Today I spent some time hacking out some unwanted growth around the stump of the pumpkin plant as well as pulling weeds. About once a week you should check the stump to make sure there isn't any rot. You can lose the stump quickly if it starts to rot out but with some bleach and sulfur powder you can stop a problem before it gets going if you catch it early. I cover my stumps with a clear plastic hydroponic growing lid that I've cut one end off of. A few years ago when I was having problems with a stump I put that over it to keep it dry and the rot cleared right up and didn't come back. I've used that same lid every year since without problems.
Today when checking my 1421 pumpkin I found a small dent in the pumpkin where it looked like the pumpkin had been lightly hit. Maybe an inch long and about a quarter inch tall that spot was oozing some. After conferring with the good doctor (Scherber) I lightly scraped out the area (it was just skin deep), wiped a 50% solution of bleach on it and then put sulfur powder on the spot and made sure it would stay dry. I expect it to scar up but I'll check it daily until it does.
There have been very small ooze spots in different locations across the skin of the pumpkin. I wiped those down as well. They are normal when the pumpkin is growing and happen as pressure inside the pumpkin squeeze out the juice. They aren't normally a problem but those spots should be watched.
Rain this evening with more rain in the forecast for tomorrow so I just gave the plants some compost tea with Big Bloom in it.
Learn How to Grow a Giant Pumpkin. Competition Giant Pumpkin Seeds, Fertilizers & Growing Tips from Jamie 'The Pumpkin Man'. The Most Read Extreme Gardening, Pumpkin Blog in the World.
2 comments:
This is my first year trying to grow a giant pumpkin not really sure how to do or if I am doing it right at all. Is there any secrets you can share with me. Also how big do you think my pumpkin should be by now if I am on the right track?
Thanks for your comment. If you have a pumpkin growing then you must be doing something right. I went back to my rookie year growing chart and on this date my pumpkin was around 225 pounds. That was on a pumpkin that was pollinated on July 20th. The pumpkin ended up at 755 pounds that year. I would say if you are having fun doing it then you are on the right track. Grow em big.
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