Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 16 Entries. Monday, April 13 View Page Seed Starting Day What can go wrong starting seeds on Monday the 13th ;-) This year's seeds selection was easy. 2154 Sperry 2023 (F: 1904.4 Sperry '22 x M: 2365 Wolf '21)- This was the seed that grew the 2587-pound pumpkin last year so it is hard to select another seed over this one. 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg (F: 2154 Sperry '23 x M: 2670 Thompson '24) While the disqualification came from an odd edema (what looked like fish eggs) on the surface of the pumpkin just days before the weigh-off, after seeing that it went 18% heavy and was great in every other way, this seed choice was an easy. The pollinator plant was grown by another grower who reported some of the most aggressive plant growth they had ever seen. With an aggressive pumpkin on one side of the lineage and an aggressive plant on the other this makes a great combination. While the plant the pollen came from unfortunately contracted yellow vine later in the season the actual pumpkin production could not be determined. However, others that grew the 2670 Thompson were happy with the results. Friday, April 17 View Page Peat Moss Additions In order to keep a combination of good soil water holding capacity while also maintaining good aeration. Peat moss offers a great combination of these two properties. About 20 cubic feet of peat moss was added per 1,000sq.ft. just before planting. This gives the soil a spongy feeling and helps to help it resist compaction in season. Wednesday, April 22 View Page Soil Heating Cables The seeds have turned into seedlings, so final soil preparations are underway. After the heating cables are installed, then drip tape is put in place followed by the cold frames. All of these growing support systems will be put in-place and then a few days to check all systems before the plants are added. Monday, April 27 View Page 2154 Sperry 2023 Seedlings The seeds went two for two so both were planted as each seedling looks almost identical and both are looking great. Note: The plant on the right-hand side of this image is the keeper. Monday, April 27 View Page 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg Seedlings These two seedlings look nearly identical and a third seedling was given to another grower looking for a plant. Time will tell if the plants will continue to look as similar. Note: The plant on the right-hand side of this image is the keeper. Thursday, May 21 View Page Cull Day All of the seedlings continued to grow at near identical rates. Here both 2587 DeBacco plants can be seen with one being 10ft and the other 9.75ft. The 2154 Sperry is nearly the same so the culling process was just as difficult. These plants got bigger than normal before the official cull selection was made, since the hope was one would be a clear winner. In the end it is good to know at this point everything is very consistent and looking good. Thursday, May 21 View Page 2154 Sperry 2023 Chosen One It was hard to make the selection as both plants continued to look nearly identical so it came down to a few small details that lead to this one being the selected one. Thursday, May 21 View Page 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg The plants looks very airy since the other plant was just removed and some of the vines initially buried. Once the plant is exposed to the sun the next day the leaves will straightened out and the plant will start looking like it should. Friday, June 12 View Page 2154 Sperry 2023 Pollination Day The plant is looking great and the blue cup near the chair that is in place for shade is the pollination. The first side vines are close to being terminated at about 15 ft. long so this along with the distance out which is 17ft is and the calendar date all line up. Vine burying is underway and the weed block is being removed as the plant grows. Everything seems to be proportionally growing as it should, the rate just seems a little behind what is generally expected which could be in part due to some of the swings in weather this spring. Friday, June 12 View Page 2154 Sperry 2023 Female Flower Before the flower opened the petals did not look symmetrical, which was thought to carry over to the lobes, but this was not the case. The 4-lobes look very symmetrical so this is good to see as it seems that there may be some correlation of pumpkin symmetry and initial lobe symmetry. The 2587 DeBacco is the pollinator that will be used even though there is some genetic similarity. Sunday, June 14 View Page 2154 Sperry 2023 Anthesis Application This pollination was treated 48-hours after pollination with Anthesis which is a combination of plant hormones to hopefully increase the duration and the rate of cell division. This will typically result in a smaller pumpkin in the early stages of development but this should be for only the first 37 days, after this it should grow at a pace faster than an untreated pumpkin. (At least by the grower-based data that has been collected over the years.) Tuesday, June 16 View Page 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg Pollination Day This has been a very aggressive plant which is in part due to the 2154 Sperry (female side), but probably the 2670 Thompson pollinator to the 2587 is a greater contributing factor. This is what the original plan was, to try and increase the aggressiveness of the plant to allow for a larger plant in the same duration of time to help better support a growing pumpkin without altering the timing of the vegetative vs fruiting cycle. Utilizing the natural aggressive growth along (genetics) with carbon dioxide enrichment (environmental) and rooting hormone (CloneX gel) applied at each node is the combination to help maximize early season plant size while minimizing the time it takes to do this. There were some earlier pollinations under the chairs, but the one that is seen open near the blue cup is in the sweet spot on the plant and also on the calendar. There are a few secondaries already terminated at about 15ft. each and the pollination is over 20ft. out on the main so what is not to like. Tuesday, June 16 View Page 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg Female Flower (x 2154 Sperry) This is a very symmetrical 5-lobe flower that will hopefully result in a symmetrical pumpkin. The pollen that can be seen is from the 2154 Sperry which is also the same genetics that grew the 2587 so there is some similarity, but concentrating good genes is not a bad breeding strategy. Remember, when pollinating you want to get the pollen toward the center bottom of the lobes as this is where the nectar is and this is where the bees go. While it looks visually appealing to have the pollen grains covered on the top as shown in the image, this are may not be the most efficient to actually getting a pollination to take. Also, one flowers has more than enough grains of pollen to successful pollinate many flowers, but as growers we want to be able to see the pollen, even though botanically this is not what is important. Shortly after this image, the flower is covered with a blue cup and a chair with a white sheet is replaced over the flower to keep some shade over the flower. The goal is to keep it a little cooler so it can hopefully fully develop without getting heat shock during the early (and critical) developmental process. Thursday, June 18 View Page 2587 DeBacco 2025 dmg Anthesis Application This shows what the actual misting of Anthesis should look like on the female flower about 48-hours after pollination. The exact timing here is about 45 hours after pollination because the application was made just before sunrise. The reason for this is to reduce some of the UV degradation of the hormones and it keeps the water droplets on the small pumpkin a little longer. It may be a little hard to see, but the petals, stem, petiole, vine and tendril are not intentionally sprayed. These plant structures may receive some unintentional over spray, but this is nothing to worry about. In addition, the flower petals are left on as this will likely produce some natural ethylene which can help encourage cell division. Many growers seem to remove these very early on for fear of rot, but the degradation process may actually serve a beneficial purpose. One of the biggest threats to giant pumpkins (at times) is the grower;-) Wednesday, July 8 View Page Natural Light on a Sunny July Day The use of shade cloth has become increasingly common among giant pumpkin growers, with many reporting anecdotal improvements in plant health. Early in the season, shade cloth can help reduce leaf burn, maintain more consistent canopy temperatures, and mitigate wilting and water stress associated with intense sunlight and heat. Despite these observations, few growers quantify actual light intensity�specifically PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation). PAR represents the wavelengths between 400-700 nm, which are the primary spectrum used in photosynthesis. Accurate measurement requires a dedicated PAR meter, a tool that can be difficult to justify given its cost relative to the data it provides. To help growers better understand light intensity and the impact of shade netting, the following information offers practical reference values without requiring specialized equipment. For comparison, a "control" reading was taken on a sunny July day in Southern New England. Measurements were collected around midday in an open lawn under full sunlight. The resulting PAR value was 1915 μmol/m�/s. For context, typical maximum PAR levels under completely clear midsummer skies approach 2000 μmol/m�/s, indicating that the conditions during measurement were near peak natural light intensity. It is important to note that PAR readings fluctuate slightly due to passing high level clouds and the sensitivity of the meter, which detects even minor variations in light. For clarity and consistency, average values are used for comparison throughout this discussion. Wednesday, July 8 View Page Under a Shady Tree On the same sunny July day, a second measurement was taken approximately 100 feet from the full sun control reading of 1915 μmol/m�/s, this time beneath a large maple tree. The resulting PAR value dropped to 105 μmol/m�/s, clearly demonstrating the substantial reduction in light intensity caused by canopy shading. For pumpkin growers, it is well understood that planting near trees should be avoided; however, this comparison highlights an important parallel within the plant itself. When a pumpkin leaf grows beneath another leaf, it receives similarly limited light. This underscores the importance of maintaining a disciplined pruning strategy that keeps leaves on a uniform plane with minimal overlap. The goal is a pond lily pad canopy which is a broad, evenly spaced leaves that fully cover the area without shading one another. Although this example uses a tree canopy, the same principle applies under a pumpkin leaf, and the reduction in PAR can be nearly as extreme. In this case, the shaded reading represents roughly a 95% decrease in light intensity compared to the control measurement. Growers have also asked how these PAR reading may change based on the time of day and I will refer you to this DeBacco University "Student Series" video that was taken on a different day in a different location, but demonstrates the basis trend... YouTube