SFG and Giant Pumpkins

Daniel9999 4/13/2012, 4:56 pm

My local Wilco Co-op Retail store is providing free giant pumpkin seeds for a growing contest (biggest pumpkin wins) they running and I am tempted to enter just for grins....heck I planned on growing pumpkins this year anyway.

I am not gonna seriously try to win this contest and grow a pickup truck sized pumpkin or anything like that....... but I think it would be kinda cool to grow a "small" 200+ pounder.

Is growing mammoth varieties of pumpkins even doable with SFG?

I am kinda unsure how I should plan going about doing this.

quiltbea 4/13/2012, 6:21 pm

I can't even see a 200 lb pumpkin growing in BETWEEN beds without changing its shape. Not enough room. Have you seen those biggies at the fair, even the 200 lb ones? Too huge for our raised beds I would imagine.

mschaef 4/13/2012, 7:18 pm

I would say go for it!! Very Happy

There is a first for everything, right. I have grown pumpkins for the past 3 years in our SFG but nothing close to that size. Here are my thoughts: you'll need at least 2 squares for the root of the pumpkin plant and you need to figure out what to do with vines. I'm not sure if a trellis would hold a pumpkin that big so I would have a seperate 2x2 square and just keep putting the vines back into the box. I would also be sure to have 2 plants because pumpkins do not self and you want to be sure to have a female and male flower open at the same time so that you can pollinate them. Good luck and post pictures my son loves pumpkins!!!! SFG and Giant Pumpkins 418730

**Josh** 4/13/2012, 10:20 pm

Daniel9999 wrote:My local Wilco Co-op Retail store is providing free giant pumpkin seeds for a growing contest (biggest pumpkin wins) they running and I am tempted to enter just for grins....heck I planned on growing pumpkins this year anyway.

I am not gonna seriously try to win this contest and grow a pickup truck sized pumpkin or anything like that....... but I think it would be kinda cool to grow a "small" 200+ pounder.

Is growing mammoth varieties of pumpkins even doable with SFG?

I am kinda unsure how I should plan going about doing this.

You might as well join me in the BIG STUFF contest....you don't win anything but it will be fun to see what we can grow. I'm giving the big pumpkins a try and llama momma. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t11370-big-stuff

I already have the seeds to some giant pumpkins started, and I made a 1 x 3 SFG to plant one in. Then all around the 1 x 3 SFG I put layers of straw around where I'm going to let the vine grow. Will it work? I have no idea, but I'm going to find out. Very Happy

Daniel9999 4/13/2012, 10:32 pm

That is Awesome Josh .....I think I will join you guys in that contest! Sounds like a ton of fun

I think am gonna try to plant my giant pumpkin towards the edge of a 4' by 8' bed and see if I can train the vines to grow outside of it some kind low to the ground horizontal trellis contraption thingy.

Not sure yet....still looking all over the net for more info on giant pumpkins and how to grow them....

givvmistamps 4/13/2012, 10:48 pm

My boys will love seeing huge pumpkins online. Our county fair is sadly lacking in that sort of thing.

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