Seeds: Store your giant pumpkin seeds in a dry location until spring. Garden Preparation: Select a garden location that is sunny and well-drained. Add plenty of compost or manure in fall and or spring. Have your soil tested and apply the recommended dosage of fertilizer. Adjust your soil ph to 6.5 - 7.0. Planting Your Giant Pumpkin Seeds: Start giant pumpkin seeds indoors in the second or third week of May. Plant each seed 1" deep in 4" - 8" pots with a good, moist potting soil. Place pots in a sunny, warm location (80 - 85 F). Plants will emerge in 5 to 10 days. (A greenhouse is ideal.) Transplant giant pumpkin plants outdoors after the last frost in hills of mixed compost, manure, and soil (usually after May 24th). Space required for each plant should be a minimum of 20 X 20 feet. Caring For Your Plants: Fertilize plants weekly with a good liquid fertilizer (20-20-20) until harvest. Keep soil moist but well-drained. Remove all weeds with a hoe. After pumpkins set, water heavily. They should receive the equivalent of 1-2" of rainfall per week. When pumpkins reach basketball size, select 1 or 2 pumpkins per plant and remove all others. Step back and watch them grow! Remember, the size of your pumpkin is directly proportional to the amount of work put into it. If you get a big pumpkin, don't forget to enter it in your local fall fair. Pumpkin Farm 1993. Back to the module index      Back to our main index