Autumn is the season of pumpkins.
The Northern Ontario Agri-Food Education and Marketing folks have a giant pumpkin contest.
Here are their photos of two previous winners.
So now I’m wondering if I should enter the pumpkin my husband and I grew this year.
What do you think?
We planted 2 vines this year, and only this one pumpkin, above, survived. Next to the peach, it’s enormous.
It’s a matter of perspective.
And I’m declaring our pumpkin a giant.
If you’d like to grow slightly larger pumpkins, see Pumpkin Fest:
“July 1st-20th – watch for male and female flowers, cover these flowers with plastic baggies and when female opens (only for a couple of hours one day), pollinate the female by cutting male flowers from the plant and gently rubbing the pollen all over the segments in the female flower. (Re-cover to stop insect cross pollination). If you only have one plant and are not concerned about preserving the lineage of your pumpkin’s genetic line, you can let the bees do this work for you.”
Obviously, our giant pumpkin managed quite well without such advice.
But maybe next year….
**
Dedicated to pumpkin growers everywhere.
Cynthia Reyes 
I love your pumpkin and hereby award it an automatic First Place!
You are a most astute person, with 20-20 vision, and I applaud and thank you.
I bow in the presence of such an awesome honour.
That’s one huge pumpkin (not your husband’s Ha, but it’s cute) 🙂
What do you mean, SK? Are you not seeing what I am seeing?
Hmm…..
I love your perspective Cynthia, and your pumpkin. XD Personally, I think those giant pumpkins are freaky!
I tell you, Brad: they’re enormous. Well over a thousand pounds, some of them.
I’ve always wondered what they taste like.
I would think not too good.
I’m giggling! But you’re absolutely right — compared to that peach, your pumpkin is a giant! 😆
I agree with you completely.
These are big, very big vegetables 😉 !
Christiane: are you referring to the tiny orange pumpkins, or my ENORMOUS green pumpkin? Just checking.
LOL
LOL yourself! Are you not tremendously impressed! Does a person have to fish for compliments?
Pardon moi. Your pumpkin is as magnificent as our watermelons! I will search for a photo.
Yes, thanks and I look forward to seeing the watermelons.
Very catchy title, Delusions of Grandeur. What a beauty for the pumpkin contest! Your pumpkin (the green one) – is it the Windsor variety? It’s very sweet and nice to eat. 🙂 Green thumbs – both you and your husband.
Why thank you, Lady Iris, for having such good taste and vision.
And for calling us Green Thumbs. You are a wise and discerning woman.
Not sure if it’s the Windsor variety – it’s the most popular (and common) pumpkin in Jamaica and our neighbours gave us the seedlings.
Ahem!! 🙂 🙂
You grew a pumpkin? Yea! I have four small leaves to show after at the end of the growing season. Award yourself the pumpkin princess crown! 👸
I shall indeed award myself the crown of the Pumpkin Princess! But seriously — do you really have only leaves?
If so, you might have pointed at the flower. My ancestors have a well-proven superstition that if you point at a pumpkin flower, no fruit will grow, and if you point at the baby pumpkin, it will fall off the vine. That’s the excuse I’m using this summer….
If I had a flower! I didn’t really expect them to grow hot dry summer!
Cynthia, I was going to say your pumpkin would go well with a good beef soup for a Saturday’s lunch!
Aha! It sure would.
But you do recall that I cannot cook. I just had to ask my daughter for directions to Apple Crumble. As if it were a place that somehow does not appear on my own personal map….
Congratulations Cynthia. I think that you have discovered a new miniature pumpkin variety by accident (as all great discoveries are). It’s a Pumpkette! By definition, your particular pumpkin really is a giant of that variety. See, you can put a positive spin on anything.
Thank you most kindly, Georgeina.
You are a woman of superior wisdom.
My pumpkin seeds are sitting on the sink waiting for me to plant them today, Cynthia! Thanks so much for the reminder 😀
You’re so welcome.
For cleverly sidestepping a comment on the enormous size of my pumpkin…..
But exactly what is the point of these giant pumpkins? Apart from winning big pumpkin prizes?
I am sure yours is much more useful. Not very big, or even very beautiful, but you can eat it. I can’ t imagine what you do with those giant ones after you’ ve finished showing off with them.
It’s like Everest. Bragging rights. I can’t imagine what else.
But Chloris: did you really say that my Giant Pumpkin is neither big nor very beautiful?
I beseech you to have your vision checked and look again…..
Sorry Cynthia, I didn’ t mean to hurt your feelings. Clearly, one’ s pumpkins are like one’s children. Perfect in every way and beyond criticism. I’ ve never grown them, so I didn’ t realise. (Pumpkins, that is. I’ ve grown perfect children but not pumpkins.)
Well, now Young Lady: you’ve totally redeemed yourself with such a stunning tribute to my Perfect and Very Large Pumpkin.
I’m sure that if you grew Pumpkins, they too, would be perfect.
And thank you for your kind tribute to my hypothetical pumpkins. I don’ t know if I shall ever grow them but if I do it is nice to know that you will admire them.
I hereby pledge that I shall do so.
Maybe the giant pumpkins are the ones that then get used in the pumpkin regattas? Where, I suspect, the main aim is to get to the finish before the pumpkin boat sinks…
And yes, it is all a matter of perspective!
well, you made me laugh, Margaret…..
I’m glad!
Some people get REAL serious about growing pumpkins around here. The big ones always look kind of saggy to me.
Hah!
How big are your pumpkins in New Hampshire? We may have to start a pumpkin war.
I’m not sure what they weigh, but the ones seen on top of the scaffolding in these pictures needed a crane to get them there.
https://www.google.com/search?q=biggest+pumpkin+at+the+keene+nh+pumpkin+festival&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=Of8hVK_PBYadyATD_4KQBw&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1093&bih=487
My gosh. Keene is awash in pumpkins!
It will be on October 18th this year. It’s something that’s been done for many years now and draws enough people to more than double the population of Keene for one weekend. Trying to get through the crowd is like being stuck in a herd of cattle. You go where they go or you don’t go at all.
How big is Keene, then?
It’s a small town of about 25,000.
Please let us know what your pumpkin tastes like if you decide to eat it. If it tastes like pumpkin, then you’ve done well. 😉
Will do. I’m kinda wondering about it myself….
Here on Kiawah we don’t do pumpkins, sadly, since it is obviously a VERY rewarding enterprise. Your gorgeous green pumpkin outshines them all, large, small, near and far – it’s a home darned run!!!
Well, then — you are obviously a person of fine eyesight and distinguished tastes, Tina.
At this rate, I may have to share my Pumpkin Princess crown with you….
Oooohhhhhh, excellent idea co-Princess 🙂
Well since that is obviously a giant peach, your pumpkin must be a bigger giant. However, I like Georgeina’s perspective. Let’s celebrate perfect miniature pumpkettes. Miniature pumpkettes always seem to get a raw deal yet they are so delicious, even raw. 🙂
Aha! A giant peach beside a giant pumpkin. Very perceptive you are. I like Georgeina’s perspective too, but of course I have no miniature pumpkins (pumpkettes) to celebrate here.
The pumpkettes can be your next garden project. 😉
Okey dokes!
Quite amazing!!… the size of those pumpkins left me speechless !.
Best wishes, Aquileana 😀
A very safe reply, Aquileana. But I’m sure you’re referring mostly to my giant green pumpkin, so thank you kindly.
I’m still getting over the sight of all those pumpkins in Keene! What a magnificent sight. But what if you have a pumpkin phobia?
Oh, dear. You’d have to get out of town, is what I think.
Wow… those are HUGE!
Yes, Kev. And my green pumpkin the biggest of them all.
Lucky you! 😀
amazing! How do they even get them inside to cook-lol what do you do with a pumpkin that size-do you eat it? You grew some nice pumpkins which are more my size:-) I have to grow my squash vertically so I have to settle for honeynut and no pumpkins in my garden. I don’t think that would work vertically-lol:-) I have no doubt others have tried!
Hmmm… vertically — you’d need a net made of strong rope to support them. Thanks for admiring my pumpkin.
Perhaps you could inspire and/or encourage the Agri-Food people to introduce a “Cutest Pumpkin” category and then you could be the first and maybe the only – at least for a little while – entrant and win! 🙂
What a very clever idea! Hmmm…..
🙂 this whole conversation has made me smile! my tiny input: whatever happened to the orange-coloured pumpkins that we carve into jack-o-lanterns around this time of year? have they been replaced by ghost-beige pumpkins and green pumpkins? i’m just asking…actually, at first i thought the peach was an orange pumpkin…so i guess i fall on the side of the giant peach and therefore enormous green pumpkin!!
Glad we gave you a smile, Frankie.
I know the ghost-beige ones have become trendy, especially in design magazines and la-de-da stores. But the smaller orange ones are still very popular in these parts – used in pumpkin-pie and soups and yes, Jack O’Lanterns.
I’m so glad you appreciate the sight of my enormous green pumpkin. Kudos to you!
That’s crazy how huge is that pumpkin!
I just know it is MY green pumpkin’s size to which you refer.
Thank you most kindly.
Your pumpkin has potential! 😉
And here I am, bringing up the rear! The enormous green pumpkin gets my vote because not only is it enormous and green but perfectly shaped – unlike the inferior, sagging and pasty-coloured ones which win prizes and then have to be composted because tough and tasteless.
A woman after my own heart! THANK YOU most kindly, Clare.
Haven’t done my pumpkin story yet but it’s quite a tale. We’ve got four pumpkins but since they’re not harvested yet, I hesitate to count them. (Yes, they’re like chickens.) When you’re ready to try it again next year, ping me and I’ll share some of what I’ve learned in five years of growing ’em. Happy Autumn!!!
Okey dokes. Thanks for the offer. I will.
I’m sure yours is more flavoursome, Cynthia. It looks just about the size for a pumpkin pie 🙂
Or pumpkin soup, I hope Jo.
Loved this! 🙂
Thanks, Chasidy. Please forgive my radio silence in Blogland. A tough week for our family.
You are most welcome. I am sorry to hear that you and your family have had a tough week . It is totally understandable. Lifting y’all up in my thoughts and prayers.
I hate to say it, but you had better success with pumpkins this year then did I. I hope for a big crop of huge pumpkins. I have none. So my most sincere congratulations to you on your awesome pumpkin! 🙂
Thank you, Jim.