 961 Daletas plant. You can see the closest secondary trying to take over for the deadheaded main. Grow!!! Thursday, July 14 View Page OK, I just had to throw this picture in. Here's our cat "Mau mau" giving the camera man(me) the evil eye. This cat is a few grapes short of a fruit salad but he's so darn fun to watch! Thursday, July 14 View Page I realize the last entry wasn't really pumpkin related but what good are pumpkins and Halloween without a black cat? Thursday, July 14 View Page The 810 Dill growing like a weed. This plant has been in the ground since early May but thanks to the seedcorn maggots and my lack of common sense(always use sterilized seed starting mix), it sat there looking stupid for over a month. Apparently it decided it had enough and started growing. Now doing 6" a day which ain't too shabby in my patch. Cold frame is 7' long. Thursday, July 14 View Page And here's how the 810 Dill looked when it emerged. You can see how deformed everythign is. The seedcorn maggots actually eat the seed as it germinated, resulting in seriously deformed and stunted seedlings. This one took so long to emerge, it already had two seriously stunted true leaves. Friday, July 15 View Page Selfed a nice 5 lobe female on the 695 Handy this morning. Temps are expected to be close to 95 degrees so I'm taking extra precautions and placed an insulated foam box over the female with a 1 gallon ziploc bag of ice in it. I'll replace the ice every few hours to keep the temps down to be sure she takes. The set at 10 feet on the same plant seems to be growing well but I'd really like to have a little insurance this early in the game. I can always cull down to one later. Saturday, July 16 View Page Well, it looks like the second set on the 1016 Daletas is aborting. Must have been the high temps during pollination. It hit 95 degrees yesterday so I'm glad I took extra precautions with the 695 Handy pollination. Stayed so cool under that box all day, it made me wish I was 6 inches tall! Plants are taking the heat OK, not perfect, but no major stress. Supposed to hit 95 again tomorrow. We're not used to these temps up here at 4500 feet! Sunday, July 17 View Page Considering I don't have any main vine females on the 1247 Handy, I pollinated one on a secondary with the 695 Handy this morning. Once again, it's expected to hit 95 today so the insulated box with ice under it is already over the female doing its thing. Gave all the pumpkin plants and the tomatoes a good foliar feeding of molasses, fish, and seaweed yesterday evening also. Also doing a soil drench of chelated calcium this morning via the t-tape. Now that we have a few set, it's time to get back on the regular feeding. My pumpkins may be small but it won't be for lack of trying! :-) Tuesday, July 19 View Page The 695 Handy this afternoon. Has two pumpkins on it at the moment. Tuesday, July 19 View Page The larger of the two pumpkins on the 695 Handy shown here on day 10. Thanks to a couple of very good friends, I'll have some paper mill conveyor belt under the pumpkins tomorrow. Thank you! Tuesday, July 19 View Page The 1016 Daletas this afternoon. The plants are smaller than they were at this time last year thanks to my ignorance but I've finally started terminating secondaries so hopefully growth will pick up a bit. Overall, a very healthy plant. The white sheet is covering the set at 10 feet....or at least what used to be 10 feet before I started going crazy with the main vine curves LOL. Tuesday, July 19 View Page The pumpkin on the 1016 Daletas on day 17. This one was a very slow starter but is now averaging 4.5" circ. gain daily. I don't know how I managed to injure this one but it must have happened when it was very young. What a stem! Tuesday, July 19 View Page The 1247 Handy. Both the 1247 and 961 Daletas were set back quite a bit by a hungry deer that had a taste for vine tips. The new main is finally running again but I have yet to pollinate a main vine pumpkin in this plant. Bummer. Tuesday, July 19 View Page The small 961 Daletas. Despite the plants size, the only main vine pollination is doing surprisingly well. I just hope it keeps it up. Tuesday, July 19 View Page The set on the 961 Daletas on day 6. Should have no problem making the 20" by day 10 at the rate it's going now. Tuesday, July 19 View Page Just a gratuitous shot of the polished aluminum lifting ring(27" diameter) I'm finishing up for another grower. I've made two of these and won't be making any more as the time it takes just to polish these things is overwhelming. Fun summer project though! Wednesday, July 20 View Page A close up of a tomato on my Big Zac plant. To put it in pumpkin terms, I guess that's what we could call a flatvine! This thing has 5 conjoined stems feeding the one tomato. My tomato rookie goal is 3 pounds so hopefully this freak show will help me get there! :-0 Wednesday, July 20 View Page A shot of my once stunted 810 Dill finally growing like it should. The first female looks like it's a week or so away from opening. It may be way behind but as long as it grows a nice orange pumpkin, I'll be one happy guy. Definitely selfing this one! Wednesday, July 20 View Page Forgot to mention, the 810 Dill is growing in my front yard, or more accurately what's left of it! Saturday, July 23 View Page The date on this entry should be the 23rd. Pollinated a pumpkin on a secondary on the 1247 Handy with the 695 Handy. The new main vine is finally starting to take off and there's a female showing near the tip. Damn deer! Or as I like to call them, rats on stilts. Sunday, July 24 View Page Self pollinated a main vine female at 8 feet on the 810 Dill this morning. Nice stem length and position thanks to the Stelts 90. I pretended to be like the big boys and put the 90 degree bend in the main in one motion. Worked like a charm! Tuesday, August 2 View Page Here's the 695 Handy pumpkin on day 24. Growing OK so far. Tuesday, August 2 View Page Here's the 961 Daletas pumpkin growing on about 100 sq. ft. of plant. Shown here on day 20. Hopefully this thing will end up being a long boat pumpkin! Tuesday, August 2 View Page And last but not least, the 1016 Daletas on day 31. This one is the slowest in the patch right now. I'm assuming I must have scarred this pumpkin when it was very young and didn't even know it but the injury seems to have healed well. There's still a long way to go until October! Saturday, August 6 View Page Here's the 695 Handy today(day 28). She's still growing so that's all that matters to me! Saturday, August 6 View Page The 1016 Daletas today(day 35). The 695 is only a few inches behind this one despite being a week younger so it better get the lead out! Saturday, August 6 View Page And here's my 961 Daletas boat pumpkin....I hope! This one is going to have some awesome color. Saturday, August 6 View Page And just to put a face with the name for this year's diary, here's a picture of me with a leaf from the 1247 Handy. I have two going on that plant right now but they were pollinated so late they're not much to look at right now. Less than 60 days to go until October 1st! Saturday, August 13 View Page Here's the 695 Handy, now known as Marshmallow. I'm a sucker for orange but these white pumpkins are kind of cool looking. Who knows, there could even be a greenie growing in my patch next year?! Saturday, August 13 View Page And here's the 1016 Daletas, now known as the Orange Blob this morning. This one should end up nice and orange! Saturday, August 13 View Page And last but not least, here's the 961 Daletas this morning. This one is growing on about 100 sq. ft. of plant. I'm really hoping it gets large enough for a boat pumpkin so I've named this one Tug. Even if it doesn't get big enough, it's going to have some awesome color! Friday, August 26 View Page Marshmallow(695 Handy) and Orange Blob(1016 Daletas) are still growing.....but slow is definitely the word of the week here. Tug(961 Daletas) is pretty much done considering the plant size but there's a nice secondary fruit going on the 1247 Handy that could make a nice boat if it keeps it up. 35 growing days left before the weighoff! Friday, August 26 View Page Here's the 695 Handy plant today. Not much in the way of growth but hopefully those heavy genes will help a bit. Friday, August 26 View Page Here's the 1016 Daletas plant today. The plant itself looks pretty good for its age so hopefully September growth will be decent. At this point, I need all the growth I can get! Friday, August 26 View Page And here's the 1247 Handy plant today. The main has already been terminated since there are no main vine sets. The pumpkin under the sheet is a little over 300 pounds. It was a late July pollination crossed with the 695 Handy. Tuesday, August 30 View Page Here's the project I decided to start yesterday. The nights are getting colder here so I had to do something to keep my best pumpkin going. This is the only way I'll come close to a new PB this year. Tuesday, August 30 View Page Here it is with the sides completed. I had been watching the weather page and knew Monday night was going to be a cold one but I never expected a frost warning. Luckily I got this thing up before the warning was issued! Tuesday, August 30 View Page And here it is this morning after scrambling until 10 PM last night to get it done. As luck would have it, it only got down to 35 degrees here according to my thermometer so the rest of the patch made it through just fine. Tuesday, August 30 View Page Here it is a little later in the morning with the roof rolled up. This 400+ sq. ft. "greenhouse" has 3 1500 watt forced convection heaters to keep the plant and pumpkin toasty. I get dizzy watching the electric meter spin :-) As the days get colder, I'll start leaving it closed up during the day to keep things as warm as possible. The things we do for our pumpkins..... Tuesday, August 30 View Page After all the pumpkin related stress of yesterday evening, nothing is more relaxing than a picture of a beautiful lake. This is the lake at the bottom of the hill I live on, Lake Ewauna. Saturday, September 3 View Page Here's the 695 Handy today. Marshamallow no longer looks like a marshmallow! Growth has slowed substantially but hopefully the greenhouse will keep it moving forward. Considering we already had a frost warning, any growth is good growth. The picture makes it look larger than it really is. Saturday, September 3 View Page A different angle of the 695 Handy. It started out pure white but has started to get a little color at the base of the ribs. Hopefully the heavy genes and all the calcium soil drenches will help her go heavy! Saturday, September 3 View Page A shot of the 695 Handy plant in the greenhouse. Most of the leaves look healthy so hopefully the next month of growth will be decent. Saturday, September 3 View Page Here's the 1016 Daletas today. Unlike the totally protected 695 Handy plant, this one has already endured a low of 35 degrees so needless to say, growth is something to be desired. However, the color is awesome! Saturday, September 3 View Page A side shot of the 1016 Daletas. I don't know what it is about it but I love that shape! Saturday, September 3 View Page Here's the 1247 Handy pumpkin growing on a secondary. This one was a late pollination but it looks like it'll make a fine boat if it keeps plugging along. Should have some decent color as well. Saturday, September 3 View Page Just another shot of the 1247. A nice long/tall pumpkin. Should make a nice boat! Saturday, September 3 View Page Here's the 961 Daletas today. Tug has slowed to a crawl and I don't expect much more growth considering the tiny plant it's growing on. You gotta love that color though! Sunday, September 4 View Page Another shot of the 961 Daletas. I crossed the beautifully colored 1016 Daletas with the neon orange 961 Daletas both ways so hopefully the offspring of either seed will also have the awesome color! Sunday, September 4 View Page Here are my giant tomato plants. I've terminated all growth at a height of 6 feet and only have two tomatoes per plant right now. I'll be VERY lucky to make it anywhere close to 3 pounds but I'll definitely give it the old college try next year. Friday, September 9 View Page Lovely weather for pumpkins....NOT!! A clip from the weather service for our area: ...FREEZE WATCH THROUGH 8 AM SUNDAY FOR SOUTH-CENTRAL OREGON AND NORTHEAST CALIFORNIA...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEDFORD OREGON HAS ISSUED A FREEZE WATCH THROUGH 8 AM SUNDAY FOR SOUTH-CENTRAL OREGON AND NORTHEAST CALIFORNIA. PEOPLE WITH SENSITIVE VEGETATION SHOULD PREPARE FOR THE UPCOMING FREEZE.... The heaters will be running in the 695 Handy greenhouse but the 1016 Daletas, 1247 Handy, 961 Daletas, and tiny 810 Dill plant have no protection. Looks like I'll be getting up before dawn again in case I need to hose off the frost. The only good thing about all this cold weather is that I've been able to learn what a difference a greenhouse makes. Last night's low was 44 degrees but according to my min/max thermometer, greenhouse temperature never went below 59 degrees. The temperature stays warmer for much longer than it normally would after dark and I can only hope that it keeps the Handy pumpkin moving forward. Saturday, September 10 View Page Well, the unprotected plants dodged the frost bullet last night but there's another frost warning in effect for tonight. Despite the frigid temps, the Handy plant was nice and warm in its greenhouse. The temperature never got below 50 degrees but it's gonna cost me when I see the power bill. If the other plants make it through tonight, they should be safe for awhile as the low temps return to the 40's. Break out the sunscreen and lemonade! Sunday, September 11 View Page Here's a shot of the word that every pumpkin grower fears, frost. This picture of my Bronco windshield was taken around 6 AM this morning. It was a long night for me but thanks to spraying down the unprotected plants with water every 1/2 hour or so by hand, it looks like they all made it through just fine. You know it's cold out when the 55 degree tap water steams as it comes out of the hose LOL. Despite the cold temps, the Handy plant was a balmy 53 degrees when this picture was taken so hopefully Marshmallow is still growing. Keep those plants warm and watch out for the F word! Tuesday, October 4 View Page Loading the 695 Handy for the Canby Giant Pumpkin Festival. Tuesday, October 4 View Page Here she is all loaded up and ready for the trip up north. Estimated weight was a little over 650 pounds. Tuesday, October 4 View Page And here's my "Golden Globe" entry....an 810 Dill x self.I turned it onto it's blossom end when it was very young to keep the traditional shape most people think of when they think of a pumpkin. Estimated at just over 200 pounds and grown on a tiny plant that endured stunting due to seedcorn maggots and multiple deer attacks. Tuesday, October 4 View Page And here are Beauty and the Beast after the long trip up to Canby, OR. It was a great weighoff despite the rain, hail, and thunder storm. A special thanks to all the people who made the weighoff possible!! I needed a pumpkin hauler so I built the trailer the pumpkins are sitting on. No more borrowing trailers!! I don't have the EST numbers in front of me but the 695 Handy x 1016 Daletas in the front of the trailer weighed in at 675.5 pounds, making it around 20 pounds heavy. I was hoping to hit 700 with this one after my rough start but that's OK!! The 810 Dill x self weighed in just under 300 pounds, making it between 80-90 pounds heavy. Once I locate the exact numbers, I'll post the EST vs. actual for both pumpkins. Tuesday, October 4 View Page A side shot of the 695 Handy and the 810 Dill. The 810 Dill didn't even place in the Golden Globe competition but I still think she's a pretty pumpkin. Tuesday, October 4 View Page A close up of the 810 Dill x self. By far my prettiest pumpkin of the season despite the lack of size. I have three more pumpkins in the patch waiting for Chinook Winds in Lincoln City, OR. The 1016 Daletas, 1247 Handy, and 961 Daletas. The 1016 still has a shot of making my sophomore year goal of 700 possible. There's no way I'll beat my rookie year weights of 833 and 765 but who cares!! I had fun and that's all that counts as far as I'm concerned. See you at the beach! Friday, October 21 View Page All loaded up and ready to go to the 'Terminator' at Chinook Winds in Lincoln City, OR. Beach here we come!! Friday, October 21 View Page Side shot of two of the three Chinook Winds pumpkins. The 1016 Daletas x 961 Daletas in front, the 1247 Handy x 695 Handy in the rear. The pumpkin in the back of my Bronco shown in the last picture is the 961 Daletas x 1016 Daletas. Friday, October 21 View Page Unloading my Fir Point entry with a borrowed tripod. After using this one, I'll definitely be welding one up for myself. Thanks for loaning it to me Rock!! :-) Friday, October 21 View Page Here's my 810 Dill x self Golden Globe entry. Could this be why it went 80-90 pounds heavier than the estimate? I realize the data used to curve fit the equation did not include pumpkins under 500 pounds but close to 50% heavy for a small pumpkin like this is pretty amazing to me. And yes, I measured and remeasured LOL. Got about 300 good seeds out it too..... Tuesday, November 1 View Page Well, the season ended on a great note at the 2nd Annual West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta. Like the weighoffs, I brought up the rear of this event as well but it was a lot of fun nonetheless. A special thanks to Ron Wilson for organizing such a great event! Here's a summary of my challenging and fun second season. Not quite the weights I had hoped for after growing an 833 and a 765 last year but I learned a lot and look forward to my next season. 675.5 Reid 2005 (695 Handy x 1016 Daletas) 2.4% heavy 666.5 Reid (1016 Daletas x 961 Daletas) on chart 642 Reid 2005 (1247 Handy x 695 Handy) 25% heavy What a surprise that was!! 385.5 Reid 2005 (961 Daletas x 1016 Daletas) 17% heavy ??? Reid 2005 (810 Dill x self) this was my tiny Golden Globe entry that was weighed at Fir Point. Unfortunately I don't have the event results so I don't know the weight! Thursday, November 3 View Page I forgot to mention, if you're interested in any of my '05 crosses listed in the previous entry, please feel free to send me an email. If you've already sent me a bubble, they'll go out when the seeds are dry. Enjoy the offseason and Happy Holidays! Monday, November 7 View Page A shot of the pumpkin patch during the first of many good snows of the season. How am I supposed to finish the cleanup and patch prep in this mess? Some of you who know me may ask, patch prep...I thought he was moving after getting his degree? Lets just say that the pros outweighed the cons in this decision and I'll be here for two more years while I continue my education. It may not be the best place to grow pumpkins but there are more important things right now. Season 3 in Klamath Falls coming soon to a computer near you!