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Abilene, Texas

It's in the 90s every day here, sometimes upper 90s. I know these things don't like the heat, but I thought I could get one to a couple hundred pounds. I can't even get one to 1 pound. I hand pollinated a female last Mon. I then put ice jugs on each side of if for the rest of the day. It was actually cloudy and only in the upper 80s that day anyway. I thought I got lucky that it was a good day for pollination But it didn't set. I pulled it off over the weekend.

I'm running out of space and out of options. I'm now just trying to get any one to pollinate and not being picky anymore. Even the ones that are more green than orange and the ones on the secondary vines. But does anyone have any more advice? Maybe someone else form the south? I read after the fact that I should put the ice jugs out the day before the female opens. I've done that today. It looks like it will open in the morning. I'll pollinate it then and then put the jugs out again. It's really an ugly little fruit, but I just want one to set. I've got two plants and am hoping to have something to show. I also have a Show King squash that is a month behind b/c the wind snapped the original. Other than ice and shading it, is there anything else I can do to help it? I've heard that I shouldn't water it the day before. I'll try that. I haven't fertilized in a couple of weeks and then it was a balanced fertilizer.

Thanks for your advice!

6/21/2010 2:13:14 PM

sevierville, Tn

Try covering the flower with something big enough to hold the ice jugs so that you make a small fridge. Then put white sheets, towls over that. Hopefully you will get a small cooler envirorment for the fruit to set. May have to change the ice 1 or 2 times if possible. Thats what i do.

6/21/2010 2:44:40 PM

sevierville, Tn

Like an upside down foam cooler. Is that clearer?

6/21/2010 2:45:55 PM

Abilene, Texas

Yeah, that makes sense. I am able to change the jugs once, on my lunch break. They were totally melted and even a little warm when I switched them out at lunch today. I'll see what I can come up with for the mini fridge. Thanks!!

6/21/2010 3:36:14 PM

Joliet, IL

styrofome cooler, biggest laundry dtergent bottle to fit in the cooler next to the female wihout touching it. notch slots in the cooler and sit snug over vine. that is in extreme heat over 93. in 85 to 93 temps i use a frozen laundry detergent ice bottle between the blossom and a fan. the bottles is replaced every 3 hours with a fan blowing cold air across the bottle onto the blossom and covered with a min patio table for shade works for me for better odds. and i leave the fan running until the pumpkins lay down to the ground. find someone you trust to change the bottles while you are at work in either case.

6/21/2010 5:09:18 PM

Hot West Tennessee

Shade structure and a small fan. I feel your pain, 99 here today. I am trying to pollinate this week also. Good luck.

6/21/2010 5:09:26 PM

Abilene, Texas

How cold is too cold? Not that I have to worry about that, but was curious.

6/21/2010 5:25:31 PM

Colorado

if the conditions are cooler than 55 degrees the pumpkin will be in suspended animation till it warms up

6/21/2010 6:17:03 PM

sevierville, Tn

I don't think ice bottle in a cooler in your heat will be too cold. I wouldn't use dry ice if thats what your thinking.
Just make sure the ice doesn't touch the flower/fruit.

6/21/2010 11:06:33 PM

El Paso TX.

Might also try a very early morning pollination - I've had pretty good success (6 of 8) by pollinating at around 5:30 - 6AM -- we're in the upper 70's to low 80's then and it doesn't really start to heat up until after 10AM ( been above 100 every day except 1 the last 3 weeks here - sitting at 92 right now at 10:30PM ) - another benefit to doing it that early is it is not as hard to avoid the bees since they show up just slightly later.

6/22/2010 12:28:30 AM

Upstate S.C.

JDFAN, The problem with early morning pollination is the fact that the flowers don't open until around 7 or 8. Whats your take on opening the the flower yourself.

6/22/2010 1:45:51 PM

El Paso TX.

I've helped them open a few times - a gentle pull at the top of the flower to seperate the petals and they open pretty easily on the female (the males your peeling the flower off of anyway)- you just have to be fairly careful with the female not to rip the flower apart so it can be reclosed and tied ( I've actually been using a long piece of one of the tendrils to tie the flower closed )- figure as long as you get enough pollen around the female having helped it open hasn't seemed to stop them from pollinating properly.

Here's a Pic of 3 successes on my 851 Fowler plant that were pollinated on different days in the early morning - http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc189/JDFanning_bucket/PICT0024.jpg

and a pic of the weekly growth of my first one so far this year - http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc189/JDFanning_bucket/FowlerSelfed.jpg

6/22/2010 2:11:37 PM

East Jordan, MI

This is my first year, but here is my experience so far with pollinating early in the morning.

I go to work at 4:30 every morning. I pollinated one at about 4:15 that didn't take. The rest (6) I have pollinated at about 6:15 and everyone of them have worked. The one at 4:15 I had to tear it open. All of the rest have been open enough to just hold the petals open while pollinating.

6/22/2010 9:53:07 PM

Fredericksburg, Virginia

JD, have you iced them down, or shaded them in the heat of the day?

6/22/2010 10:18:40 PM

Ohio

I pollinate before I go to work at 4;30 am to 5;00 am while its still pitch dark out and have done it this way for the last 6 or 7 years now,
I open the female flowers by hand (the ones that will open up that morning) and pour in the pollen, I then tie them back up.
Works like a charm and would pollinate any other way.

6/22/2010 10:22:20 PM

El Paso TX.

@TomV - haven't used ice or shade on them for pollination but since I work at home I usually spray them every couple hours with the sprinkler for about 5 - 10 minutes or so starting around 10 am. (have a couple rotating sprinklers set up so it is just a matter of turning it on - and not forgetting to turn it off)- but if you can't get out there every few hours I'd think the icing as Smoky suggested should work well.

6/22/2010 11:01:53 PM

El Paso TX.

Hit enter too quickly -- meant to say that I water the entire plants every couple hours - and add that we've got a pretty dry heat out here so the good 5-10 minutes of sprinkling pretty much dries up within an hour or so - not sure how well that method would work in a more humid climate. (Only problem is the watering also makes the weeds grow that much faster also !)

6/22/2010 11:12:39 PM

Midwest

JD, are you getting water on the females?

6/23/2010 1:09:49 AM

Abilene, Texas

@Brooks - You said you "pour" the pollen in. How exactly do you do that? I have been tearing the petals off the males and using them like a brush to apply the pollen. But this might be too rough on the female when you have to squeeze the stamen between the petals and the stigma (if I am remembering the terms correctly). Plus it seems like it's a little more time consuming than just pouring the pollen on. I just would like to know how you get the pollen off the male so that it will pour.

6/23/2010 9:41:40 AM

El Paso TX.

@christrules - I pollinate first thing in the morning around 5:30 - 6:00 and then tie the female buds up so that they are sealed shut - then around 10AM as it starts to get hot I start watering the plants every couple hours for around 10 minutes (longer if it is really hot) with the sprinklers ( I use this type of sprinklers - http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/034411/034411122679lg.jpg ) - so yes the females are getting watered as well but the lobes (segments) are not getting wet since it is inside the tied flower and the sprinklers are more a mist\spray over the plant not really a drench that would saturate the flower (I figure better to let them get a little wet than enclose them in something that would create a hot house effect) - then when the sun goes down in the evening I remove the flower petals from the ones that were pollinated so that they do not start to grow mold

6/23/2010 10:38:30 AM