Hi Lynn
let the fruit ripen as is. the plant will look just about dead all dried up
and the pumpkin will have a very pretty orange color and be heavy. last year
it was late Sept early Oct till we gathered ours ( zone 5) I picked a
couple earlier than that but it went straight into pies .
this year we didn't even plant pumpkins or squash on purpose I threw out
the old unused ones straight into the garden to decompost last winter.( I
also have a couple of tomato plants that were a surprise plantings as well).

I heard once if you bath the pumpkin in a very weak javox solution then let
dry well it will keep better through the winter but I never tried it myself.
I usually cook it and freeze for later use.


--
Lynn waving from the other coast in NS

"Lynn Coffelt" wrote in message
...
Finally, FINALLY! We got some pumpkins to take off. Five or six gangly and
watery greenhouse started seedlings (we thought they were gourds) put in a
different location in town. Anacortes, in northern Puget Sound area. Now,
what? they are for Halloween, if the teenagers don't get them first. A
couple 18" or more and starting to turn color. The BIG question is: How do
we collect and preserve them until Halloween? That's still a couple of
months away!

HELP!

Lynn, anxious and sleepless (another Lynn...... Old Chief Lynn)