Hi there,
I thought we'd have a go at growing a pumpkin or two in our back garden. How much space would we realistically need if it was to be a success? We have Jack O'Lantern seeds and another variety I can't remember off the top of my head.
Thanks!
With a small one like Jack, if you grew him upwards, you could get him into a sq yard... :)
Phew! I've just checked conversion of a yard and that's a manageable size. I'd read about pumpkins possibly needing a lot of space and was imagining husband's face at the sight of a trail of greenery for some distance!
OK for the metric one square metre... one metre by one metre... now if you let it trail I'd say one by three... :)
I think I need to do some more reading on how a pumpkin likes to grow, although 1m sq accommodation is perfect for us. Thank you - any other tips for pumpkins?!
Got my grandson to sow ours yesterday he loved it!
I grow mine on the compost heap which is about 8ft square.
In this I usually grow 4 plants.
I suppose I could possibly get away with 6 but find 4 is usually enough for our needs.
I need 4 fruits, one for each of my grandkids so I usually maxmise to two per plant and save the best ones for the kids.
Lots and lots of manure/feed and water... even if you aren't growing giants they are "hungry" :)
Now then Jill, I grew my Jack'o'lantern in a sack that I'd previously grown spuds in. The plant has big leaves and trails for about a metre and you can train it up a fence or just leave it on the ground. I had a running battle with slugs though and they finished off all but one. It's worth laying the pumpkin on a tray of gravel to deter the slugs and keep it off the damp ground.
J xx
Thanks J ;) and saddad and Tee Gee. Felt a bit of a plum afterwards - I'd searched here for "pumpkin" and couldn't find any recent info which was why I posted this thread.... and then scrolling through the forum I saw a section dedicated entirely to pumpkins. Doh!
I normally grow Dil's Atlantic, got to 14 stone last year (would've got bigger but someone threw a tone at it and cracked the skin). The vine was about 8 foot long but not very wide... ;D