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Joliet, IL

a quick checklist for july. feel free to add to the list.

1. check your stump regularly. at least a good close up inspection twice a week.
2. prune all pop up tertiaries at the source. removing the tip that pops up is not the answer.
3. remove all male flowers if sets are complete.
4. fungicide regularly from this point til the show
5. check stem and vine tension on your pumpkins regularly. don't pull up the main vine to loosen a tap root, cut it clean underneath cuz pulling is trouble when the root breaks free sometimes. block the main with styrofome early around the stem if needed.
6. early ground levels can cause a pumpkin to grow into a particular shape. level the ground and try the keep the little sets with stem and blossum parellel to the ground.
7. bugs til the end of season
8. stem end and blossum end check every day. the earlier trouble is spotted, the better the odds or correcting it.
9. have extension cords and fans ready for each pumpkin. not to uncommon to have a couple full time fans running to keep stemp splits dry.
10. keep an eye on dying older leaves, especially on the main. when dead, prune them clean to the vine, remove any brown area with a toothbrush and use a 10 percent bleach or fungicide of choice like captan.
11. have fun and and watch them grow.


some may add weeding to the list. i somewhat weed still around the perimeters but mostly just top off the weeds that grow above the leaf canopy. pulling out all my nice pumpkin roots and disurbing my soil community of organisims for the ugliness of weeds makes little sense to me. snip them off before they seed or get to tall. there is plenty of nutrients in the soil for the sparse amount that grow under the leaf canopy. some may get all interior weeds when small and might not have to worry about disturbing root systems, but all that trouncing around in the plant to get every weed seems to be more damage from soil compaction than the good. .

7/12/2009 1:02:33 PM

Boise City, Oklahoma, USA

12. Yep, weed
13. Check your fruit shelter every morning and night, dump out any trapped water, fix anything that slides, etc.
14. Make the circuit every day to prune off unwanted females, errant tendrils AND the boys....
15. Fix that stump it's own protection and check under there a couple times a day.
16. If you can't see back there, use a mirror or hang a camera back there and take a picture. NEVER reach in unless you can look first, under edge of pumpkin or near the stem. (I have black widows rampant this year)
17. Take daily pictures of fruit, any thing you find, and make a file. You will appreciate this next pass as your own private log of what happened.
18. No matter what you use for watering and/or cooling, inspect it visually after turning on, and not just a quick glance, give it a few minutes. If you turn on and off several times a day, check it frequently. Finding something plugged or jammed in 105f by leaf, vine, or fruit damage isn't the way to discover you have a problem!
18b. Keep some extra plumbing parts and backup watering/cooling stuff at hand in case you have a sudden problem. Rig up the backup THEN go get parts to fix up the main bit.
19. Check fruit more than once a day until you're past a few hundred pounds. I've seen a nice one go from 'maybe a little heat stressed' at 10 am, to 'help lug off the fugly decrepit abort' at 3 pm.

7/12/2009 2:09:21 PM

Ohio

lol

7/12/2009 8:33:10 PM

Mill Bay, British Columbia

Thanks Shaz....not so sure about 12 thru 19...sounds a little over the top....

7/12/2009 10:25:56 PM

Boise City, Oklahoma, USA

#16 and #18, 18b, here; are just as vital, trust me! :)

7/12/2009 11:51:25 PM

Rhode Island

20. re-stock the fridge with soda and snacks
21. get a second keg of beer
22. start bullshitting your best friends
23. wash those pruning/vine burying pants that have been used and re-used down at the patch
24. start calling around to see how far behind you really are (especially if you live in southern new england) dont call anyone in washington state or anywhere down south or you will become depressed and drink all the beer in your shack)

7/13/2009 9:04:59 AM

Cincinnati, OH

#1 should be ....(at least for us beginners like me) Do research before you start, whether it's a novelty or a potential hobby

7/13/2009 9:45:42 AM

Massillon, Ohio

i like 24 pap!! LOL. in fact i will tweak it as such:

25. dont let your husband visit anyone in washington state / oregon or he will come home depressed and make you cry

7/13/2009 2:56:43 PM

Cochecton, NY

26. Make notes of your mistakes. Use them to help next year.
27. If you have come up with an idea to help you out in the patch, and it needs some building or modifying of some sort. WORK ON IT OVER THE WINTER!!!! Don't pu tit off and make yourself nuts rushig to get it done in the spring. Not to mention it hurts less to spend a little money at a time instead of large sums all at once.

7/14/2009 12:58:18 AM