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ShagHarbour n,s canada

whats everyone aiming for this season..? back when i was a teenager everyone used to count leaves,, 800 leaves 800lb pumpkin,.. times have changed dont you think,, seems now everyone is using less nitrogen trying to get the plant stopped growing to focus energy into the fruit asap..i myself "THIS YEAR" have to grow 2 plants per 600squared ft ..totally experimental.long as i get the carl graham 1800+lb marryed to the ron wallace 2009lb married lol " funny eh,," i am happy,,i call it a pollination crop ..but is it possible to get a few biggins? if not tell me the reasons

3/20/2013 11:58:00 AM

Germany

Check out my diary. Everything above 500 sqft should be good for a pretty big one (or two big ones in your case). Much more important than the difference between 500, 600 or 700 sqft will be weather, the quality of your soil, pruning patterns, location of plant within the patch etc.
Dale Marshall grew his 1723 in a 500 sqft greenhouse, Quinn Werner grew his 1634 on 590 sqft, Dave Stelts grew his 1807 on 600 sqft...it is possible.
Good luck!

3/20/2013 12:04:48 PM

Germany

Plant´s aren´t growing so fast here in Germany (at least the outdoor plants, which applies to my patch), therefore I´ll be aiming at 450 sqft per plant.
My 2012 PB (929.5 Wagler) was grown off the 1723 Marshall on a 360 sqft plant within 92 days from pollination, even though first frost had killed parts of the plant as early as on day 70 after pollination, soil pH was 5.8, Ca was much too low, Mg was slightly too low, etc. etc., and therefore I guess this pumpkin might be a good indicator as to what can be achieved on a small patch, because one could expect more in case of more ideal conditions (soil, weather).

3/20/2013 12:10:22 PM

Germany

sorry, should read Plants, not Plant´s

3/20/2013 12:10:45 PM

Germany

forgot to mention: the weight/sqft statistics are in my 2013 diary (from my above post you couldn´t find out which diary I was talking about). Here are some links to the probably most interesting graphics:

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryViewOne.asp?eid=194903

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryViewOne.asp?eid=194905

3/20/2013 12:17:44 PM

Michigan,up North

Iam debateing this too,was goin to go with 2 plants in a 50 by 40 area,butt now thinkin one for compation plant ,with reading some cut off ever other secondry,makes me wounder .all i know is last years 1723 was the worst growing plant ,the first 2 secoundry grew great ,then the other stop growen ,it grew the biggest pumpkin with the smallest plant,the 1103 young and 525 puricelli plants were sexy,every secondry grew.ill know more next year,lol

3/20/2013 12:58:26 PM

Michigan,up North

Iam going to do what ron say 840sq foot,ill lost a extra pumpkin ,it be worth it if grows 1500lbs

3/20/2013 1:01:05 PM

43.841677 , -79.086692

I took on a different train of thought in 2012.
In my first 2 years growing I had 4 plants at 900sq'. Growing a best of 1030 in 2010 and 1065 in 2011.
2011 was a real eye opener for me after ending the season with only one pumpkin. I decided to grow smaller plants so I could grow 6 rather than 4 and increase my odds of getting them to the scale. I grew 6 @ 600 sq' and pushed them like mad right to the end knowing that I would loose some.
I ended up with the 1684.5, 1381 and a 1200est that split in early sept.
If you have limited garden space as I do, I'd opt for more yet smaller plants.

3/20/2013 2:52:29 PM

Muddy Waters

I grow air bubbles but for my thinking a 600 sg foot plant thats in a near perfect environment & everything clicking will grow a WR.If every things is not clicking right,I dont think a bigger plant will help.

3/20/2013 3:30:37 PM

BC, Canada

Yeah Cueball, if you grow that GrahamXWallace can I have a seed? HA
As to area, four years back with my first attempt at growing an AG, and what I thought was a serious attempt. I put two plants in area less than 400 sq. feet. I wound up with my PB of 642 and one a little over 300. Always looking to improve. This year I will have one in the same area, and will be using another , but less prime, area for my second.
I've read this thread over a few times- if I get the gist of it from Pumpking's wonderful analysis it means that with a small area big is possible, but maybe that the plant/crop management is more critical. Preplanned irrigation, disease prevention, spraying schedule, fert scheduling, soil prep and an idea of where the vines are going to lay etc. is, perhaps, the key to good things in small packages.
I'm still learning but it is a lot of fun. I thought I was a very knowledgeable gardener but this AG thing presents some great challenges. You sure can learn from some of these people that give so freely of their time and knowledge on this forum. Thanks to all.

And them there is the fellow who got a plant from me last year and grew it in a half barrel! He did get a 25 pounder.

3/20/2013 11:29:25 PM

Muddy Waters

If your growing outside,you may want a bigger plant to carry you through the season,as leaves get worn out & exhausted.I have found growing under cover the leaf has a longer life,at least from outer appearance it does.People that visited Jackson Reed last October were amazed at the leaf health in October.So a smaller plant may work for me but not you.I don't think there are any one thing works for all in this sport.

3/21/2013 8:07:16 AM

ShagHarbour n,s canada

i do plan on at least building a green house over the 8x8 area ware the stem comes out,," i hate contending with rain fall worrying about a cracked pumpkin the next morning,,,so by sheltering 8x8 i think that might help,, then i might even build a low slung green house 3ft tall over the entire plant as it grows,,i live in a warm place with lots of shelter from the wind,,, i just dont want to see a cracked pumpkin,,, and yes i well have lots of seeds to share ,,,and ya never know maybe you cant get bigger then 2009lb but i cant see crossing the graham with the wallace giant hurting anything ..

3/21/2013 4:18:51 PM

Mill Bay, British Columbia

Wish I had as much room as you Chris... I can squeeze in 3 small plants (400 sq ft or less) or grow 2 what I think are full size plants (600-850 sq ft) With smaller plants, vine placement and use of square footage in patch that you have available is very important.

I had great luck with flag pattern plants, but would never get pumpkins much over 800 lbs, usually in the 500-700 lb range...

Its tough having a small patch and being "all in" with one plant...and one pumpkin. I'm with Chris on this one and agree that more smaller plants gives you better odds to get one to the scale in one piece.

Cavityseacy...email me at [email protected]

3/25/2013 7:57:00 PM