Huge Yellow Pumpkin
Mother Nature has been very good to me this year with the harvests, but she likes to throw a curve-ball once in a while. This year it happened to be with regards to my winter squashes and pumpkins. It was very dry in May and the plants didn't grow well at first, then once they started to set fruit the groundhog and deer have demolished most of my winter squash varieties. I did harvest several Blue Banana, but it looks like my pumpkin year was a bust. My first large carving pumpkin became a nice meal for the groundhog in August.
Then the same vine re-bloomed and created second small pumpkin. I thought that being proactive was necessary so I wrapped it in the nylon netting to keep it growing. And grow it did. The only issue, it appears to have cross pollinated with the Yellow Squash that I had nearby. So instead of a very nice orange round ball, I got a huge yellow pumpkin. I asked my hubby to hold it for me so I could take a good picture of it. And it was heavy!
Now I have no idea if this one will be the eating type since it pollinated with edible squash or just an interesting visual carving type. Either way, the Halloween week will be interesting.
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How interesting! I don't think that it cross pollinated as you would only see the effects of that once you planted the seed from the cross-pollinated fruit. So what you have there is most likely a decorative pumpkin and I'm actually thinking that the netting contributed to the yellow colour - perhaps it blocked some of the sunlight needed for it to turn orange. It should make quite the unique jack-o-lantern!
ReplyDeleteI don't think netting did anything because it was yellow even before I covered it. I really do look forward to carving it in two weeks!
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