Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 16 Entries. Saturday, April 29 View Page Because the formal conditions for the „150 SQF-Challenge“, here my first little diary on bp.com...... ...my main-diary ( in german ) is on crazy-growers.de: http://www.crazy-growers.de/showthread.php?3784-Z%FCchtertagebuch-C%FCrbitrix-2017 This is my „Hecken-Patch“ ( = hedge ) in Berlin / Teltow, it has about 2500 sq-ft and I used it in the last years only for tests and so on, because the soil is not very good..... After I gave up my second big patch in Teltow ( the „Briar-Patch“) in 2016, this year I start to push the soil on this patch for better results ( PB = 866 pounds ). So this year I grow here two giants, five fieldpumpkins, a squash, some bushel`s, one african-kettle-gourd.....and some bighead-sunflowers One of the giants is my best orange-beauty „442 MC-Krueger12“ for my first try of the 150 sq-ft-Challenge on a separated before not used part of this patch.   Saturday, April 29 View Page Here the area of the new 150 SQF-Patch The complete hedge-patch is carpeted since some years with black fleece, so I only must cut out new plant-places with a knife......LOL..... This are my new biggest start-places in form of a „T“,..so I named they „T-Patches“.... Here I grow my own squash „594 MC-Krueger12*“ for a new PB and my very special former Halloween-Giant „FREDDY“ ( 102,5 MC-Krueger15“ ) for a new PB too in our „Small-Seeds-Challenge-Rating.“ By this „SSC“ ( max. seed-weight = 400 pounds ) is the difference between the used seed ( = 102,5 pounds ) and the final result ( … 1000 Pounds...? ) important.... ;-))   Saturday, April 29 View Page My other two patches are in my backyardgarden in the district „Steglitz“ in the south of Berlin: „The Greenhouse-Patch“ My best patch I think, with much better conditions as in Teltow, with a self-made 130 SQF greenhouse, built with used waterpipes... :-)) This year I have „tuned“ it with new airflaps and new shade-fleeces on the top. The keeper here will be my own surprise-egg, the „209 MC-Krueger16*“ ( [1431 Wuersching x 1103 Martin*] x self ) with the goal for my first 1000 pounds..!! ...and hope for „green“!!   Saturday, April 29 View Page Last but not least.....“The Pond-Patch“ At his area of the garden more than 25 years was a little garden-pond,....but not any longer..... In my second saison here I will try an new Berlin-state-record with my lovely orange „765 MC-Krueger13“ ( 1544 Revier x self ) and polinate it with the beautiful „1327er“ from Nana Rea... ;-))   Sunday, April 30 View Page Pic of entry 3: The GreenHouse   Thursday, May 18 View Page Transporter-Day 2017 Next highlight after the start for me is every year the „Transporter Day“,.... means the travel from my little balcony-greenhouse to the temporarily store in Teltow and my garden. Unfortunately this year we had an unusual cool april here in germany, so many other german growers and me are down for ten days or so......= small plants,...... hope for better wheater!   Thursday, May 25 View Page Big-Head-Sunflowers For my BigHeads I have build some special pavillons, so they are safe for windy days. Later the roof came down.   Sunday, May 28 View Page „ALL IN“.....at the „Hatch-Patch“ Lot of work in Teltow, but now all plants are planted,...= GOOO!! Fieldpumpkins -124.0 Lyons14 -189,5 Steil14 -141,5 Steil14 -124,8 Horde14 and 87.3 Nuernberg15 Gourds Bushel „279.0 English“, „232,0 English“ and my own „77.3 MC-Krueger16“. AKG 2x „121.2 MC-Krüger16“ Squash Three pollinator-plants: 1239 Berrens*, 1118 Boonen* and 596 Musso* and some test- and additional pollinator-plants.   Tuesday, June 6 View Page 150SQF-Challenge After cleaning the patcharea, the race can going on,.....and the sidemarks are fixed. I have decided me for a simple groundplan with 3x4meter ( = 129 sqf ) ,...and the rest is for the fruit.... Very nice: The mainvine of my 442er is vivid yellow,....a good sign for orange!   Tuesday, July 4 View Page Farther a bad summer this year,.....never had pollinated the first females so late the last ten years.... ...it was too cold in the second half of june.......and around Berlin at the 29.06. goes between 35 and 70 gallons of rain on one quadratmeter down,...highest since 100 years.....Oh, Mann...!! SQF-150: At last first contact with the lateral limitation ,....and the mainvine with the female is out of the 129 SQF-basic-area --- as planned   Sunday, July 30 View Page 150SQF-Challenge The challenge-area is full and the plant had decided herself against the self-cross at the mainvine and for the cross with the „540 Molter“ at the sidevine.... ....good idea, I think. Unfortunately the wheater here in east-german makes no fun this summer: In the last four weeks we had now the third rain-storm with more than 100 liters ...absolutely crazy..... Results are many late pollinations for the giants between 07. and 11. of july. Hope that the august brings better wheater conditions, but don`t think that more than 400 pounds for my 442er are probably. Next yeat I not take a orange-beauty, but an ugly giant-big-block for more pounds...LOL   Saturday, August 19 View Page 150SQF-Challenge GAME OVER,..for the nice Challenge-442er!!....BES!! Too many rain here,....389L for june and july ..more than the double as normal.   Thursday, October 5 View Page First results 2017: Fieldpumpkins After some years with only aborted handpollinations this saison the focus lays on to bring my first own FP-crosses home..... So I changed my technic ( ...now cotton bud`s ) ,....and „SIM-SALA-BIM“,....I have my own seedstock with five crosses. Not the biggest,....sure....but we will see next year!!   Saturday, October 21 View Page Final results: BUSHEL-GOURDS At the GPC-Weighoff in Klaistow ( Berlin-Brandenburg )my Bushel was weighted with 176.4 pounds, a new GERMAN RECORD ! But between the 20 (!!) squash`s and 55 giants ( ..the biggest GPC-Weighoff of the world,...again...) it looks a little bit lost. If I add the 20 giants from the special-weighoff for schoolclasses, day nursery`s and club`s one week before ( winner had 690 pounds )...there are near hundred fruits showed. After my european record with an „African-Kettle-Gourd“ in 2014 this second title is a nice compensation after a (wheater-)crazy saison   Wednesday, October 25 View Page Final results: SQUASH`s „617 MC-Krueger17* UOW“: New PB with an own seed, but after the bad wheater conditions of this summer not the result that I want,.... I named him „UNDER-DOG“ because the cross „594 MC-Krueger12* x 596 Musso15*“ is a little bit out of the usual crosses. Because the pollinator „Musso“ was dark-green, I hope for „green“ and higher weights in the future. The „Berrens“ was the pollinator of my surprise-egg,.....but not really green.....   Saturday, October 28 View Page Final results: Atlantic Giants „737 MC-Krüger17 UOW“ ( „FREDDY“ x 1327 Rea13 ) „532 MC-Krüger17 UOW“ ( 765 MC-Krüger13 x 1327 Rea13 ) „240 MC-Krüger17 EST“ ( 209 MC-Krüger16 x 1239 Berrens14* );Surprise-Egg III „233 MC-Krüger17 EST“ ( 1327 Rea13 x 442 MC-Krüger12 ); Club home demo-giant