BEGINNER’S SEMINAR
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Transcript of BEGINNER’S SEMINAR
BEGINNER’S SEMINAR
Today’s course topics:
• SITE SITE SELECTIONSELECTION
• SOILSOIL
• SEEDSSEEDS
• TRANSPLANTINGTRANSPLANTING
• PLANT CAREPLANT CARE
• FRUIT CAREFRUIT CARE
• PUMPKINVILLE PUMPKINVILLE CONTESTCONTEST
SITE SELECTIONSITE SELECTION• AMOUNT OF
SUN• ELEVATION:
DRAINAGE• AVAILABILTY
TO WATER• SPACE
REQUIRED
Space Required Patch Patterns
25’ X 30’ = 750 sq.ft 30’ X 50’ = 1500 sq.ft. (675 sq.ft./plant)
Soil Amendments
1. Manure. (Cow, Horse, Rabbit, ect.)
2. Leaves – not too many.
3. Green manure.
4. Your compost mix.– As much as 5 cu.yards per plant. A pick up
truck load is approximately 3 cu.yards. Apply in the fall. Spring applied needs to be composted or aged.
SCHEDULING YOUR SCHEDULING YOUR AMMENDMENTSAMMENDMENTS
Your Plan of Attack• Fall Preparations
– Apply bulk amendments
– Apply lime • Why? Allow to break
down. Lime takes 3-4 months to help soil.
– Plant cover crop.• Rye or wheat.• Help stop erosion.• Provides N in spring.• Add OM.
• Lack of a cover crop can allow earlier drying in a wet spring.
• Spring Preparations– Covered next.
SPRING PREPARATIONSSPRING PREPARATIONSPre-planting preparations
• Mow cover crop.• Amendments:
– Gypsum– Lime (if needed)– Minerals (Azomite, Ironite, ect.)
• Fertilizers:– Compost– Manure– Powdered Kelp (Seaweed)– Fish
• Work up the ground while tilling in amendments & cover crop/green manure. – Till too early – mud &
clumps. (know your soil)
– Till too late - cover crop too big, hard to till.
SPRING PREPARATIONSSPRING PREPARATIONS1 week before planting preparations
• Pre-warm soil – Should be over 60
degrees.– Plastic sheeting flat on
the ground.– Huts covered with
plastic sheeting (mini-greenhouses)
SPRING PREPARATIONSSPRING PREPARATIONSbefore planting
•Mini-greenhouses can be extremely simple, to the
middle-of-the-road, to the more extravagant. Even 4
bales of hay & an old pane of glass can work just fine.
Simplest
Middle of the road
Extravagant
When do I plant?
• May 1st to May 10th -- Keep from freezing.
• The entire growth cycle takes about 120 days, 60 for plant and 60 for pumpkin.
• Allows for:– Large plant size at pollination time.– Fastest growth at warmest part of summer.– Last 2-3 weeks in Sept, growth slows down.
SEEDSSEEDSPicking the Right Seeds
• Dill’s Atlantic Giant Variety.
• As a beginner, use the best, but cheap seeds.
• DO NOT use store bought seeds.
• Great genetics available from other pumpkin growers for FREE.
Genetics – Understanding them.
• Broken down:– 1082.4 Stelts 05
• 1082.4 = Weight• Stelts = Grower’s Last Name• 05 = Year (2005)
– F = Female (seed it was grown from)
• 968 Razo 04
– M = Male (pollinator plant)
• 723.5 Stelts 04
Seed PreparationFor Planting
• Sand the edges – not the tip.– Use emery board.– Sand edge to show
light brown line.– Helps crack the seed
coat.– Soak in warm water
for 1 hour.
Germination
• And if all goes right, after 4-7 days, the seed sprouts.
• The seedlings can become root-bound in around a week.– This is usually about
the time the 1st true leaf appears.
TRANSPLANTINGTRANSPLANTINGThe day of planting that seedling
• Transplant in the mini-greenhouse.
• Ensure good ventilation, avoid overheating.
• DO NOT use a pit.• A raised bed or small
mound is better.– Quicker to warm up.– Better drainage.
TRANSPLANTINGTRANSPLANTINGThe day of planting that seedling
• Setting the plant.• Main vine opposite 1st
true leaf.• Transplant solution – 1
gallon of warm water with light fertilizers.
• Protect plant on cold nights with cheap styrofoam cooler.
• Spray for bugs!
BETWEEN TRANSPLANT BETWEEN TRANSPLANT AND POLLINATIONAND POLLINATION
• The first waiting period.
• In the next series of slides we will cover some things that will need to be done after transplant and while waiting for pollination time.
Avoid Soil Compaction
• Daily foot travel compacts the soil.
• Stepping stones or walk boards should be used.
• Wet ground will become as hard as concrete.
• Loose soil helps proper O2 exchange & root spreading.
INSECTS & DISEASEINSECTS & DISEASE
• Insects:– Cucumber beetle– Squash Vine Borer– Aphids
Cucumber Beetle
Squash Vine Borer & Aphid
InsecticidesContact or Systemic?
Vines & Wind
• Vines grow as much as a foot a day.
• Leaf stems can be 2-3 feet tall.– Vines should be
staked down and buried.
– Helps prevent vine splits & breaks during winds.
Vine Training & Watering
• Train vines in X-mas tree pattern.
• Moves vines late in the day, warmer. AM they are cold & brittle.
• Never move more than a few inches/day
• Takes a few days to complete a vine move.
• Till ahead of vine growth. Don’t get too close, white root filaments= too close.
• To stretch root growth, water some at the stump and some around the root-zone perimeter. Red line growth in next slides.
Irrigation
• Remember, this plant will need the equivalent of over 1” of rain per week.
• 623 gallons for 1000 sq. ft/ week.
• 89 gallons for 1000 sq. ft/ day.
• Should reach this point around 4th week of July to 1st week of August.
• Optional - cooling/shading as temperatures go above 85 degrees.
Now it’s “Pumpkin Time”POLLINATIONPOLLINATION
• All pumpkins start with a bloom.
• As is common with most plant reproduction, there is a male and female bloom.
• Both on the same plant.
• Usually around the last week of June.
Female Male
POLLINATION POLLINATION MALES
• Male Flowers– Long, thin stem– No “mini-pumpkin”
under flower– Usually 1st to arrive, 5
to 7 days before a female.
– Pollen
POLLINATIONPOLLINATION FEMALES
• Female Flowers– Short, sturdy stem– Marble size ball
under flower.– Can be seen in vine
tips.– Opens 7-10 days
after 1st appearing
POLLINATIONPOLLINATION 2 Ways to Pollinate Pumpkins – By Hand or Bees
• Hand Pollination– Must be controlled or
protected to maintain genetics.
– Insures thorough distribution of pollen to all segments.
– Use multiple male flowers.
– Record pollination date and male plant used.
OPEN POLLINATIONOPEN POLLINATION
• Bees & insects– Uncontrolled for
genetics– Considered “open”
pollinated.– May be unreliable with
a low bee population or bad weather.
– Seeds from open pollinated pumpkins rarely planted.
POLLINATIONPOLLINATION Which one(s) to pollinate
• Deformities – seeds.• Visualize the larger fruit.
– Stem stress• “S” bend for shoulders
• Vine height as fruit height increases
– On top of vine• Vine & stem splits
• Shoulders grow off vine
• Pollinate many on main vine – 10’ out & greater.
Which One(s) To Keep
• 1st – decide how many you want on a plant. – Small plant – 1– Large plant – 2 (?)– 1 pumpkin per plant will
consistently yield the largest.
• Circumference measurement benchmarks: – 14 day – 40”– 21 day – 70”– 30 day – 100”
• Must know pollination date.
Which One(s) To Keep
• The size of the fruit is an important factor, but consider others:– Feet out on the vine
(pollination date).– Shape of the fruit.– Position on the vine.
• Before August 1st, cull down to only fruit you are going to grow.– Don’t keep too many.
Other Things to Consider
• Working on the underside of fruit.
• Continue vine burying– Prune/ terminate at patch
edge.– Discontinue ALL vine
growth during 1st week of August.
• Fruit sliding – adjusting the position– Sand/ mill fabric– Possibly styrofoam
Other Things To Remember
• Once fruit is “set”/ pollinated for sure, usually 30” – 50” circ., begin fertilizing again.
• Read your plant.– Lime green vs. Blue
green
• Fertilize entire root system.
SHADING THE PUMPKINSHADING THE PUMPKINWhat is it & When to use it
• Keeps fruit from scalding• Keeps fruit from internal
heating• Keeps skin softer
– Fewer splits• 5” growth/ day
circumference
• White sheet –easiest• Make it large enough.
– 5’ X 5’
• Keep the neighbors talking.
More things to RememberAgain, while all this is going on….
• Maintain weekly insecticide & fungicide applications.
• Keep plants pest free.• Remember – the Cuke
Beetle bacterial wilt takes 30-45 days to appear.
• And again, no vine growth after 1st week of August.
The Last Things to Do Are…• Hope it
doesn’t explode.
• Hope you don’t run out of water.
• Keep the fruit clean
The Last Things to Do Are…
• Worry about how big it is really going to get.
• Estimate with 3-way measurement called Over-The-Top (OTT)
• Circumference.• Stem to blossom.• Side to side.
The Last Things to Do Are…• Circumference.• Stem to blossom.• Side to side.
•Add the 3 together.
•Go to the OTT chart.
OTT Chart
Slow & Steady Wins the Race
• Remember:– Do everything
gradually– Too much fertilizer will
end your season faster than too little.
– Pre-season ground prep is essential.
Other Info Sources
• How To Grow World Class Giant Pumpkins (1,2, and 3), by Don Langevin
• Bigpumpkins.com• [email protected]
Be Kind to Your Neighbors & …
• The day before the weigh-off you’ll need lots of help to load this monster.
• One of the best ways is a tarp & 10 strong backs.
• Another is a front end loader and a strap lifting device.
You Too Could Be Here.