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Talkback: How to grow pumpkins

This year will be my first attempt at growing pumpkins and it this might be a silly question but how do you tell the difference between a male and female flower?

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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138

    Look at the stalk behind the flower - the male stalk is the same thickness (or rather thinness) all the way along, whereas the female has a swelling behind the flower - this will  grow into the pumpkin when the female flower is fertilised.

     

    No such thing as a silly question - but it would be daft not to ask image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • SydCdwSydCdw Posts: 3
    As a Australian I Love a pumpkin.

    Last year I grew 4 Queensland Blue pumpkin plants/vines from seed my Mum sent over from home to Germany for me. Planted the 4 into 2 60L bags of compost on the flat green/living roof of my house as I didn't have enough room in the garden for them, managed 2 decent sized pumpkins per vine ( 8 overall ) and lost 4 to others to birds and greedy squirrels.

    As I couldn't find any literature on growing pumpkins in grow bags I was taking a chance on the method for such a heavy feeder with a substantial root run, but they flourished.

    However if you want to try the grow bag method plan on watering every day -sometimes twice a day in the height of summer, using a liquid fertiliser every 5 days to keep them going, they will send out feeder roots along the stem if they find a spot to root.

    Pumpkins store brilliantly through the winter, I've only just used the last one up for Easter Sunday Lunch. There is a huge difference in flavour in the varieties.

    Now if the weather is good this weekend in Frankfurt, I have glut of QB seedlings to go out.
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