From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Nottingham, UK

As a new grower I have made some hasty choices. I culled a main vine pumpkin as it has lots of damage underneath and am left with one on a secondary. Maybe I could of kept the main vine pumpkin.

Anyway, the pumpkin measures 101" OTT on day 26 with cc of 41" (29 lbs according to the charts). I need to check its growth per day but what are the chances of it reaching my goal of 500 lbs if the plant remains healthy?

I read that secondary set pumpkins are sprinters and not long distance runners.

Thanks in anticipation

8/4/2011 5:47:27 AM

Muddy Waters

Your chances are good Ive grown a 700 on MV & a 500 on a secondary more than once years ago!with weaker seed lines than now!You can grow a 500 in 30 days!on any vine!

8/4/2011 6:26:36 AM

Germany

...30 warm and sunny days, I would say. Last year I had grown 300-pounders on secondaries within 40-50 days (in cool Germany). Anyway, 60-70 days shouldn´t be a problem, and the sprinters probably add some weight even after day 30...hence, 500 pounds on a secondary should be possible even in the UK.

8/4/2011 7:10:29 AM

long Island

I have a pumpkin growing on the main vine. It is about 20 feet out. It seems to be doing well.
I also have a pumpkin, about the same size, on the FIRST secondary. It also seems to be doing well.
Both of these pumpkins are at the basketball size stage.
I expect to start seeing some real growth in August.
The plant is healthy.
I hate to cut the pumpkin from the secondary.
My question is, How much energy is that first pumpkin on the first secondary, robbing the one thats on the main? other one?

8/4/2011 9:02:08 AM

Nottingham, UK

Measured today and growth is 4" in circumference since yesterday so at least it has picked up a gear.

8/4/2011 9:36:25 AM

Germany

@wally34: Your locations of the two pumpkins seem to be the ideal situation for having two of them (although many other growers would just recommend "kill the secondary one"). Your main pumpkin has a very long vine with many many secondaries in its back, which should really support its growth. The overall secondary root system of the plant should be much more important for the growth of the main pumpkin than the main root (noticed that from entries to the issue of foaming stumps ang growing giant pumpkins when the stump had died). The second pumpkin on the very first secondary is both the largest possible distance away from the main pumpkin and probably on one of the longest and thickest secondaries. I suspect it will mainly draw power out of the main root and this particular secondary (and perhaps some adjacent secondaries). This, however, would also be the disadvantage of this secondary position. When it comes to rapid growth rates, there´s not so much support for that little guy, as you might have removed all tertiaries from that first secondary (which are, from the secondary pumpkin perspective, its own "secondaries" on its own "main"). In your case, the second pumpkin is (if at all) probably withdrawing 5...10 percent of growth power from the main pumpkin. A secondary pumpkin on one of the vines next to the main pumpkin, and a shorter main position (13...15 ft) would be much worse, I suppose.

8/4/2011 10:14:46 AM

long Island

Thank you for the very detailed answer. You are correct with your description of my situation.
The first pumpkin, on the first secondary, has absolutely no plant behind it. Only the main crown that comes out of the ground, and about 5 leafs, that are left on that secondary.
The Main pumpkin, has 20 feet of plant behind it. Lots of secondaries, and a lot of leaves.
Maybe I should just leave the secondary pumpkin on for now.
It can be my "oh shit" pumpkin.

8/4/2011 1:03:09 PM

Nottingham, UK

If Wally was to lose his main vine pumpkin and was left with one on the first secondary, how effective would the rest of the plant be in supporting that pumpkin compared to supporting the one on the main?

Providing there is no other way for the plant to grow would the plant backfeed to the pumpkin on the 1st secondary?

I ask as my main is 20' long and the secondaries are filling out nicely. All flowers and tertiaries are being pinched out as they appear. My pumpkin is on the 3rd terminated at the pumpkin.

8/5/2011 5:05:21 AM

Germany

One would need to grow clones of the same plant under exactly the same conditions and grow pumpkins at various vines, one on each plant (e.g. 1st secondary, 3rd secondary, main 11 ft, main 15 ft etc.) to find a good answer. Otherwise, we can only speculate as to the extent of support of the particular pumpkin position when and if and if at all or probably perhaps, just in case, and nobody knows. Hence, I can only tell what I think I would feel like if I was a pumpkin ;-)

Here we go: If I was a pumpkin I would look back to the main root and try to suck my daily cocktail through that long straw (the vine), and the cocktail will get flavored by all the little jars of other cocktails it passes by. Therefore, if a long part of the main is the straw, the cocktail will be influenced by many many secondaries. The same should work with a pumpkin position 10 ft along the main and then some further ft along a secondary...I suspect this wouldn´t make a great difference. From the main root to a pumpkin position on one of the first secondaries, however, it would be necessary to invert the nutrient flow through the main in order to benefit therefrom, and that might be hard (I think it´s a straw with semi-perfect one-way valves). Otherwise, it would be best to pollinate the first female on one of the first secondaries (1 ft main plus 5 ft of secondary) early in the year, prepare this spot nicely and cosy for that pumpkin, and let the main and its further secondaries run for 30 ft across your patch to gather nutrients which should be pushed back through that thick straw to the little pumpkin. This should provide the longest undisturbed growing period for a pumpkin, but apparently it doesn´t work that perfectly.

8/5/2011 7:35:37 AM

Germany

My rules of thumb: (i) Best position would be on the main, far out (12-17 ft...something like 25 ft would also be fine, but later in the year, one would miss some weeks of precious sunshine for pumpkin growth) (ii) Long way along the main plus some feet along a secondary should also be fine. (iii) If you wish to grow one on one of the first secondaries, make them "your main vines", i.e., let them grow tertiaries, which flavor the cocktail. (Plant growth in a triangular fashion, main and the first two secondaries pointing to a corner each, and each of them developing a notable number of side vines.) Let the pumpkin set far out on that vine (12-17 ft) for similar benefit from the extra vines (the tertiaries). Disadvantage: You can grow these tertiaries only in one direction, as the other side is blocked by the real main´s secondaries.

8/5/2011 7:35:43 AM