Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 6 Entries. Tuesday, June 16 View Page This is my first entry in my new diary and I'm totally new to the pumpkin world but I LOVE it. Until I started looking more on the net I never knew that pumpkin growing was so serious. I will chalk this year up as a learning year but next year I will know better how to start. For now I have three pumpkins I'm watching. I didn't record the pollination date:-(-as I said, a learning year. The largest is only 25.5" in diameter, the second is 22.75" diam and the third is 14" diam-all on separate vines. I will try to upload pics tomorrow. Wednesday, June 17 View Page So I learned some terminology and measurement techniques yesterday. I have 3 pumpkins I'm watching. The first 2 seem to have come to a stall in growth-no bugs to be seen anywhere. Will keep watching. Only about 0.25 inches grew on the circumference of these 2. They look good otherwise. #3 is growing well. It is still only softball sized but it added about an inch in girth from yesterday. I fertilized with Petes liquid-it is old and needs to be used. we'll see how they like it. Sprayed w/ Daconil today. Saturday, June 20 View Page ok, so the stupid cats had to have a fight in my pumpkin patch but everything seems to be ok. Had a horrible storm 2 days ago and while the rest of my garden was flattened my pumpkins miraculously survived unscathed and may have even enjoyed it. Anyhow, the old Peters liquid fertilizer seems to be making the pumpkins really happy-at least relatively speaking. They are still growing slower than I would like but they appear to be putting on about 2 inches a day in each dimension. Tuesday, June 23 View Page Well, my pumpkins are growing slow but steady. It's kind of weird, the pumpkins that got a really early start are growing slowest while the most recent pollinated are growing the fastest. I have no doubt that it is due to the warm-ok HOT-weather and regular rains we get around here in the summer. I have a 4th pumpkin I just started measuring today. Let's see how it goes. I am so impressed seeing the growth rate of other AG growers. I am learning a lot this year by reading what others have done to prepare and grow. I wish I knew about all this when I first planted my pumpkins but next year...! I am glad I only got the mass packaged and sold AG from the hardware store to learn on this year. I would not have done the special seeds any justice. So, I hope to max out the 400-500lb potential that these little guys are supposed to get to. Friday, July 3 View Page ok, I am in the midst of fighting odd fungal problems. It is an all out assault. I also discovered some squash bugs yesterday on my little white pumpkins-they got squashed. I will take the pesticide to the AG patch today too. My pumpkins seem to have paused in their growth. They grow, maybe, about a 1/4 inch every other day. This is frustrating. Only my youngest pumpkin seems to be growing at a noticeable rate. Well, I'll keep up the battle. Maybe the fungus is slowing them down. Tuesday, July 14 View Page I am as my patch is-DEVASTATED! I am seriously losing the disease battle and now know that this is why my pumpkins seem to have all but stalled in growth. I guess at this point I am hoping to keep the vines alive long enough to let the fruits turn orange :-(. But I am hard at work for next year's plan. This will not happen again! I think a big part of it is location, location, location. I did not choose a very good spot for my patch or garden. Well, here's to the rest of you: I wish you a great and bountiful season. Good luck!