I have pumpkins of all sizes on my 3 plants. Several of them are quite big
now, but as this is the first time I've grown them I'm not sure *when* to
harvest them. I've read that they need to be "hardened" before storage, but
when do you know they are ready to be picked?
Any tips appreciated!

Jayne

"Jayne" wrote in message
I have pumpkins of all sizes on my 3 plants. Several of them are quite big
now, but as this is the first time I've grown them I'm not sure *when* to
harvest them. I've read that they need to be "hardened" before storage,
but
when do you know they are ready to be picked?
Any tips appreciated!

I would have said when they start to go yellow they are becoming ripe, and
when fully yellow with the stem looking a bit dry then they are ready, but
this year because of the tropical heat and total lack of rain they are
growing yellow from the start for me. 2gals of water a day, as usual, hasn't
made a difference.
Just wait until Sept and they will have to be cut off then before the frost
anyway, and unless you have mice about they won't come to any harm outside.

--
Bob

www.pooleygreengrowers.org.uk/ about an Allotment site in
Runnymede fighting for it's existence.

On Sat, 9 Aug 2003 15:45:53 +0000 (UTC), "Jayne"
wrote:

I have pumpkins of all sizes on my 3 plants. Several of them are quite big
now, but as this is the first time I've grown them I'm not sure *when* to
harvest them. I've read that they need to be "hardened" before storage, but
when do you know they are ready to be picked?

Before first frosts and before Hallowe'en!

Pam in Bristol

Thanks Bob & Pam. They are very orange right now - there are about 3 biggish
ones & lots more smaller ones, so I suppose I'll just leave them until
September.

Pam - I'm near Bristol & this weather is hotter than summers in South Africa
where I used to live! I think we could've all grown tropical crops this
year!!

:-)
Jayne

On Sat, 9 Aug 2003 20:34:18 +0000 (UTC), "Jayne"
wrote:

Pam - I'm near Bristol & this weather is hotter than summers in South Africa
where I used to live! I think we could've all grown tropical crops this
year!!

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

Stuart wrote in message :

Pam - I'm near Bristol & this weather is hotter than summers in South
Africa
where I used to live! I think we could've all grown tropical crops this
year!!

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).
--
Well we have grown our chillies outside for years and they grow good and hot
that way, plants tend to grow short and compact but loads of fruit when it's
time to harvest.
Tried Okra but it just sulked even though planted in a sheltered spot.
Tried Sweet Potatoes last year, season not long enough outside, slugs ate
anything that started to grow into tubers.
That said, this year if they had all been started very early we might have
got something but I still doubt it somehow.

--
Bob

www.pooleygreengrowers.org.uk/ about an Allotment site in
Runnymede fighting for it's existence.

In article ,
wrote:
On Sat, 9 Aug 2003 20:34:18 +0000 (UTC), "Jayne"
wrote:

Pam - I'm near Bristol & this weather is hotter than summers in South Africa
where I used to live! I think we could've all grown tropical crops this
year!!

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

Melons need more warmth than pumpkins, so are even tricker. The
lateness of the frost doesn't help much, as there isn't enough
sunlight after September to be useful for ripening.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
horrid·squeak snailything zetnet·co·uk excange d.p. with p to reply.

On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:59:44 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:59:44 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:59:44 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:59:44 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 17:59:44 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

Considering how early the last frost was this year and how warm it has
been at times, I think I'll take some chances on the allotment next
year - does anyone have any suggestions? I have saved seed from
various types of melon that we have eaten this summer so I'll give
some of them a try (especially the small Galia melons).

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

The message
from contains these words:

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.

Some of mine grew to the size of an orange, while others didn't quite
get that enormous. The Honeydews looked rather like giant lemons. (About
the size of ostrich eggs.)

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
horrid·squeak snailything zetnet·co·uk excange d.p. with p to reply.

On Mon, 11 Aug 2003 20:19:18 +0100, Rusty Hinge
wrote:

The message
from contains these words:

I've grown galia and honeydew outside. At the time I had about three
hundred rabbits, several goats and loads of poultry. I made a hotbed to
start them off, planted them at the end of March and kept them under
cloches at night.

They were a tad small, but packed with flavour.

The galia melons that the seeds came from were Spanish, but were only
large grapefruit size - just right to share between two. I actually
have one growing now as a kind of germination test but it was sown so
late that there is no chance of getting ripe fruit from it.

Some of mine grew to the size of an orange, while others didn't quite
get that enormous. The Honeydews looked rather like giant lemons. (About
the size of ostrich eggs.)

The melon plant now has a large yellow flower on it, despite the fact
that is is still quite compact (like a young courgette plant). Would
a properly-growing melon plant of this type be sprawling all over the
place by now?
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk