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Lebanon, Oregon

For me it is one of the most difficult time of the season. Lets say, for example, you start 10 seeds from 6 different killer genetics. They all germinate and look good. You have to make the tough decision to commit to two plants only to put in the garden. How many different genetics/seeds starts vs plants seeing the garden do others do? What is your process to deciding?

1/7/2016 5:28:22 PM

Plainville, Connecticut 06062

Good question Garden Rebel. If I am going to plant seven plants, I will start germinate approximately 18-21 seeds all of which will be my top choices to plant. Many will be doubles some won't be. I will place two or three plants per hoop house. Generally each hoop will have a top choice or two top choices or doubles of the same seed. Each young plant gets the same care and treatment. On D day when I have to choose the plant of choice to keep and cut the others, I first look at which plant is growing the best the most robust and healthiest looking plant and then its genetics, such as could be a late starter and then my gut feeling and you make the choice and never look back. Usually my backups that are in my hoops are still top choices even though I call them backups. Always study the weighoffs posted on this site to see what proven seeds you may have and how they have produced in the past and with unproven seeds how the Mother and Father seeds has produced in the past. In my book you can't go wrong with real big to real big if size is what you are looking for. Goodluck in 2016!

1/7/2016 6:40:02 PM

nOVA sCOTIA

Hey Rick just checked out your 2015 diary again and it looks like you have a real nice size piece of property!Lots of room to expand!. Get out the tiller and prep a new piece of patch. Keep them all...lol

1/7/2016 6:43:48 PM

East Jordan, MI

This is how I decide.
First I get them down to the ones I want to grow and plant multiples of that seed at the same time so I am comparing apples to apples.

Then I compare the two plants using the following:

The plant needs to lay down with no issues, a kink or split vine vs one that is perfect makes an easy choice.

The plant that is the most "normal". Example of non desirable things are a plant that is hard to train, have one side that doesn't grow as good as the other, is a double, sunburns, wilts, is pale green, has signs of stress or disease etc.

Plant vigor. As long as the above aren't an issue, pick the more vigorous plant.

1/7/2016 7:33:12 PM

Upa Creek, MO

Some advice I read a while back is after you have decided and narrow down as suggested above, start a backup 10days to 2 weeks later. This backup should be something you're okay to grow with incase an early disaster strikes to a month old plant. The backup should also be one you're okay with throwing out later on. I typically leave it growing root bound in a big pot until mid to late May. Someone else's backup like this saved my season 2012

1/7/2016 9:13:38 PM

Lebanon, Oregon

Pooh-bear. So you place two or three plants per hoop house to start. Great idea. I will have two hoop houses and do that.
DONKIN. Yes, 10 acres so I can have some personal space, but not the best soil for agriculture. A couple of inches of top soil on top of bedrock sloping down to a marshy area. I would love to have 10 plants but ground water is limited as my well is in the bedrock down 280 ft. I can barely keep two plants alive in the season.
Cntryboy. I will use your method to choose my multiple seeded genetics. One of my two main picks I am banking on is your 1921. I have one. I bid on another in our PGVG auction but someone else had a little deeper pockets, but barely! I had my banker with her hands on her hips watching me over my shoulder, otherwise.. I am prepared for the next auction for another 1921 seed as a backup, where ever it may be. Any idea where that may be and when?
I want to cross the 1921 with another 1676.5 Daletas genetics either the 1676.5 itself, 1662 or 1662.5 DeBacco, or 2059dmg Daletas. This is my early plan anyway. Thank you for your feedback and good look to you all. We have rounded the corner and April is not too far away.

1/7/2016 9:19:17 PM

Minnesota(dw447@fastmail.fm)

I like your thinking pooh-bear and cntryboy.

I plan on growing one of my own seeds next year. I have plenty of seeds of it, and so far it's not a seed that's highly requested. The plant was a ribbon vine that eventually ended up a double vine, which I pruned to a single. My plan it to germinate 7 or 8 seeds of it, and plant out the 4 best looking plants. Two on each end of the allotted plant area. I'll then choose the best plant on each end, and go with them. Eventually I'll go with the best plant and stick with that one. That is one of the advantages of growing your own seed IMO. You can usually start more seeds of it to begin with.

1/7/2016 9:22:01 PM

Lebanon, Oregon

Just read your feed back Smallmouth. I can do that too. I have several 5 gallon pots.

1/7/2016 9:22:20 PM

Midway, UT

In addition to what has been mentioned before, especially if it is a first year seed, is look at the plant attributes to see if there is more mama or papa in the plant. Sometimes the more aggressive plant early on isn't necessarily the genetic side you are looking for. So leaf shape, plant color, leaf size and other growing tendencies can give you a hint at what traits you are going to get in the pumpkin later in the year.

1/8/2016 3:39:22 PM

East Jordan, MI

There is a 1921 in the Black Hills Giant Pumpkin Growers raffle (http://www.bigpumpkins.com/msgboard/ViewThread.asp?b=50&p=559707) lot 7.


tickets are 1 for $5, 3 for $10, 10 for $25, 25 for $50


The NEGPGA Seed Auction at 9pm tonight has one (lot 8).

These are the other auctions that will have one.

Indiana, Iowa, PGPGA, SNGPG, CTGPGC, Napa Valley, Utah, Team Pumpkin, NHGPGA, EGVGA (European), IGPGA, NYSGPGA, Barnesville Ohio and Kentucky.

An added note, the Kentucky auction will have the 1714 Weston. This will be the only 1714 available, and the last one that will ever be auctioned.

Good Luck!

1/8/2016 5:57:04 PM

East Jordan, MI

the auction tonight is 8pm not 9....dang it ken I need an edit button....lol

1/8/2016 5:58:42 PM

Syracuse, NY

i just start a lot of my own seeds that i feel are as good as any others, just that they haven't had the 'press' that the ones at the auctions have had. i treat every bought or given-to-me seed like gold or at least as VERY valuable and plant in-total as few of them as possible; i put-in my germination buckets 1 seed in each of four peat pots and monitor the already-controlled temperature at seed depth to be about 90* F and then, hey, if i only put-in 4 top seeds
plus 8 others (mine) and one top seed sprouts but not the other three, then, i'm out just three, for now; whenever ANY seed sprouts, THAT spot gets the NEXT seed that i wanted to plant from my top seed collection; chances are that i've had most of my top seeds for a few years and they are starting to wane in the vigor dept.; i'd rather plant a bunch of my own and see how they do than get in a streak of something being wrong, like my spring of '15; that was when i noticed my older seeds starting to (repeatedly) fail. i discovered, though, that three of MY seeds produced fantastic orange, and also that the 702 Holland (2032 Mathison X 2009 Wallace)
grew my biggest one for the year. so, my policy is to plant them as if they are my last ones i'll ever have---
it DOES have its advantages---i'd also say that since your germinating method seems to work, just allow 4 days between sproutings of 4 or 5; then, you might get your TWO plants to actually plant, saving you the others! hmmmmm...... eg

1/9/2016 10:43:09 PM

Ontario

Im having a difficult time deciding also, last year was first year growing and out of the first 4 seeds i germinated only one survived in the patch, i was starting seeds every few days during May and finally got 3 to grow, this year i am leaning towards 2 of same seed in each hoop house which are 4ft x 6ft. How far apart do you put plants and how long do you let them get before terminating one? Orv

1/18/2016 9:27:22 AM