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Hello all,

Posted in the New Growers forum about some females that have aborted on my plants. I was thinking it was just the heat, but then I also remembered that I switched from 15-30-15 to 20-20-20 water soluable fertilizer about a week before the aborts. Some of the small females just shriveled up, had a female on a Burpee Prize Winner develop look like it was gonna open, but never did.

So, its time to buy a new box of fertilizer and was looking for some advice. Did the females abort due to the heat, fertilizer, or just natual causes ( I think its all 3) or did the fertilizer switch add to the porblem. Should I stick with 20-20-20, or go back to 15-30-15. I had always thought that after the plant was larger, you should go to a balanced fertilizer, am I wrong?

I am growing 4 varities the Burpee, Big Max, Jack o Lantern, and Lumina. Still new to this, so I havent tried a true Giant yet, maybe I will pick up a few seeds for next year.

Have set 2 Big Max (1 doing extremly well) 1 Lumina and 1 Jack o Lantern. Only pea sized females showing on the Burpees.

Thanks all!

7/11/2003 2:32:11 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

I know some growers abstain from fertilizer entirely during the critical fruit-set stage. The thinking is that Nitrogen (first number) may contribute to aborts. I don't know how well this has been documented, but enough folks seem to think it's true that we may want to place some stock in the theory.

Steve

7/11/2003 3:58:13 PM

Billerica,Massachusetts

nitrogen-phosphorous-Potash
20----------20---------20

I would not be using Nitrogen at this time.

7/11/2003 4:12:15 PM

Utah

yup... what steve said...

7/11/2003 4:12:58 PM

Garden State Pumpkins

maybe a 10-52-10 dose...to get the buds then nothing till they're all set...made the mistake of geting nitrogen close to the plants all peas aborted.

7/11/2003 4:21:37 PM

Topsfield, Ma.

3 aborts and one question mark between two plants so far.
No fertilizer applied, just some 10-10-10 that was applied pre-planting. Guessing the high heat was to blame ?
Keep on pollinating !
Duff

7/11/2003 8:35:09 PM

Caceres, mid west of Spain

I am using right now a special cucurbitacea blossom fertilizer which has 20% phosphorus, 4% amoniacal nitrogen and some Molibdenuma and Borum. It seems to work well. Actually, I don't know wether is doing any good to the plants, but at least I can be sure it is doing nothing wrong.

Don

7/12/2003 7:20:01 AM