Author Topic: giant pkn time again  (Read 34028 times)

Steve.

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 196
    • The Nook
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #160 on: October 04, 2011, 14:57:04 »
Nice one Pete.. ;D

Steve...:)
"The Nook"



Photo's copyright ©Steve Randles, however if you want one, please ask.

pete JB

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 103
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #161 on: October 04, 2011, 23:21:13 »
A BEGINNERS GUIDE TO GROWING ATLANTIC GIANT PUMPKINS.

Hi there !

My name is Peter Bragg and I grow Atlantic giant pumpkins in the north of England (Cumbria to be exact). I have been growing regular veg on my allotment for around 6 years and grew in my garden at home prior to that. I have been growing giant pumpkins for around 5 years and have learned lots about their cultivation along the way.

There is lots of information out there which relates to growing these plants and lots of it is confusing and contradictory. The aim of this piece is to introduce beginners to the art of pumpkin growing and lay down some basic guidelines which will hopefully ensure success when trying this for the 1st time.

I will break the piece down into 7 sections.

1, Seeds
2, Ground prep
3, Seed Starting
4, Transplanting
5, Plant Care
6, Pollination
7, Feeding

SEEDS

Atlantic Giant Seeds which you can buy from the garden centre will give you success when trying to grow a medium size pumpkin (up to 100 Lbs) but if you want to grow a really large one you will need to obtain seeds from a grower. This might sound a little daunting but growers will gladly give you their seeds for nothing. There are so many good seed stocks out there that a grower wants to see his or her seeds “hit the dirt”. Visit a site like www.bigpumpkins.com. They have a message board and people will send you seeds for free. All you need to do is send them a stamped addressed bubble envelope. It really is that simple !

GROUND PREP

The Atlantic Giant is a hungry plant. It will require a well prepared site with lots of organic matter included. Competitive growers will add tons of manure in Autumn and then amend the site in Spring with other additives including lime, Gypsum, Fish Blood and Bone. The amendments that competitive growers use are flagged up in a soil test which is taken in October or November. The soil test will give N P and K levels in the soil and also, the organic matter % plus trace element levels. These tests are done by various soil labs located in the Uk and can be easily found on the Internet.
Personally, this is something I do because I want to be competitive but for 1st time growers, it’s not something that is absolutely necessary. If the site is prepared with some manure, compost and fish blood and bone then this will be adequate to ensure enough nutrients are present.

SEED STARTING

Seeds can be tricky to get started. There are lots of methods which competitive growers use to start their seeds. Some growers sprout the seed in damp paper towels and then transfer them to pots once germination has occurred. Others sow theirs in peat pots and then transfer the seedling (pot and all) to its growing position in the pumpkin patch. Personally, I sow my seeds into 1 litre pots which are filled with John Innes potting compost. I warm the pots in a propagator for 24 hours before I sow the seeds. I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is to give the seeds some heat when attempting to germinate them. I have the seeds at 80 degrees and they are usually up in 2 – 3 days. When they have germinated, put them somewhere sunny. If they are on a windowsill they will need to be rotated regularly so they don’t become leggy. They will be fine in 1 litre pots for a couple of weeks before you need to transplant them.
If you are growing outside (i.e., not in a tunnel) then you will need to pay attention to the weather. There is little point of putting the plant outside until it is warm enough. Plants in a cold soil will do very little growing until it warms up. For this reason, sometime in the beginning of June will be the best time to start seeds.

TRANSPLANTING

It will be advantageous if the planting site is prepared prior to planting. A hole should be dug which is 3 feet in diameter and around 18 inches deep. Fill the hole with some rotted manure and top with your own compost or multipurpose. The finished planting site will be slightly mounded and the plant will sit in the middle of the mound. Simply transplant the seedling in the normal way but pay attention to the orientation of it. (Confused ? Let me explain)
When the seedling emerges from the compost at the germination stage, there will be 2 large seed leaves. This will then be followed by the 1st true leaf. When transplanting the seedling into its planting site please remember that the direction of the main vine will run away from the 1st true leaf. If you don’t have lots of space, this is really really important.

PLANT CARE

The plant will start to grow and develop a main vine. This grows in a straight (ish) line away from where the plant was transplanted. As it does this, other vines will grow at right angles to this. I will refer to these as secondary vines. As these secondary vines grow, they need to be covered with soil. This will help to anchor the plant but more importantly, further roots will develop along these vines and they will take up plant food and water to sustain the plant. When the secondary vines are 8 feet long (or when they have reached the edge of your growing area) they should be terminated. This is done by nipping off the end of the vine and covering it with more soil. It’s important to keep the plant in check or it will take over your garden !
There are various pruning techniques that growers use to keep their plants in check but when you are starting out, don’t get too compulsive about it. Just try and keep the plant tidy
I will deal with terminating the main vine in the section on pollination.

POLLINATION

OK, I suppose we had to get to sex eventually so here goes !
There are 2 ways to pollinate a female flower on a pumpkin plant. You can either leave it to the bees or do it yourself !
 A plant will produce both male and female flowers and pollen must be transferred from the male flower to the female. This is easily done manually but I’m going to suggest that you leave it to the bees. They are really efficient and will get around your plant better than you ever will.
Just to identify which flower is which. The male flower has a very long stem and when you look inside the petals you will see the pollen on the stamen. It looks like a fine yellow powder.
The female flower has a much shorter stem and you will see the very small fruit sitting behind the flower petals. When you look inside the flower, you will see the stigma which receives the pollen (and is segmented)
When the female has been pollinated, the tiny fruit will begin to swell. This is a sure sign that pollination has been successful.
You will find that multiple pollinations have occurred on a plant but it is advisable to leave only 1 or 2 fruits in order to get a decent sized specimen at the end of a season. If possible, the main vine is the best place to have your pumpkins. Secondarys vines can support a pumpkin but they rarely support a really big one. When you have a couple of fruits growing steadily, I would cut off all the others and then cross your fingers. It’s a fairly high risk strategy but necessary for producing a big one.
I would also terminate the main vine once you have made your final selection of fruit. There’s an old saying that “your growing fruit, not salad” and vegetative growth once a pumpkin has been set will be at the expense of fruit growth.

FEEDING

The Atlantic giant responds well to slow, low nutrient feeds. As I mentioned at the start during ground prep, compost, manure and FBB are all good when preparing the ground. It is advisable however to liquid feed during the season at 1 week intervals. I use fish emulsion and seaweed emulsion at weekly intervals. This is done via a sprayer as a foliar feed and also watered into the root areas of the plant. Chemical fertilizers tend to give the plant a massive kick up the backside and can lead to fruit splits. Personally, I would avoid them altogether.
A comfrey feed can also be beneficial during the latter part of the season. It is high in potash and this is good for fruit growth.


NOTE.

I hope this is of some use. Enjoy and grow em big !


Pete.





Steve.

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 196
    • The Nook
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #162 on: October 05, 2011, 01:02:11 »
Nice clear and concise guide Peter, can you expand on the fish and seaweed emulsions a little, where they come from or what/how they are made?

Steve...:)
"The Nook"



Photo's copyright ©Steve Randles, however if you want one, please ask.

Squash64

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 4,545
    • Walsall Road Allotments
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #163 on: October 05, 2011, 05:16:19 »
That really is excellent, thank you for taking the time to write it Pete.
Betty
Walsall Road Allotments
Birmingham



allotment website:-
www.growit.btck.co.uk

pumkinlover

  • Guest
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #164 on: October 05, 2011, 07:41:32 »
That looks brilliant Pete, will study in detail for next year!

pete JB

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 103
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #165 on: October 05, 2011, 09:00:05 »
Thanks all. I hope it is fairly clear. I tried to keep it simple.
Steve. Take a look at the links below. You can buy both types of feed and they are both organic. They are both low nutrient but contain lots of trace elements which are beneficial to the plants.

http://www.vitax.co.uk/index.php/area/home-garden/organic-plant-feeding/seaweed-plus-sequestered-iron/

http://www.gardendirect.co.uk/garden-care/organic-natural-range/organic-fertilizers/fish-emulsion

Dandytown

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 505
    • Pumpkins Growing Diary
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #166 on: October 05, 2011, 14:28:54 »
Did anyone notice any extra growth on your pumpkins plant as a result of the recent heat wave?

Mine must still have some energy left in it as about 4-5 females appeared on 1-2' tertiary vines.  Wish I had pinched them out earlier as that growth could of gone into th e pumpkin



lisaparkin

  • Acre
  • ****
  • Posts: 319
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #167 on: October 05, 2011, 16:56:58 »
Thank you for that Pete, very helpful :)

non-stick

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 237
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #168 on: October 08, 2011, 20:32:24 »
No pictures yet but I picked my four today (worried about them getting nicked for halloween), Smallest just under 10lbs, two round 20lbs and the biggest a tad under 35lb.

Wont win this competition I know but the biggest I've ever grown by a mile

How you lot lift the really big ones is beyond me!!

slyfox-mal

  • Acre
  • ****
  • Posts: 349
    • my diary
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #169 on: October 09, 2011, 16:04:01 »
well my season is over took the fruit to local scrap mechants and got it wieghed 236lb was final result pretty poor  really but hey its all good fun  already preparing my patch for next year  im going to try to build a smallish tunnel this winter to have a go growing under cover  see what effect it has on my pkns .

well done everyone who tried this year and all the best to you all  kindest regards mal
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are,
the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.

Dandytown

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 505
    • Pumpkins Growing Diary
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #170 on: October 10, 2011, 11:30:50 »
It was not a great year so maybe a good one to grow a 263lb pumpkin in.  Next year Mal, with good weather you'll go +500 I am sure!  :)

Thanks for all your help at the beggining of the year.



Nigel B

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 565
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #171 on: October 13, 2011, 15:59:28 »
Blimey! I'm losing it...

I thought I'd posted the pictures of my monster pumpkin here.... ???

Sigh...

Sorry for the senior moment. :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39243143@N03/6240908174/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/39243143@N03/6240908016/


Still confused though........ :) Which is nice.
"Carry on therefore with your good work.  Do not rest on your spades, except for those brief periods which are every gardeners privilege."

Grandma

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,283
  • Worthing, West Sussex.
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #172 on: October 13, 2011, 16:07:53 »
Nigel - I think you put your photos in the Giant Pumkin Contest thread!  ;)

Squash64

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 4,545
    • Walsall Road Allotments
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #173 on: October 14, 2011, 15:12:02 »
[attachment=1]

I won our site competition today with this one, 238lb 6oz.  A chunk had to be cut out
before it was weighed because the scales didn't go up that high.
Betty
Walsall Road Allotments
Birmingham



allotment website:-
www.growit.btck.co.uk

grawrc

  • Global Moderator
  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,583
  • Edinburgh
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #174 on: October 14, 2011, 15:14:52 »
Well done Betty! That's a cracker!! 8)

pete JB

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 103
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #175 on: October 14, 2011, 20:09:31 »
Well done Betty. Great job.

Pete

Sinbad7

  • Hectare
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,158
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #176 on: October 14, 2011, 20:38:33 »
Congratulations Betty, it looks brilliant.

pumkinlover

  • Guest
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #177 on: October 14, 2011, 21:04:41 »
 ;D ;D ;D Congrats

Steve.

  • Half Acre
  • ***
  • Posts: 196
    • The Nook
Re: giant pkn time again
« Reply #178 on: October 15, 2011, 13:34:02 »
Very well done Betty...a lovely orange colour too!!

Steve...:)
"The Nook"



Photo's copyright ©Steve Randles, however if you want one, please ask.

 

anything
SimplePortal 2.3.5 © 2008-2012, SimplePortal