Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 157 Entries. Tuesday, January 1 View Page Happy new year, I hope 2013 is a BIG year for everyone. Friday, January 4 View Page It is very hot today, strong hot north winds also. Friday, January 4 View Page Too hot to do much work today on the farm. Temp's were at 2:00 pm, the hottest time is normally at 4:30-5:30 pm. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 479 West plant with a 15 day old pumpkin, not sure how good all my plants are going to be tomorrow. The wind is making it a lot worse. They are forcasting another 40 C day on monday, with 9 out 10 of the next 10 days over 30 C. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 1464 Hooker, 19 days old 146 OTT. I love this one great plant. I hope the heat doesn't effect it too much. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 1002 Kline, 20 days old 122 OTT. This plant started off very slow. Friday, January 4 View Page This is my 366,(366 X 710 Wagler ) great plant 19 days old 130 OTT. This plant isn't wilting as much as the other plants. I forgot to write the crosses on the last posts. 479 X 813 1002 X 1789 1464 X 1088 366 X 710 Wagler Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 1338 Mcconkie (1338 X 710 ) 24 Days old 180 OTT has started to take off in the last couple of days. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 825 SQUASH X 89 Shymanski. This is 20 days old 117 OTT. Great plant, squash not growing as fast as I would like. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 1723 X 1143 Wolf. 21 Days old 128 OTT. Plant is small, vines are small. I have another set that is 8 days old, I might keep that one as it is growing faster. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 1789 X 1640 Wolf. 12 days old, I have another 3 sets but all younger. They are all BIG for their age. Great plant. Will decide which one to keep in the next couple of weeks. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 710 Wagler, 10 days old ( 710 X 1088 ) I wanted to cross it with the 1640, but had no males open on that day. Will make a few crosses on side vines later on. I love this plant, huge vines and huge plant. Friday, January 4 View Page This is the 813 Est 210 kg on day 44. It put on 12 kg yesterday and 10 kg the day before. It took a while to get back up to the these gains from the last hot day. I hope it doesn't slow again from this heat. Friday, January 4 View Page The 1425 Reiver hasn't put on any weight for the last 2 days. Est 190 kg ( now 47 days old ). I can't find any soft spots or cracks, I will have to see what it does in the next few days. Friday, January 4 View Page 1544 Reiver is growing slow and steady 4-5 kg/day now is about 137 kg. I think it will go very Heavy to the charts. Friday, January 4 View Page Tomato is starting to ripe up now, I will pick it this week. Est about 1.5 kg or a little over 3 lbs. My first real try at growing giant tomatoes. I have 2 other giant tomatoe plants but no big tomatoes yet. I did have more giant tomatoe plants but snails ate them all off one night when they were small. Friday, January 4 View Page Sunflowers are about 70 cm tall. Tall corn is about 20 cm tall. Wednesday, January 9 View Page I had to pick my big tomato 2 days ago, due to a bird pecking a few holes in it. 1.28 kg/ 2.82 lbs. ( DMG ) I have had 2 megablooms open in the last 3 days so hopefully 1 sets. Wednesday, January 9 View Page Another set on the 1789 X 1143 Wolf 16 days old 97 inch OTT 25 lbs Wednesday, January 9 View Page This is the 1640 Wolf X 1789 Day 14 As this plant was started a little late, not much plant behind it yet. Wednesday, January 9 View Page This is the 1143 X 1789 day 21 EST 41 kg. The 1143 is a great plant, young but huge. Wednesday, January 9 View Page THis is th 1002 25 days old EST 108 lbs, put on 15 lbs yesterday. I like this shape and will end up a nice orange pumpkin. Wednesday, January 9 View Page This is the 1338 day 30 EST 90 kg, put on 8 kg yesterday. Wednesday, January 9 View Page THis is the 1544 Day 52 EST 161 kg always slow and steady 6.2 kg/day av last 5 days. THe 813 is EST 241 kg on day 48 putting on almost 10 kg/day, I hope it keeps going. The 1425 still no gain in almost a week, I might pick it soon. Wednesday, January 9 View Page some other pumpkins: 825 squash aborted, pollinated 1 today. 710 100 inch OTT on day 15 1723 EST 103 lbs on day 26 put on 13 lbs yesterday. 1674 X 710 EST 36.4 lbs on day 17 my 385 kg/849lbs 98 inch OTT on day 15 1464 EST 53.8 kg on day 24 putting on 7 kg/day. Friday, January 18 View Page The 1464 Hooker 33 days old est 115 kg, putting on 7.1 kg/day for the last 10 days. Friday, January 18 View Page Here is the photo of the 1464, it's bigger than it looks in the photo. Friday, January 18 View Page Over the next few days I will put some info on all my plants I have going. This is my 180.5 ( 2012 ) 1081 Leonzi X 1124 Reid.I wanted to give this one a try as it went almost 20% heavy. This plant covers about 300 sq ft, it did suffer from the heat a bit. Looks like it's mum did. Est 57 lbs 18 days old. Friday, January 18 View Page This is the 479 West 31 days old Est 70 kg. Plant covers about 200 sq ft, plant has small leaves. Friday, January 18 View Page This is the 89 Shymanski. This is a nice plant covers about 300 sq ft, and has more room to fill as I pulled the 940. I crossed this with the 1789 Wallace. At the time of pollination I had a 825 X 89 for greenie seeds, but it aborted. I hope to beat my PB on squash of 140kg which was 4 years ago and was the only squash I had grown till now. Friday, January 18 View Page This is the 1338 39 days old and is est 160 kg. Putting on 7.2 kg/day Av for last 5 days. Plant covers about 400 sq ft, I like plant trouble free. It still has 5 or 6 side vines growing, to get some new leaves, hope it helps a bit. It has a small hair line split at the blossom for the last 10 days, but hasn't got bigger. I might grow a seed out of this one next year, 1338 Mcconkie X 710 Wagler. Friday, January 18 View Page This is the 1723 34 days old Est 97 kg. This plant is only about 200 sq ft, and has stopped growing. It has always been a small plant, with small leaves and small vines. The pumpkin has just started to take off 7.4 kg/day Av last 5 days. Friday, January 18 View Page This is the 813, est 290 kg 55 days old. putting on 6 kg/day Av last 5 days, starting to slow down. A couple of days ago I noticed a small hair split in a rib near the blossom, so far only skin deep and is about half a inch long. I hope it doesn't get any worse. Friday, January 18 View Page THis is the 1002 kline. This plant took a while to get going, I was going to pull it but decided to give it a chance. It is est 127 kg 34 days old, is putting on 9.3 kg/day Av last 5 days. I love the shape and it is going to be a nice orange color, reminds me of my big one from last year. Plant is good and trouble free, it covers about 400 sq ft, will be allowed to cover another 100 sq ft then all vine tips will be terminated. Friday, January 18 View Page This is my 366 lbs est 97 kg 35 days old. Is putting on 6.6 kg/day Av last 5 days. Has always been a slow steady grower, I think it will go a bit heavy ??? Plant covers about 500 sq ft, all vine tips have been pinched. The main vine is huge and so are the leaves, but so far the pumpkin hasn't grown like I thought it would. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is the 1674 Marsh. 27 days old est 70 kg. Has started to take off now put on 11 kg/day last 2 days. Plant covers about 300 sq ft. The pumpkin is off a side vine, cross is 1674 x 710. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is the 1425, it has started growing again but slow 1-2 kg/day now est 205 kg 64 days old. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is the 710 Wagler, est 52 kg 25 days old. The vines are huge and so are the leaves. Plant covers 700 sq ft, side vines will be terminated in the next week. I love this plant. Saturday, January 19 View Page THis is the 1124 Reid, est 56 kg 28 days old. Cross is 1124 X 813. Plant covers about 300 sq ft, plant suffered from the heat a bit. Saturday, January 19 View Page THis is the 1640 Wolf, the one on the main aborted so this is on a side vine, also 1640 X 1789 20 days old. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is the 1544 est 180 kg 62 days old. Still growing but slow 2-3 kg/day. I pollinated a pumpkin on a side vine 9 days ago 1544 X 1143, if it sets I might grow this one next year, if the 1544 goes a lot heavy. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is the 1143 Wolf, plant covers almost 700 sq ft. Pumpkin was a little slow to begin but now it has really taken off. 31 days old Est 124 kg. Put on 18 kg/ almost 40 lbs yesterday and 12 kg the day before. Av last 5 days 10.2 kg/day, it is going to be orange too. 18 kg is the most I have ever had a pumpkin gain in 1 day, I hope it doesn't split. Saturday, January 19 View Page This is my marrow grown off the 70.5 Wursten. Photo was taken a couple of days ago today it est 16.5 kg, but last year all the marrows were about 4 kg lighter than the charts. THis is the only marrow that has been on the plant that seems to want to grow big. My sunflowers are about 134 cm/4ft 6 and are growing 5 cm/day ( 2 inches ) I hope to go close to Australian record of 5 metres. Sunday, January 27 View Page I arrived back to my patch last night, after a 5 day pumpkin holiday to Northern NSW and Southern QLD to visit some of my pumpkin friends. I would like to thank all the very nice people who were kind enough to give me a tour of their patches, offered me a place to sleep, and just have a great pumpkin chat. I really enjoyed it, and plan to do it again next year. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 89 Shymanski X 1789, i'm kind of wishing I had crossed it with the 825 or selfed it. This is the only squash I crossed with a pumpkin and it is th only one that set. Est 120 kg 35 days old, I'm happy with this as my PB for a squash is 140 kg, which I grew 4 years ago. While I was away the weeds have taken off, but i'm not too worried. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 479 West I haven't measured it for a few days but last measurement it was EST 186 kg 49 days old. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 1143 Wolf 41 days old EST 212 kg. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is a young pumpkin 22 days old EST 57 kg, I wasn't going to keep this one but I cut the keeper one off by accident. It is off my 385 kg X 1789. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 1640 wolf 26 days old Est 74 KG. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 1464 I haven't measured this one for a couple of days but it EST 170 KG 41 days old. This one started off good but has slowed a lot, but the nights have been cold. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 1002 45 days old Est 229 kg, putting on 8 kg/day. I like this one, it also has a long stem. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is the 1723 I haven't measured this one for a couple of days but it EST 150 kg 43 days old. This plant is very small, so i'm surprised how this pumpkin is growing. I might grow this cross next year 1723 X 1143. Wednesday, January 30 View Page This is my 366 I found a crack opening up yesterday, in a rib, will see what it does in the next few days. Est 165 kg 45 days old. If the crack gets worse I might pick it and take it to a local show for a guess the weight. I think it will go heavy, but time will tell. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is pumpkin on a side vine of the 710, 25 days old est 75 kg. It's a better shape and is bigger for it's age than the one on the main vine. Will see in the next few days which 1 I keep. Cross is 710 X self. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the one on the main. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 1425 I haven't measured it for a few days but it was EST 215 kg 73 days old. It is amazing that it stopped growing for a week then starting growing slowly again. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 813 I haven't measured it for a few days but it has almost stopped growing. Est 310 kg 70 days old. So would be 2nd biggest pumpkin grown in Victoria ever, unless it goes 15 % light. I will leave it on the plant as long as possible. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is my marrow Est 23 kg, but the ones I had last year went 3-4 kg lighter than EST, so I think it is about 20 kg. Not sure how much more it will grow. I think it will beat my marrow from last year if it doesn't split, or got rotten before the show in March. The biggest field pumpkin is est 40 lbs, not sure what the Australian record for a field pumpkin is. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 1657 so far this is the only pumpkin that has set( I hope it has ) it's open Pollination. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 1124 Reid EST 95 kg 28 days old, this is on a side vine. I left it on just in case. Which was good because when I got back from my holiday I noticed that the vine had split at the stem of the pumpkin, I tried to make sure all the pumpkins/vines were ok before I left, but they grow a fair bit in 6 days. It's the first time this has happened to me in 5 years. So I cut the main one off today. The side vine pumpkin is better anyway, also cross the 813. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 1674 Est 154 kg 38 days old, I like this one. Thursday, January 31 View Page This is the 1338 EST 231 kg 51 days old, putting on 6.5 kg/day. The only problem is I think this one will go light, hope i'm wrong. Friday, February 1 View Page We finally got some rain 22 mls ( just under an inch ) tonight. There was a little bit of hail, but it only left a few marks on the young pumpkins. We have only had 3 mls of rain in the last 6 weeks. But because we had a wet winter and spring there had been some good sub soil moisture. Saturday, February 2 View Page This is my 180.5 kg 2012 pumpkin a fews days ago. Today I removed it from the patch, because as it was a funny wheel shape, and was leaning back. Last night it fell back on top of the main vine and snapped off. I was kind of expecting that to happen, due to the shape, as it was the only pumpkin that set on the main vine I went with that one. The pumpkin was 35 days old today and EST 147 kg. I cut it up and weighed the bits they weighed 173.4 kg. So it was like it's mum about 19 % Heavy. I will grow this one again next year, or one of the seeds out of this pumpkin 180.5 ( 1081 Leonzi X 1124 Reid ) x 1789. I have a 10 day old pumpkin on a side vine so I will see how it goes. I wasn't really worried too much about this plant, I just wanted to see how it would go. Saturday, February 2 View Page This is the 1600 Mcconkie 35 days old EST only 67 kg. The cross is 1600 X 1789 The plant is only small, and took a long time to get going. It looks a lot different to the 1338 which is the reverse cross. Saturday, February 2 View Page This is the 172 Wagler, photo was taken a couple of days ago. It is EST 94 kg 32 days old. This plant was planted late so not much plant behind it, so might not do big daily gains. I do like this pumpkin. Cross is 172 X 1464. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the squash 89 Shymanski, I'm fairly happy with the way this one is going, and I like the shape. Est 188 kg 44 days old. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the 1544 Reiver Est 210 kg. I will bet this one will go a lot heavy 10% plus. Not growing much anymore. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the 1723 Est 190 kg 55 days old. This plant is tiny. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the 1789 Est 135 kg 45 days old. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the 710 Wagler on a side vine Est 136 kg 32 days old. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the one on the main vine EST 191 kg 43 days old, has put on 11 kg/day av last 3 days. Saturday, February 9 View Page This is the 1338 Est 263 kg 58 days old. Saturday, March 2 View Page Time for a few updates, I have been very busy on the farm the last 3 weeks due to about 200 cows calving.I have picked 4 pumpkins so far. Most will be picked on the 15th March. Saturday, March 2 View Page Here is some of the 700 cows in the feed pad, ( feed pad is 120 metres long ) when we clean off the feed pad hopefully the patch will be dry enough to take some of the manure for the patch. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the 1464 Hooker X 1088 It was taken to a local show for a guess the weight comp, the money went to Beyond Blue ( a charity that helps to stop teen sucide ) It was in a hot shed at the show for 5 days. ( days were 38 C ) When I got it home I weighed it and it was 253 kg (557 lbs ) 4th biggest ever in Victoria and just 5.4 kg less than 2nd. I just wonder how much weight it lost in that week ???? It was Est 243 kg so it was about 4 % Heavy. I really liked the 1464 plant. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the 1789 X 1640 Wolf I took this one to the same show as the 1464. It weighed 135 kg ( 297 lbs ) Est 140 kg so about 3.5% light but might not have been had I weighed it when I picked it. I have 3 pumpkins on the 1789 plant, since I lost the main tip without having any females set, I decided to use for genetics. It was still growing but the show wanted a smallish one as well, so I decided this one would do. If anyone wants to try a seed I will send you some, I like the cross and fairly sure it hasn't been done yet. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the 1143 Wolf X 1789 I had to pick this one as it had stopped growing for a couple of weeks, I think it might have had a pin hole in a rib as I seen some clear fluid come out of it about the time it stopped growing. I made a small hole in it to get the seeds out but so far I have only found 1 good seed !!!!! If there is only the 1 good seed in it I will have to plant it as it is a lucky seed. A guy wanted to use this pumpkin so I will see if he wants it or I will just give it to the calves, so I can see if there is anymore seeds inside. Saturday, March 2 View Page Side view of the 1143. It weighed 253.5 kg (558 lbs ) 3rd biggest in Victoria ( so far ). It was est 247 kg so about 2.6 % Heavy. I really liked this plant very vigorous and is still in good shape. This pumpkin was growing very fast early on. Saturday, March 2 View Page I also picked a 1124 Reid which was growing on a side vine, and I took it to a local show. They only wanted a small one because we had to carry it through a small door way, it weighed 158.5 kg it was Est 163 kg so about 2.7% light. I still have one on the 1124 Reid which is Est around the 260 kg mark. It still has a fair bit of growing to do, I might even leave this one for a later show. I was very surprised as I haven't been in my patch much the last 3 weeks, and hadn't measured it till I looked at it and thought it has grown a fair bit. Saturday, March 2 View Page Here is the 710 Wagler, this one is the one on the main vine it is Est 294 kg, still growing good I just hope it doesn't split near the blossom. I really love the 710 it just wants to grow a big one. Will be in my 2013-14 patch for sure. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the side vine 710 pumpkin it is Est 215 kg has slowed a bit. I couldn't decide which pumpkin to keep, but as the plant was huge I decided to keep both. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the 813 it is still growing ( slow ) it is Est 328 kg, it is about 100 days old. I would love it to put on another 10 plus Kg. Saturday, March 2 View Page This is the 89 Shymanski squash it has slowed down a bit lately it is Est 270 kg. I hope it puts on another 30 plus kg. The Australian record is 330 kg. The only 89 I have heard of went 7 % Heavy so hopefully mine goes a bit heavy as well. Thursday, March 21 View Page It was the Victorian giant pumpkin weigh off on the 16th March. There was about 20 entries which I was fairly happy with as it was the 1st major weigh off Victoria has had for a while. This is 4th place 226 kg, and a new PB for this grower by 35 kg. It was grown off my 385.1 kg from last year and was 4 % Heavy. Thursday, March 21 View Page 3rd place 243.2 kg grown off a 710 Wagler and was 3 % heavy. Thursday, March 21 View Page 2nd place was 248.3 kg grown off the 1051 Foss ?? This grower brought 4 pumpkins all grown off the 1051 and were all nice pumpkins, and all were between 235.5 kg and 248.3 kg. I can see him growing a real big one in the next couple of years. Thursday, March 21 View Page A couple more of Sam's pumpkins, he drove over an hour to come to our show. Thursday, March 21 View Page This is my pumpkin which weighed 275.4 kg ( 2nd biggest grown in Victoria ) It was grown off the 1338 Mcconkie and was 9% light. Thanks Matt for the seed. Thursday, March 21 View Page Here is another pumpkin which shows our major sponsor, this pumpkin weighed 160 kg. 334 kg less than his PB. Thursday, March 21 View Page THis is the 9 pumpkins I took to the show, to show the different shapes and colours they come in. It was a fair bit of weight on my poor car. Only my biggest one was taken off the trailer. Thursday, March 21 View Page This is my 366 it weighed 237.5 kg ( 5 % heavy ) it was crossed with the 710. This plant was my best grower, huge leaves and vines. Thursday, March 21 View Page This is the 825 Squash it weighed 147 kg crossed with the 89 which is about 300 kg at the moment. This squash is only 45 days, but wanted to take a squash to the show. Plant was good, but I don't like the deep ribs it has. I might give one of these seeds a go next year as the 89 is a great shape and grower. Saturday, March 23 View Page A few more that I took to the Victoria pumpkin comp ( just for show ) The yellow one is a side vine pumpkin off the 710 itn weighed 214 kg, and the orange one to the right is the 1425 Reiver 233 kg. Saturday, March 23 View Page This is the 1723 it weighed 222 kg. Saturday, March 23 View Page This is the 1124 Reid it weighed 225 kg 12 % light. Saturday, March 23 View Page This is the 1088 I had a lot of trouble to get one to set on this plant. This one was 80 kg. Saturday, March 23 View Page I also picked 2 1789's off the one plant one was 153 kg and the other was 160.5 kg. I used this plant as a genetics plant and had 3 pumpkins set on it. I also picked the 1674 which weighed 230 kg but was rotten, and I also picked the 479 West it weighed 150 kg without the bottom of the pumpkin as it fell off before I could weigh it. Thursday, March 28 View Page I was planning on taking my 4 biggest pumpkins and the big squash to a major weigh off in South Australia. But now NO pumpkins are allowed over the border, so I took a couple of my bigger ones to local shows. This is the 813 it weighed 317 kg. ( 12 % light ) The 2nd pumpkin at this show was just 42 kg. I gave away almost 3000 seeds at this show, so hopefully there will be some more big ones grown next year. Thursday, March 28 View Page This one is the 1002 it weighed 305 kg ( 10 % light) I'm beginning to wonder if my scales are right on the heavier pumpkins, as they are all going so much light. ( my scales said my 275.4 kg Officially was 273 kg 2 days earier than when it was officially weighed. ) Not that I really mind. Thursday, March 28 View Page Also the field pumpkin in the background weighed 21 kg. Sunday, March 31 View Page My biggest sunflower is just over 3 metres tall, gaining 10 cm/4 inches a day. I hope it will go close to the Australian record of 5 metres. The longest LG is 1.4 metres. The tall corn is about 1 metre tall, I started them later than I planned. Thursday, April 4 View Page This is the 89 it is Est 310 kg, I don't think it will grow much more as we have had 3 light frosts this week. I plan to take this one to a show on the 27 th April. Sunday, April 7 View Page I still have a few pumpkins still in the patch, as you can see the grass is taking off, but that is ok as the calves will be going into the patch in the next couple of weeks, and will be a full time calf paddock till September. This is the 754 Dill-Mac it's Est 285 kg. Cross is 754 X 710. Also the 710 is Est 335 kg. Sunday, April 7 View Page This is a pumpkin off my 385.1 kg pumpkin from last year it is Est 280 kg, I'm happy with that as I cut off the best growing one off this plant by accident. This is on a side vine. This seed has grown 4 new PB's for other growers so far. Sunday, April 7 View Page This is the 1640 Wolf, I haven't measured it lately but it did Est 270 kg a week or so ago. Wednesday, April 17 View Page I just heard about this one all I will say it weighs over 700 kg and went over 25 % heavier than the charts. My last few pumpkins/squash will be weighed within the next week. Monday, May 20 View Page The next few pics are the last pumpkins/squash I weighed last season. This is the 89 Shymanski, it weighed 316 kg. Just 14 kg short of the Australian squash record. I will be growing 1 or 2 89's next season. Monday, May 20 View Page This is the 1544, it weighed 279 kg 20 % Heavy. From pollination till it was picked was 170 days, not that grew any after 120 days. But I couldn't get it out of the patch till all the others were out of the patch. Monday, May 20 View Page This is the 710 it weighed 309 kg. I dropped this pumpkin when taking it out of the patch,( 1 of the straps broke ) it did have a few splits in it but none went into the cavity. I love this plant will grow another 710 next season. Monday, May 20 View Page This is the 1640 Wolf, it weighed 288 kg, but when I finally got this one weighed it's bottom had started to go rotten, so would have weighted a lot more. Monday, May 20 View Page This is the 907 Wagler, it weighed 247 kg. This plant was started late, but really impressed me. Also grew a 11 kg Beetroot, 2.50 metre long gourd, 4.6 metre tall sunflower. Thursday, August 22 View Page Today I started 6 seeds, for my early start trial the best 3 plants will go into the patch. Pumpkins will be taken to early local shows, just for fun. They were 907 Wagler, 1445 Michaud, 1293 Wild, 575 kg Oliver, 2 of my seeds 275.4 kg and my 140 kg. Tuesday, September 10 View Page The 275.4 ( 1338 X 710 ) has really taken off, it's the best Seedling I have ever had by a mile. The other leaf is the biggest leaf on the 1445 and it's the 2nd biggest plant. The 1445 will go into the ground in the next few days. Wednesday, September 18 View Page Today I Started 4 seeds 907 Wagler, 1753 Bryson, 854.5 Frei and the 1578. Thursday, September 19 View Page Today I started 6 more seeds, 710 Wagler, 89 Shymanski, 1143 Wolf, 1630 Colbert, 1623 Menting and the 1544 Reiver. Friday, September 20 View Page This is the 754 Dill-Mac it weighed 257 kg, went 12 % Light. Friday, September 20 View Page This was grown from my 385.1 kg seed it weighed 271 kg 2 % light. Wednesday, October 9 View Page We had 100 km/hr winds today and snapped off one of my best plants the 854 Frei. It had wind protection arround it but somehow still the wind got it. We have a lot of strong wind in the last few weeks, up to 140 km/hr. We lost almost 100 big trees on the farm, and a roof on one of the hay sheds. All I can say at least it wasn't a month or so time when the plants are just starting to run otherwise I might have lost more plants. Thursday, October 10 View Page This is the 1544 Reiver Thursday, October 10 View Page This is the 1445 just starting to double vine, might be ok will see in the next week. My 2 biggest pumpkins have come off double vines, so i'm not too worried. Thursday, October 10 View Page This is the best plant I have ever had which is my 275.4 kg. It's 11 ft long today, biggest leaf is almost 2 ft wide. I just hope it can also grow a big pumpkin, not only plant. Not sure when I will pollinate this one, if I wait till December the plant will be huge. I also have the 1293 wild, 1630 Colbert, 1753 Bryson, 1143 Wolf, 907 Wagler and the 1544 Reiver in the patch. More to go into the patch soon. The 1578 did germinate but was a very bad seedling. The 1623 didn't germinate, but started another and it did germinate. Thursday, October 10 View Page This is a marrow I pollinated yesterday ( self ) on a early started 78.4 Bohnert. Great plant which is 11 ft long, I have high hopes for this one. I also sarted a 62 wild marrow but it's just weird no side vines, I keep telling myself I should pull it, but I want to see if it get a marrow on it or not and I don't need the room yet. Thursday, October 10 View Page This is a 45.2 Holub. I also have 2 of my 21 kg FP's just put into the patch. Thursday, October 10 View Page I also have 2 giant carrots, 2 giant onions, 1 swede, a couple LG seedlings. The beetroots I had all went to seed for some reason so will plant a few more. I also have a fair few giant tomato plants, pics will come once the plants get bigger. Monday, October 28 View Page Here is the 78.4 marrow. It's growing slower than last years marrow but it is a lot cooler, so hopefully it will grow for more days. It's about 9 kg today, so still might beat my pb of 21.1 kg. Was given a boost of ferts today so hopefully will get it growing a bit faster. Photo was taken 2 days ago. Monday, October 28 View Page Not the best pic but this tomato mega flower ( it's about a inch long ) is bigger than last years one. Also had one open 2 days ago that was wider but not as long. I hope bigger flowers mean bigger tomatoes !!! Both were on plants grown off my 1.28 kg seed from last year ( seed called brag ) Target this year is a tomato over 5 lbs ! Monday, October 28 View Page This is my 607 ( 275.4 kg ) it covers about 200 sq ft, and the main vine is about 17 ft long. With a female to open at about 15 ft in 2 or 3 days. I Still belive this is the best plant I have ever had, I just hope the pumpkin grows like the plant does. Monday, October 28 View Page This year we have had lots of hail, wind and rain but i'm still happy with the way my young plants look. I think I will end up growing more plants than I planned to but still a lot less than last season. ( I can't help myself ) Also in the main patch are 1445 has double vined so will cut off the main soon at about 7ft and use the best side vine as the new main. 1293 is about 4 ft long. ( not measuring any vines this year, putting more time into patch work ) All the rest aren't running yet as they are still young, but they are : 907 Wagler 710 Wagler 1143 Wolf 1799 Daletas 1676 Daletas 1753 Bryson 1544 Reiver 1680 Tanner 1630 Colbert my 1789 X 1640 and the squash 89 Shymanski my 147 kg 825 X 89 in a genetics part of the patch. A few more to go into the patch soon. Sunday, November 10 View Page This is the marrow off the 78.4 it's Est just under 23 kg. It's 31 days old as long as it doesn't split it will be a new PB, and so early in the season. Sunday, November 10 View Page This is the 607 ( 275.4 kg ) I had a female open 3 days ago and also 1 today polled both with the 1293 Wild. Plant covers almost 300 sq ft. the first side vines have been deheaded due to room. Sunday, November 10 View Page I finally got some patch work done today, so got more plants in the ground. Here is an update on the plants. 1445 main was deheaded as it was a double vine and will choose the best side vine to use as the new main. 1293 is looking good and it's main is about 7 ft long. The 1799,907,1143,1753 and the 1544 are all just starting to run ( 1-3 ft long ) The 1630 is also starting to run but is a double vine. My 147 kg squash ( 825 X 89 ) got chewed off by a crow so did the 1427 Jarvis, so the 1468 Nelson replaced the 1427. The 1680 was looking sick due to the cold cloudy weather we had so I put a back up near just in case. it's the 1522 Sproule, but if the 1680 comes good I can train them away from each other. Also in the patch today is the 1623 Menting, 1209 Shenoha, 854 Frei and the 946* Wuersching . Still a few more to go into the patch soon. Sunday, November 10 View Page Also I pollinated the 45,2 yesterday with the 78 marrow. Sunday, November 17 View Page Guess the weight of my marrow. It will be weighed this week most likely Wednesday. It has grown a little since my last photo and diary entry last week. And is still growing a little bit now. Sunday, November 17 View Page Another pic with a 2 lt / 1/2 gal spray bottle for size. Sunday, November 17 View Page Patch update will come after this marrow is weighed. Friday, November 22 View Page Finally got the marrow officially weighed tonight, it weighed 27.2 kg or 59.9 lbs. So new Australian record !! I had organized to have it weighed on Wednesday but I got too busy on the farm. Friday, November 22 View Page Here is me holding the marrow. Thanks Paul ( from Atlantic seeds ) for weighing the marrow for me. And thanks to the witnesses for being there also. Friday, December 20 View Page I will start my update with good news, I have this marrow ( not a great pic ) it's est 29 kg (64 lbs ) end to end is 52 inches. It's off the 45 Holub and was pollinated with the 78 which grew my 27.2 kg. I don't think it will grow much more as it is 41 days old, but I don't plan on picking it till the new year. Friday, December 20 View Page Over the next few days I will post an update on all my plants. This is the planned keeper on the 1544. It's 11 days old and was pollinated with the 1753. Another female opened this morning and was crossed with the 1630. I have put a board under this pumpkin now. Plant is approx 180 sq ft. My plants are 2-3 weeks behind the last couple of years due to the cold wet spring. It's been a very funny year. 2 weeks ago it was 12 C ( 53 F ) and the next day it was 14 C (57 F ) Yesterday it was 42 C (107.6 F ) and today it was 36 C (97 F ) Friday, December 20 View Page This is the planned keeper on the 1445 it's 10 days old and was pollinated with the 1293. Plant covers about 300 sq ft. Looks like it's going to be orange. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 1293. This pic was taken a week or so ago, and was my planned keeper but a crow decided to put a few holes in it. Has since aborted. A female will open on the main vine tomorrow. Only one other set but only 4 days old and is in a bad spot, so most likely will be culled but for the record was crossed with the 1630. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 854 A (1161 remake ) nice plant that was started late since the 1st 854 got snapped off with the wind. Main vine is about 5 ft long, and has a thick vine. I will be using this plant as a pollinator. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 1753, it's a good plant which covers about 200 sq ft, no set on it yet as the only female had seeds in the blossom. A female will open in a couple of days. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 710. Had a female open today and was crossed with the 1753. So ( 1723 X 1789 ) X 1753 with 3 1700 plus pumpkins in the breeding might look good for a try next season. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 51 Wagler marrow, starting to take off now. Friday, December 20 View Page This is the 89 squash. The main vine tip got burnt yesterday so will use a side vine as a new main if the 2 females that are on the main vine dont set. The 1st one will open tomorrow and will be crossed with the 946 squash. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is my marrow off the 45 ( which is est 31 kg )on the left and the 27.2 kg on the right. The 45 has almost stopped growing, but will leave on the vine as long as possible. The 27.2 kg marrow was cut open yesterday, it had a little over 100 good seeds. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is my marrow off the 45 ( which is est 31 kg )on the left and the 27.2 kg on the right. The 45 has almost stopped growing, but will leave on the vine as long as possible. The 27.2 kg marrow was cut open yesterday, it had a little over 100 good seeds. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is the 907 Wagler. 7 days old and was pollinated by 1630, most likely the keeper. Plant covers about 350 sq ft. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is my oldest pumpkin which is 30 days old and is off the 607. Is Est only 110 lbs. I have reduced this plant down to 100 sq ft, as I wanted to plant a giant cantaloupe where this plant is. I plan to take this pumpkin to a show in mid Jan. As I will have to carry the pumpkin into the hall, I don't want it too big ( I can't belive i just said that ) I would be happy if it was only 100 kg. The pumpkin will be cut open for people to get free seeds, plus I will leave lots more seeds so that interested people can grab a few to try next year. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is the 1623 12 days old and crosses with the 1799. Males on this plant have no pollen, so hopefully one of the females will set. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is the 1623 12 days old and crossed with the 1799. Males on the 1623 plant have no pollen, so hopefully one of the females will set. Thursday, December 26 View Page 1799 and 1630 pumpkins are just 9 days old. No other plants have pumpkins set yet. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is a swede I harvested, due to a small soft spot, it's the only one I had. 2 seeds started yesterday. It weighed 6 kg, I belive NO swedes have ever been officially weighed in Australia. Thursday, December 26 View Page This is the 109 Wagler FP. Was started late but is a nice plant. Also the 2 Watermelons are starting to run, so are the LG's. The sunflowers are about 1 ft tall. No tomatoes have set yet, due to the weather I think. No body around this area have any tomatoes set yet. Thursday, December 26 View Page Not really pumpkin related. Here is some of our silage bales approx 1200 bales in this stack, which is 3 bales high. So far we have done about 2700 bales of silage and 850 bales of hay. We will be flat out for the next week or so doing another 1000-1500 bales of hay. Then still more to do after that, this has been a huge harvest this year, which is great but leaves me very little time for the pumpkin patch. At least I got to spend over 2 hours in the patch over christmas. Most of the weeds are now under control(the lucerne hay has helped to stop most of the weeds ) however still lots of vine burying needs to be done. Hope to find some time in a week or so to try to catch up somewhat.