Not Many Pumpkins!

[strawhead]

Just toured the pumpkin patches. We have excellent leaf, vine, and flower growth. A ton of flowers are falling off with no pumpkin growth. We have two different kinds of pumpkins in each patch. On last years soil report, K was somewhat low. Others in optimum levels. At planting fertilized with triple 19. Any thoughts if this is a pollenization problem, or something else I am missing. Thanks.

 

[biglakeba$$]

How ironic.... I thought about posting the EXACT thing today.

My pumpkin patch behind the house has ZERO pumpkins in it that I can see. Thats 2 years in a row now. I am completely baffled. I have never had any issues growing pumpkins in past years.

I put in about 6 different kinds of pumpkins.
This spring I put in turkey manure and some 10-10-10.

Beyond stumped on this..........

 

[strawhead]

Did a google search.....learned that pumpkins have both male and female flowers. Didn't know that. I have very few female flowers, which have the tiny pumpkin below the flower on the stem. Don't know why this has occurred yet. We have gotten our seeds in bulk from the same supplier for 4 years now. Will continue researching.

 

[strawhead]

It is hard to say exactly what might be causing the lack of female flowers. A couple of things to consider are: feed the plants with a high-phosphorus fertilizer to increase bloom production; and the other possibility, according to some seed developers, is the spacing between plants is particularly important for female bloom production. For the cotton candy pumpkin the recommended distance between plants is 4 feet with a row width of 6 to 7 1/2 feet. If plants are too close, the competition between plants can reduce the number of female flowers. - See more at: http://blog.gardenharvestsupply.com...t-has-no-female-flowers/#sthash.C4cEkun9.dpuf

This is response from a few years on a gardening forum. Might be some of my problem, that is overcrowding.

 

[Terrific_tom]

Possible that there wasn't enough bees for pollination?

 

[strawhead]

That was my first thought. In doing more google research today found the male and female flower knowledge. Went out and looked and I believe the male to female flower ratio is well above 50 to 1.

 

[biglakeba$$]

how the heck would that be?

I have had 2 years in a row. Whether is imbalanced male/female flowers, no bees to pollinate, etc.

Just odd to have 2 straight summers and zero pumpkins.

PS - my apple trees have apples on them, so some how they pollinated....

 

[bat man]

That was my first thought. In doing more google research today found the male and female flower knowledge. Went out and looked and I believe the male to female flower ratio is well above 50 to 1.

Glad I am not a pumpkin this year. Not what I would label good odds.

 

[Freeborn]

Are pumpkins drought tolerant or do they need allot of water? Seems like you need allot of spacing which I would have never thought you would need to grow pumpkins.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

i got my pumpkins in the ground late this year. I have read alot about hand pollinating...my grandfather used to grow pumpkins every year and he would pluck open male flowers in the mornings and then take a number 2 pencil and dab the eraser into the plucked male flower and then rub it into the female flowers.

 

[phil@thesidehill]

Glad You explained "hand pollinating". That would be an interesting police report.:)

LMFBO.....

 

[mikmaze]

I didn't sp[ray any deterrent and have zero vines left to speak of, browsed to oblivion. 2 pounds of seeds gone and wasted.

 

[Jordan Selsor]

I planted a few around my lil water hole an the deer haven't touched them yet. I planted some at the house for the kids and have 2 pumpkins so far on 6 planted seeds. Those vines sure can travel a long ways! They have been fine to watch

 

[biglakeba$$]

I have never had any issues with deer eating the plants or vines at all.

Keeping them off the pumpkins after mid summer has been difficult when I actually had pumpkins that grew.

I had one a few years ago that got to over 150 lbs. Once I knew it was going to be a biggun, I sprayed it with irish spring soap mixed in water. Never had an issue with deer touching it.