By: Kai Wang

Growing a massive pumpkin all starts with the seed. The question is what kind of seeds should you use? I recommend “Dill’s Atlantic Giant” seeds. Competitive growers chase for successors of prizewinners but are forewarned these seeds are expensive, a single seed has been auctioned off for $1,600. But for beginners, just find one online or from your local mail-order nursery.

The second step is to find the best location to plant your monster pumpkin. When starting you want to grow your pumpkin inside then move it to the garden after five-seven weeks. Before the seed sprouts, the temperature of the air should be 65 to 75 degrees and the soil 70 to 90 degrees. Put plastic around the base of the pumpkin two weeks before transferring outdoors.

Late May is the ideal time to plant because its after the last period of cold weather. A good place to plant would be somewhere where there’s full sun and lots of space, a single plant may use as much as 1,200 feet. After doing all of that do these measures to ensure your pumpkin will grow big. You want to avoid soil compaction in the field. Remove flowers and fruits so the plant will focus on only using its energy on one pumpkin. Hand-pollinate the pumpkin to increase the number of seeds and the probability of larger fruit. You want to maintain a weed-free area. Check your soil daily to ensure it’s moist but not soggy. When your pumpkin is growing stake down along the vines to help prevent wind from twisting the vines.

Fertilize every two weeks in the Fall or Spring with nutrient-rich soil or compost/manure. Test the pH of the soil if it’s too acidic then add lime to neutralize it. You also want to put down compost, 5 cubic yards per plant. As your pumpkin grows you want to shade it to reduce overheating. Place the growing pumpkin on a piece of large cardboard or wood to discourage insects from the soil.

If you want to enter your pumpkin make sure it does not develop cracks, which will disqualify you from the competition. To qualify as a pumpkin and not a squash the surface area must be red, pink, or yellow, rather than green, blue, or gray.

Source: https://www.oregonlive.com/hg/2017/05/want_to_grow_a_truly_giant_pum.html