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Date Posted

Bristol R.I. USA

Okay now thats its in the off season I was wondering if anyone care to reveal a secret or to. I totally believe that there are secrets. The good seed soil, and luck thing is all good and well but give up the goods. If you have em.

11/21/2011 11:09:21 AM

Minnesota

No, but I found a new product I want to use in my seedling hole next year. It is fish poop. fish-itfertilizer.com fish poop and worm castings next year.

11/21/2011 11:22:42 AM

Bristol R.I. USA

I have no secrets. And I have small pumpmins. Go figue. I wa thinking of getting a hold of ome radio active waste and adding it to my soil. It worked for GIligan on an episode of GIligans island. Guiligan got a hold of some radioactive seeds that washed ashore. He planted them and Bam! Monster eggplants and corn. I was thinking it would work in the heats patch!

11/21/2011 1:51:37 PM

Niagara Falls,NY

I live by lovecanal,I can send you some dirt!

11/21/2011 2:43:03 PM

Georgetown, Ontario

I went from a personal best of 724 lbs to 1266 lbs in one year and I will gladly share my secrets. I took a soil sample and actually did everything that was recommended. Throughout the year I did everything what needed to be done, when it needed to be done whether I felt like it or not. Fertilizing, pruning, vine burying, watering, weeding,(all very basic plant health care needs) were all done when they needed doing. I didn't do anything to the plants or soil that I didn't know WHY I was doing it. Just blindly following someone elses program will get you nowhere. I grew less plants and spent twice as much time in the patch as the year before. There's no big secrets, just basic plant knowledge and a lot of hard work. If you can honestly say you did everything that had to done, when it had to be done and still don't see the results or don't see what went wrong, maybe there is no hope. Maybe my next 500 lb improvement (1266 to 1766) is where the secrets lie but I can say that there is no big secrets or silver bullets needed to grow a 1200 pounder and I know a few mistakes I made that can easily give me another 200 pounds next year and I will still be keeping it simple.

11/21/2011 2:53:50 PM

Massillon, Ohio

I definitely think there are secrets but I have no idea how to figure them out!!!!!!!

11/21/2011 3:43:00 PM

Connecticut

Whats that stuff I see in some pictures in diaries that is dark and in coke bottles? that may be the secret.

11/21/2011 4:28:35 PM

Rhode Island

well said pumpkin shepherd - the harder you work, the more you research, the luckier you get.
pap

11/21/2011 5:31:23 PM

South Hero, VT

What Pumpkin Shepard is basically saying is that you have to be MARRIED to your pumpkin patch from May-October every year, short of sleeping in the patch--although some growers probably do that, too.

11/21/2011 6:48:50 PM

Western NY

pumpkin shepard is right. I went from 594 in 09 to 1311 in 11. I think genetics is one but soil test and HARD work every night is the way to get there. I did loosely use a propram but I tried to figure out why and when to use a product. water water water

11/21/2011 6:55:34 PM

Georgetown, Ontario

VTSteve....in reality I averaged maybe 2 hours per evening 4 or 5 nights a week from June to Aug, and maybe an hour a day for May and Sept. That was for 3 plants in a 2400 sq ft patch. I don't think 5-10 hours a week on a hobby is that much. A lot of people who golf spend more time and money on that hobby than I ever will growing pumpkins.

11/21/2011 7:02:56 PM

NILES , CALIF

team lunatic;
what is it? what will give you 200 more lbs
does any body have that extra something they do
to add an extra 200lbs or more?

11/21/2011 7:33:52 PM

Georgetown, Ontario

Old-Rookie....My new overhead watering system wasn't too even (and I knew it) and areas around the stumps stayed too wet (and I knew that too). I rotted out the stump on one plant at day 30 and the other plant I rotted out the main vine about a foot in front of the pumpkin at day 40. Also I think I terminated the vines too quickly and ended up with a foamer on the third plant (that pumpkin never made it anyways due to a rib split). So I figure just correcting those few things and making sure I have stumps and main vines should add a few extra pounds. Plus I plan to get the plants in the ground a week earlier so I can get an earlier pollination resulting in an extra week of pumpkin growth.

11/21/2011 8:40:14 PM

Muddy Waters

Thats funny Kenny! about Gilligan's Island.I was exhausted from gardening one Sunday back in the 90s,I went in the house it was hotter then hell,got a cold drink,sat down. I said to myself,I gotta take a brake from these giants,turned on the T.V to that same episode.I could not believe it.lol My secret this year on Kins,I have no secrets!I will though not have any organic matter near stump of plant 3-4 feet,will use sand instead.

11/21/2011 9:20:11 PM

New Zealand

since us in the southern hemisphere are just starting,
reading threads like this is very interesting for us.
some of the things i will be doing this year is to protect the stump from water..... yet still water the main root mass.
so a little tin roof is going up over the stump when the vine is big enough.plenty of draft, no rain, and trim away all leaves, weeds etc..... nice and nude stump area in shade
im thinking of watering no closer than 2ft radius from stump, the water as it absorbs into the ground should spread and provide ample coverage.
stump rot is a bain i hope to overcome.
would be keen to hear other growers methods of protecting the stump.

cheers from kiwi land

11/22/2011 2:05:00 AM

Paradise Mountain, New York

Do NASCAR racing teams share all and every secret with all the other NASCAR racing teams? Growing Atlantic Giants is like NASCAR Racing teams.......

11/22/2011 7:52:51 PM

Breslau, Ontario, Canada

I swore to Pumpkin Shepherd that I wouldn't tell anyone...but I just have to
crushed unicorn horn
...It's a damn shame killing em

11/22/2011 8:48:21 PM

nOVA sCOTIA

The secret is to wear the toes out of a brand new pair of sneakers every growing season and drop 10lbs of body weight while doing so !!!!

11/22/2011 8:55:02 PM

JACKSON, WISCONSIN. ; )

secrets.... i dont know of any such secrets.. except the cheeze wiz thing that works good.

11/23/2011 11:45:09 AM

Alaska

Marry Ann also said in an episode of Gilligan's Island. It's one part sun, one part water and one part loving care. Boy howdy who knew way back when she had already figured it out. Damn who knew that show had much much more to offer.

11/23/2011 2:19:51 PM

Nottingham, UK

@ pumpkin shepherd: Think I am going to open a seperate savings account so that I can by the wife presents from May - September to keep her sweet.

I do agree in making sure you do the basics properly and completely. In 2011 I burried half of my vines and then gave up on the rest. I watered the stump more than the entire plant area and eventually gave up on watering the latter as I couldnt get to it very well. I still got a 494lb fruit as my first effort but it could have been bigger. On pulling the plant I noticed that where the vines had been burried that there was an 8 inch tap root at each node. Just think if they had received water and nutrients all throughout the season and not just now and again. Next year things will be done by the book and roll on big (1000lb) and orange!

11/24/2011 8:18:21 AM

Canada

Ahhhhh.. John you just had to let it out.... I always grew small kins basically cause I didnt have the space.. After I met John D Farmer I went from my persional best of 150 lbs up to 501.8 lbs in my first season "seriously growing" basically growing in clay soil nothing added but maple tree leafs and "unicorn horns" Year after I added more crushed horns and went up to 648.8 Lbs. Got a BIG truck coming in spring 2012 :-) Thanks John !! Dave

Dave

11/29/2011 1:00:18 AM