Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 22 Entries. Saturday, June 20 View Page First time diary, first post on the board. Also, first year properly trying to grow a giant. I have 4 in a 1,000 foot patch, and two more on the hill. A tough weekend... I lost two of them. They snapped at the base. The wind must have blown just right, and the leaves are like sails. Now I know what your "sticks" are for that I see in your pics. Well, I replaced the mature plant in the pic with a seedling that came up late. It has three leaves, perhaps it will give us a small giant by Halloween. The four remaining plants seem to be growing well, although I gave three of them sunburn by spraying neem oil at 7AM on a hot day.   Tuesday, June 23 View Page Sugar snap peas reaching the top of the trellis, at about 8 feet.   Wednesday, July 8 View Page First time giant grower (but have grown pumpkins and gourds for the kids for years). Here is my 1232 Wallace. I didn't plant until Memorial Day. Got a late start on the seeds. I feel that my giant pumpkin plants are behind nearly all of the ones I see here. That's okay -- I'll be happy with a few hundred pounder! I've never broken 100 before! There is a female flower at 10 feet, should I pollinate it when it opens? I ask because there isn't "body" or secondary growth on the plant yet. I'll post some more pics. I suspect that by the time it opens, in about five to seven days, the plant will fill out. It's growing quickly now. I'll post some more views.   Thursday, July 9 View Page Side view of the 1232 Wallace. Plant is at 10-11 feet. Female at 10 feet. I removed one female flower at about 6 feet.   Thursday, July 9 View Page The flower on the 1232 Wallace   Thursday, July 9 View Page A view of the patch for my 4 pumpkin plants. It's 1,000 feet, 50x20. The plants to the left and right are Wallace Whoppers, and the one directly across is another 1232 Wallace, but a late replacement for the one that snapped at the first post of my diary.   Thursday, July 9 View Page Some of the other pumpkins and gourds I grow for the kiddos for Halloween and also the rest of my veggie garden. 24 different heirloom tomato plants and a bunch of different peppers and cucumbers.   Thursday, July 9 View Page Trying again, right-side-up hopefully.   Saturday, July 11 View Page The patch this morning -- we have a 12, 10, 9, 7 and 6 footer (replacement) plant.   Saturday, July 11 View Page From the other angle. Nearest to the camera is the Wallace 1232 replacement for the one that broke. Left and right middle are Wallace Whoppers -- and far side across is my 12 foot Wallace 1232.   Saturday, July 11 View Page This was a late seedling Wallace 1232. It took about a MONTH to pop out, and I kept it around just in case. Good thing as the plant that was here before it snapped in the wind (my first diary pic above). It's making up for lost time. Growing fast in the warm weather.   Saturday, July 11 View Page Wallace Whopper -- 10 feet, no obvious fruit yet, and not much in the way of secondaries. But growing with really good form and shape.   Saturday, July 11 View Page We have a big hill that runs the length of our backyard, about 120 feet long. I think it was used to dump what was dug up when they originally built the house. The soil is terrible, but I try to improve it every year (this is only our second year here). It's kind of ugly, but we turned it into a "secret garden" for my kids with a path and lots of pumpkins, watermelons, perennials, and sunflowers. I planted this Wallace Whopper here, it's growing the wrong way from what I intended. I wanted it to grow DOWN the hill, towards the direction the picture is taken from, but it's growing ALONG the hill. I had to move a bunch of the sunflowers I planted right in front in front of it. But it's 10 feet long, with really good looking leaves. Secondaries are very small, but coming in. Maybe it'll give me something that's 100-200 pounds, which will be a win for the hill pumpkin!   Saturday, July 11 View Page Farther down the path. Those are Tenessee Dancing Gourds next to the path (literally the OPPOSITE of our giant pumpkins!) and giant sunflowers behind. One to the right that's leaning over I just staked up right after taking this.   Monday, July 13 View Page Two secondaries not growing, creating a gap. Is this normal? What to do?   Wednesday, July 22 View Page One of my Wallace Whooper plants is growing well, but every female and most of the males appear to be deformed. This is the plant, it’s growing short but wide. Close ups of females below.   Wednesday, July 22 View Page Here’s a female flower. The petals do not ever close around the pistil. It’s grows open like this. Every female so far has been like this. Ever see anything like this? Ron thinks it’s just a genetic deformity...   Wednesday, July 22 View Page Here’s a younger female, brand new, with open petals. I’ve tried pollinating two and they haven’t taken. I’m not even sure when to pollinate. Should give this plant a chance? Or rip out? It’s taking up some useful room in the patch.   Saturday, August 8 View Page Wallace 1232 DAP 24. OTT 186 with a circ of 82. Broke 150 pounds today -- a big deal for this first time giant grower.   Saturday, August 8 View Page My 1,000 foot giant patch with three growing. Left: Wallace 1232 DAP 24, OTT 186, 150 pounds. Middle is a Wallace Whopper that just hit 50 pounds at DAP 22. Interesting horizontal lines on that one And far right is a smaller 1232 no a different plant, which is actually wider with longer secondaries than my 150 pound 1232. This one is just 13 DAP, and measuring 93 inches over the top. It's my smallest and youngest pumpkin now, but I think it may have the best chance to grow the biggest.   Thursday, August 13 View Page From left to right, Wallace 1232 at DAP 28 taping at 220 pounds. Approximately 170 pounds more than my personal best! In the middle is a Wallace Whopper taping 93 pounds growing slow but steady. If this guy makes it to 200 pounds this year I'll be happy. And on the right is my great hope, another Wallace 1232 that went in late as a replacement, DAP 18, OTT 127, estimating 53 pounds. This one has the most plant behind it of any of my pumpkins, but it tracking a couple days behind / lighter than his 1232 brother on the left.   Saturday, August 15 View Page Milestone day here -- first-ever DAP 30 for a giant pumpkin for me (first year growing giants) -- this is a Wallace 1232, OTT 222, estimated at 251 lbs. It's a funny shape and all scarred up, but it's beautiful to me! It's the biggest pumpkin I've ever grown by over 175 pounds!! Averaging 17 lbs per day now over the last three days, and 15 lbs / day over the last 6. Would love to hit 20/day. A big win for me!