With so many different uses, anyone with a garden should grow a couple of pumpkin plants. The seeds are roasted for snacking, and let’s not forget about it the infamous jack-o-lantern. They’re turned into delicious baked goods like pies and cookies. Interplanting: Plant pumpkins with bush beans, corn, dill, eggplant, lettuce, cucumbers, squash, and tomatoes.A quintessential trademark of fall, we see them nestled in dried corn stalks to create porch decorations. Common diseases include bacterial wilt, fusarium wilt, downy mildew, powdery mildew, and cucumber mosaic.Common pest enemies include aphids, cucumber beetles, flea beetles, squash bugs, squash vine borers, slugs, and snails.Avoid planting pumpkins where cucumbers or melons have grown recently.Grow pumpkins in full sun for best yield.Pumpkins prefer a soil pH range of 5.5 to 6.8.Add aged compost to planting beds in advance of transplanting.Fertilize with fish emulsion or a soluble complete fertilizer at half strength.Space hills 4 to 5 feet (1.2-1.5 m) apart. Pumpkins will benefit from the warm soil created by planting on hills or mounds raise the soil 12 inches (30 cm) tall and 20 inches (50 cm) wide and grow individual plants on hills.Space plants in the garden 12 to 18 inches (30-45 cm) apart in all directions.Seeds germinate in 4 to 10 days at 85☏ (29☌) or warmer.Sow seed ½ to 1 inch (1.3-2.5 cm) deep.Pumpkin seeds will not germinate at a soil temperature below 66☏ (18☌).The indoor temperature should be 66☏ to 85☏ (18-29☌) until germination. To start pumpkins indoors before the last frost in spring, sow seed in peat pots 4 to 3 weeks before planting out.In warm-winter regions, sow pumpkin seeds in midwinter for harvest in early summer. Direct sow pumpkins in the garden in spring after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed to 70☏ (21☌).Add a slow-release organic fertilizer to the soil at planting time. Pumpkins are heavy feeders needing a moderate amount of nitrogen and a high amount of phosphorus. Pumpkins are often planted atop mounds or hills allowing the vines to run down the hill where they can be trained to circle the mound. Add aged compost or a commercial organic planting mix to a depth of 12 inches. Pumpkins grow best in humus-rich, well-drained, sandy loam. A pumpkin plant needs about 10 square feet of growing room if allowed to sprawl. Pumpkins are easy to grow but they generally take up a lot of garden space. Pumpkins, like other winter squashes, must fully mature on the vine. Suggested varieties: Jack O’Lantern, Small Sugar, Cinderella, Lady Godiva, Green-Striped Cushaw.Days to sprout: 7-10 (soak seeds in water overnight before planting).Space between plants after thinning: 3-4 feet.Pumpkins mature 60 to 100 frost-free days after sowing depending on the variety.Protect pumpkins in the garden from cool temperatures with row covers. Sow pumpkins outdoors when the soil temperature has warmed to 70☏ (21☌).Sow pumpkins indoors 2 to 3 weeks before the last expected frost in spring then transplant them into the garden after all danger of frost has passed.In reverse-season climates, a second crop may be planted in early autumn for harvest in winter. Good Products for Growing Pumpkins at Amazon: The optimal growing temperature for pumpkins is 60-75☏ (16-24☌). The optimal planting soil temperature for pumpkins is 60-85☏ (16-29☌). Transplant pumpkin seedlings to the garden 2 to 4 weeks after the last frost start seeds indoors 4 weeks before setting out seedlings. Plant pumpkin seeds directly in the garden two weeks or more after the last frost. Pumpkins are a type of winter squash-grown through the summer for harvest in the fall. Pumpkins are a tender, warm-weather crop.
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