Re: Wee Yellow Ones on the vine
Randy
I would want to know not how heavy the little ones left are - but how old
they are. If you have a 50 pounder that is only say 18 to 20 days old it
will be so soft by Halloween it would look like a gigantic Yellow raisin if
you cut it now. If it was just your first light frost the pumpkin may be
better left on the vine to age a little and toughen up if if all the leaf
cover is frozen stiff as long as the plants roots and vine system is still
functioning. You could with any luck not have another frost for another
month in Southern Ontario - right? The way the wacky weather is lately.
I have a little fruit that I pollinated late August 25th on my Kennedy 625
plant that I lost my 710 on on Aug 22. It is at 185 pounds now even though
the whole month of September has been poor pumpkin growing weather in
Eastern Ontario, and it is green as grass - would never last till Halloween
if I were to cut it now. Still that buttery soft yellow skin - they need to
toughen up abit before you can expect them to keep for over a month.
Wanted seeds from this fruit and may have to baby it a bit to get the fruit
to a stage where it would have viable seeds in it. Another plug for the
Kennedy 625 plant - good one Wayne - I will for sure be planting another of
those.
I would say keep the tarp ready though if you decide to leave them on
because there will be a handfull of good frosts between now and Holloween. I
kept a late fruit growing to October 20 last year, by covering the entire
plant with a 40 x 60 foot tarp a few times in October. No massive gains that
late in the year but something measureable though. Keep an ear open every
day for the weather forecast though as the second hard frost woule likely
shut the entire plant down.
Have fun.
Glenn
-----Original Message-----
From: Hughes-Banderob <hughes.banderob@sympatico.ca>
To: pumpkins@mallorn.com <pumpkins@mallorn.com>
Date: Saturday, September 25, 1999 10:32 PM
Subject: Wee Yellow Ones on the vine
>The cool autumn weather allowed my plants to pollinate again and I now
>have three little pumpkins (50lbs, 15lbs & 10lbs) on the vine. They are
>yellow and show no signs of aging.
>The plants have received substantial frost damage, I have harvested my
>biggest and these small ones have stopped growing.
>
>Question:
>
>How do I get these little ones to mature to become jack-o-lanterns by
>the end of October. If I pick them, will they turn orange? Should I
>leave them on the vine?
>
>Randy Banderob
>Millbrook, ON
>
>---------------------------------------------------------------------
>To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
>message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS
