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Fuquay Varine, NC

I am new to this site and to pumpkin growing. I have 6 vines growing, 2 Big Moose, 2 Dill's Atlantic, 1 casper, and 1 Big Max. I have been fighting vine borers and squash bugs plus the unbearable heat. I water them profusely and fertilize once a week and they seem to recover towards the end of the day (when not in direct sunlight). I don't know if these plants will make it or not. I planted them over my leach field hoping they can draw good nutrients from it. I am open to any suggestions anyone may have to help me grow some pumpkins this year. At this point I would just like to grow a decent pumpkin for fall. I made a youtube video so people can see my layout. Growing Large Pumpkins: Phase 1.

7/26/2016 6:46:22 PM

Central NY

Don't be tempted to water just because they are wilting...the heat and sun will make them wilt..its normal with the conditions you are experiencing...too wet will cause more issues...bayer tree and shrub(or merit) will tAke care of the vine borers but if you plan on eating the seeds or anything near the pumpkins I wouldn't use it...bug be gone will take care of the squash bugs....great site here to ask questions and there are many growers in NC that can help you out...best of luck!

7/26/2016 7:13:27 PM

Fuquay Varine, NC

Thanks for info Porkchop. I was worried that the severe wilting in the summer heat would stress the plants and cause my pumpkins to die. How often should you water them?

7/27/2016 9:47:28 AM

Little-TON - Colorado

Mist them with overhead sprinklers. 7-10 minutes an hour does very well in 95 degree days...without over watering.

7/27/2016 10:40:49 AM

N.c.

You should be giving your patch about two inches of water a week. Watering every day or every other day. Soaker hoses or preferably drip tape is the way to go. The amount of water you need will vary with the type of soil you have. The soil should be consistently moist. Without misters or shade cloth and assuming your soil has been consistently moist your plants should not be severely wilted during the day. SVB grubs in your stump or main vine will cause severe wilting. Check your stump and main vine carefully for grubs looking for places that appear soft, moist, rotten or frass is visible.

7/29/2016 8:32:49 AM

Aurora

You may want to set up a shade shelter to cover at least a third of the plant matter. This way the leaves will have some relief from the sun's intensity and reduce some of the evaporation through the leaves. I try to bury even vines on the Casper and Big Max at the leaf nodes. I have had pretty decent success with this especially when the SVB attempts to pay a visit. Be sure to check along the vines and under the leaves for entry holes and the dreaded eggs!

7/29/2016 4:52:13 PM

Fuquay Varine, NC

Thanks for all the good tips. I have checked my vines carefully and did notice some small entry holes midway down on a couple of my vines with some frass. I injected them again with the BT and buried those areas with fresh dirt and grass clippings. The soil is usually moist (but not overly) because its over my leach field. I think that with the location being in direct sunlight for over 8 hrs a day, I may need to add a shad cloth as Biddy suggested. The big moose pumpkin that's growing is doing very well and is increasing in size daily, however, the others don't seem to be growing much. I don't know if this is because of heat stress or not. I've heard people say that Dill's can put on 10 lbs plus in a day. I do fertilize them once a week and water them every other day. I appreciate everybody's input. My wife says I need to quit messing with them and let nature take its course.

7/30/2016 11:05:27 AM

Owensboro, Ky.

shorton, take a look at Ron W's diary...he stated that one of his lil pkns, put on an avg. of 52#'s per day... for a week, approaching the 30 dap mark!!! I am betting that Ron doesn't let nature take it's course...better yet, show your wife Ron's diary! LOL Peace, Wayne
Prblm here in western KY. is too much rain...seems to never stop!

7/31/2016 2:17:05 AM

Fuquay Varine, NC

I determined the cause of the wilt, more SVB! I removed about 8 larvae from my various plants. I'm not sure if they (plants) are going to make it now. I lost 2 pumpkins that rotted on the vine and my larger one looks like it has stopped growing. I hate those damn bugs, they are ruining my vines.

8/1/2016 3:59:23 PM