Re: leafless, buried vines??
Beth, I can't think of any reason that it would be harmful to the plant.
The increased root area should help with nutrient intake. Plants that have
aggresive root systems may not need more. Burying these stems would also
give you a chance to place roots at a different level, deeper. If the
buried stems are short, no leaves left on them? If they are long maybe one
on the end? There has been conjecture that some pumpkin development
problems were connected with lack of roots and or leaves in the fruiting
area. We have been removing or changing the location of roots and stems to
prevent stress on the pumpkin stem vine connection. These stems and roots
we are removing may be the most important to the fruit. For people that
have soil with good drainage, I have been removing soil from under and
arouund the fruit. In my case this is weekly. For the large fruit growers
it might be daily. This also helps with fruit growing on hillsides. By
removing the soil from under the fruit it will let you keep more of the
roots and leaves and stems above the fruit without stress on the vine. I
used it on five plants last year. The largest fruit I was working with was
200 lb. It is not hard to hold the fruit in position, remove up to an inch
of soil on one side. let that side down gently and then do other side.
Roger
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