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Cincinnati, OH

My daughter and I are new to the giant pumpkin game. The pumpkin is growing like crazy (pollinated 4 more females this morning) with three pumpkins growing now. I'll cut some off once we see which is growing fastest.
My question is this. Being inexperienced we didn't do a good job training the vines. We now have secondaries shooting all over the place but not many tertiaries. Do I start pruning now and bury the secondary tips or wait until August? If you want to see pics of what I'm talking about here they are...
http://www.fishernetworks.com/GiantPumpkin/

Thanks for any help.

-Fish

6/27/2005 4:17:43 PM

San Diego

let all your secondaries fill up your patch area and then cut them at the tip. Try to keep them running at a nice pattern parallel to each other so they have space and it's easy to manage. Bury all of your nodes on the secondary vines now so you get more roots, and pinch off all trieteries now:) Keep atleast two pumpkins on your plant for 20 days or so after pollination, cull to one if you want a biggy at this time. Jimmy

6/27/2005 6:08:08 PM

Cincinnati, OH

Thanks Jimmy. With the speed which this thing is growing we may have to have another patch expansion pretty soon. I found three tertiaries last night and chopped em off. I appreciate the help.

-Fish

6/28/2005 8:29:25 AM

Hayes, Virginia

cool home page its 675 miles from my house to yours!!
Growem BIG!!!
GOOD LUCK
Ed.

6/28/2005 7:12:15 PM

Topsfield, Ma.

Dittos on the great pics! Patch however is out of control, I can still remember that scene from my owm patch some seasons ago...LOL. How did you ever find terts in that jungle? I mean this all in a good way. Prune out a few secondaries around your pumpkins now, be merciless. The plant will compensate and grow bigger leaves, and this will allow you access to your pumpkins for care and measuring.
Best of luck, Duff

6/29/2005 9:44:10 PM

Montoursville, PA

Hey.........we are all laughing with you not at you. For be there one grower out there that has not grown at least one jungle? If there is the grower likely lies about their sex life too. :)

7/3/2005 4:49:07 PM

Wisconsin

try as i might by the end its always a jungle.........

7/9/2005 5:05:40 PM

Montoursville, PA

This is my third year. I have been seeing a shrink. With his help I have become a real mean, knife slashing pumpkin plant trimmer. I can now sleep without the blasted mental fear, of hurting the buggers. :)))

7/9/2005 10:07:37 PM

Cincinnati, OH

Thanks for the tips folks. Wait til you see the updated pics later this week. I've expanded the patch about three times now and even have the secodaries growing up the fence for more "surface area". At least that is what I tell the neighbors. This is our first year and it is a little beyond help now. But hey, we have three pumpkins on with the biggest two right around 30 pounds so we will see how it goes. Next year it will be a perfect christmas tree! Yeah Right.

-Fish

7/10/2005 10:25:08 PM