Re: GA
- To: pumpkins@mallorn.com
- Subject: Re: GA
- From: P*@aol.com
- Date: Tue, 4 May 1999 08:16:00 EDT
In a message dated 5/3/99 10:29:53 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
Greg@schraiber.com writes:
<< Subj: Re: GA
Date: 5/3/99 10:29:53 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Greg@schraiber.com (Greg Schraiber)
Sender: owner-pumpkins@mallorn.com
Reply-to: pumpkins@mallorn.com
To: pumpkins@mallorn.com (Pumpkins)
Harold,
I have some ProGibb 4% Solution but did not try it last year (my first
year
growing). I am still uncertain about using it because I only have about
500 sq. growing area and can only grow one maybe two pumpkins on one
plant. The research I've seen dealt with seedless grapes with the
resulting grapes
being 50% larger than the untreated. Hmmm, may be worth a try on one of
the side vines as a test.
Maybe Roger or others have experimented with it.
Any one?
Greg
>>
Greg,
Beware of the magic bullet syndrome.Everyone gets caught up in it,
including myself. That doesn't mean don't experiment , but I wouldn't fool
around with it if I only had two plants. Example: Plant #1 turns into a
ribbon vine and plant#2 is screwed up by the Ga3. 1999 SEASON OVER!!!! Ga3
has been used at low levels as a foliar spray to increase the number of
blossoms on field pumpkins. The yield per acre may go up slightly ( in tons),
but it may be due to more fruit per acre rather than a size increase. Grapes
have shown the best results with timed Ga sprays. Green table grapes don't
grow oblong and seedless by nature.......you have been eating Ga treated
grapes for years. Dr. Weaver from , I think, Stanford was the pioneer of this
breakthrough. His book was ( I think) Growth Substances in Agriculture. I
read it from cover to cover 15 years ago and talked to him a few times. He
may be retired now. Anyway, I started off on a campaign of fooling around
with Ga3 concoctions and didn't achieve anything noteworthy. Sometimes Ga3 is
used at low levels with other growth regulators. If you had 4 or 5 plants , I
would say dive in......that's the only way to get a breakthrough. Sacrifice
one plant. With only 2 plants, if you fool around you could end your season.
World record pumpkins have been grown without Ga3. I think the best way to
grow a bigger pumpkin is to optimize all factors that affect plant growth.
There are many but one of the biggest is your soil. Think of your soil as the
life support system of your plant. The roots are a living , breathing and
absorbing part of your plant....they need gas exchange......oxygen to breath.
They need the proper amount of water....too little or too much will
drastically affect plant growth. The proper nutrients must be attached to the
soil particles and available to the roots for uptake. A very large area of
optimized soil is needed to support the gigantic root system..... a 5 by 5
prepared area is not enough. I guess what I am saying ( and this statement is
not pointed at you , but to beginning growers that may have grown a 300
pounder and want to go to the next level) is the best way to grow a bigger
pumpkin is to get a good seed, concentrate on the soil, full sun, proper
nutrition and a little luck and you will achieve a growth response that Ga3
will never give you. I think it was in 1986 when a lady came to me for help
on winning a tall sunflower contest. We treated the sunflower with elevated
levels of Ga3, not knowing what would happen. She won the contest, but
instead of having one large sunflower head, she had about a dozen small
sunflowers going up the stalk and one flower at the top that was about 6
inches in diameter. :) O.D. an Atlantic Giant with Ga3 and you might be the
first person to set 50 little Atlantic giants on one plant...........or then
again you might not set any.........growth regulators can work in strange and
different ways.
pumkinguy
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