From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Central Wisconsin

I have a bunch of splits/cracks in my pumpkin. It is not that huge of pumpkin...only about 35 lbs. It is pretty pear shaped. The biggest split is oozing some clear sticky liquid. I have posted photos in my diary and I am just waiting for them to show up. I have heard something about captan, but I have no idea what that is and where to find out. Please help before I lose my only pumpkin on a plant that is suffering from powdery mildew already.

8/28/2008 10:20:28 PM

Anamosa, IA [email protected]

Splits like that are common with late pollinated pumpkins. You end up with a large plant that tries to grow the fruit too fast. The ooze is the plant's natural way to seal off the wound and prevent infetions. Captan is a fungicide powder you can buy at garden supply stores. You can also get daconil liquid and paint it full strength on the splits. You can then dilute it and spray it on for the mildew. A cup or so of milk in a 2 gallon sprayer also is good for preventing and treating mildew. It might be hard to save this pumpkin with the one large split, but you never know unless you try. The fungicides will keep until next year. When my next diary pictures post, you will see a bigger groundhog wound on a smaller pumpkin that healed. It was treated with daconil.

8/28/2008 11:50:00 PM

Western PA

Captan is a fungicide. you don't have to use Captan, really any type of fungicide will work, if you are able to find a powder form that would aide in keeping the area moisture free. The key is to keep the splits and cracks dry and apply fungicide until healed! if the splits are not into the cavity of the pumpkin you should be good, but if it has split into the pumpkin cavity and has been sitting for a while most likely it will rot. I have been cleaning my cracks with alcohol, then applying a fungicide (daconil, you can buy it at lowes, home depot, or walmart.) Then keep it dry, and it should heal.

8/28/2008 11:58:25 PM

Pataskala,OH

I had one of my pumpkins do that it eventually healed and grew to 407 lbs. All I did was dust them with captan.

8/29/2008 2:56:01 PM