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Location

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Date Posted

Grittyville, WA

Are most of these BES cracks are vertical or horizontal... (parallel perpendicular to ground)... in your experience? My real question is... of all the various stresses on a fruit... is gravity also a cause of these? If gravity is a factor I would expect the sides of the fruit to break outward and the top to sag and the resulting crack would be vertical.

Thanks...

10/30/2016 3:04:19 AM

Northern Cambria, Pa.

http://www.pgpga.com/article_CalciumHighway.htm

10/30/2016 8:33:54 AM

Bowdon, GA

What would be a source of non chealated and non nitrate calcium. Is there any other than lime. Something soluble.

10/30/2016 11:36:38 AM

Tasmania, Australia

Calcium chloride is soluble, but you run into salt (chloride) build up issues.

10/31/2016 4:48:51 AM

Bowdon, GA

In the article it said not to use chealated or nitrate calcium. How are they supplementing calcium? Or are they relying on amendments before planting?

10/31/2016 9:00:41 PM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

Gypsum has calcium. I would stay away from calcium chloride. It is a very harsh salt. It is used a lot for dust control on gravel roads. It pulls in water to hold down dust. You have to be real careful using it; it will suck the water right out of your hands and will quickly corrode any steel that comes in contact with it. It is used to accelerate the curing of concrete in cold weather but will eat up the rebar. I hate to think what it would do to pumpkin roots.

10/31/2016 10:29:57 PM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

As far as splits I have found that most are caused by real thin blossom ends (genetics) and fast growth. Over watering will make a thin end pop quickly. I have seen both horizontal and vertical splits. I had one split about 8 or 9 years ago at about 500# and growing at world record pace, and it was almost 8" thick. I blamed that one on the fast growth.

10/31/2016 10:36:43 PM

Bowdon, GA

I have noticed on cantaloupes which split easily, you can tell the ones that are prone to blossom splits early on by pressing the blossom. If you can move it, its a cull. A stiff blossom holds up better. There are variables that come into play but genetics is definitely one of them.

10/31/2016 11:49:27 PM

Bowdon, GA

What is the release time for gypsum? I know lime can be months.

10/31/2016 11:51:23 PM

Nampa

Calcium is obviously important in pumpkins. One of the biggest underlying issues is the soil pH. If your soil is acid, you need to apply lime. Lime will move your pH up and add calcium. Lime is rated as calcium carbonate equivalent. The closer to 100 % the faster it releases. Once your pH is adjusted to where you want it, then you can add slower release lime or a maintenance level. If your soil is a high pH, you can add elemental sulfur to reduce the pH and make the existing calcium available to the plant. Address your pH first, then additional calcium.

11/1/2016 9:08:47 AM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

The compost I get from Cedar Rapids has good calcium content. Probably because it comes mostly from leaves and tree limbs, and the soils in the area are high in lime, with lots of limestone outcrops. And rural areas like my neighborhood have gravel roads surfaced with crushed limestone and dolomite. The dust provides lots of calcium. If you have a source of compost that publishes their analysis, check to see if that would be a good calcium source.

11/1/2016 10:57:54 AM

Austin MN

I started using potassium silicate and I think it really helps prevent splits! Gotta have the calcium too but silicates seem to help at least for me.

11/1/2016 11:17:15 AM

Menomonie, WI (mail@gr8pumpkin.net)

Oh there are a lot of us that are experts at splitting them..LOL

11/1/2016 9:00:10 PM

Midway, UT

Gravity can sometimes be a factor in BES. I had a large but thin walled pumpkin (18% light) a few years back. The weight of the pumpkin created a fold on the blossom side which eventually created a pin hole. However, most BES I don't think are formed this way.

11/2/2016 2:47:08 PM

Grittyville, WA

Thanks for the replies. I'm interested in more speculation about nutrition, water, and predispositions, and maybe gravity too, as possible causes of end splits... Please keep replying...

11/6/2016 1:19:11 AM

Grittyville, WA

Thanks for the replies. I'm interested any and all speculation about nutrition, water, and predispositions, and maybe gravity too, as possible causes of end splits.

11/6/2016 1:21:41 AM

Lebanon, Oregon

I am no expert by any means, but it is late and I am impulsive. I finally made it to a weigh off after three years of BES by feeding gently. Not weekly, but as daily as I can. Did not get my feeding injector set up in time which was the plan, but fertilized by hand in mall amounts. Not greedy. A sudden burst of water or fert will split it. Legendary club member names as Sherwood and soon to be legendary Tobeck I would think would agree to this.

11/6/2016 3:54:13 AM

Grittyville, WA

Saw those splits in your diary garden rebel, I think you qualify as well schooled thanks for your post I hope you never reach expert level :)

11/11/2016 3:44:34 AM