Pumpkin help

[lavender lou]

As this is my first year growing veg i had decided to grow some pumpkins i have gone in the garden today and i was amazed how well my pumpkins are doing

When do they actually turned orange?

here is a picture of my biggest pumpkin

[SarzWix]

It's getting a bit close to frosty weather Lavender Lou, if you have some fleece, or some cloches, it might be worth covering them up now. Especially overnight. I think mine took a week or 2 to go orange from the point yours is at now. If the worst comes to the worst, and the plant dies off, the pumpkin should still be edible, but won't store very well unripe.

[Lavenderblue]

well, I found this site most useful.

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/vege...s-are-ripe.htm

[Lavenderblue]

double post, sorry.

[Two_Sheds]

Lavender Lou, Are you sure that's a pumpkin? It looks more like a great big courgette to me

[Topaz]

Is identical to mine which fell off a few weeks back i put it on the windowsill in the kitchen and has now turned orange

[lynda66]

mine have started off yellow, so how do i know when they are ripe? not that it reaLLY MATTERS AS I'M ONLY GROWING THEM FOR HALLOWEEEN, oops sos caps

though i've left one plant to just do it's own thing, as i may try doing something with them, though i didn't really like pumpkin last time i tried it.

[disleydog]

it will soon start to turn yellow then orange , keep it in the sun and beware of early frosts . scoop out the flesh from your haloween pumkin , roast it in the oven and then make a pumkin pie . Roasting it first will improve the final flavour

[Demeter]

We had a pumpkin just like that which I ate (the plant had died so I thought I might as well see, it seemed hollow when I knocked on it). On another plant of the same variety that didn't die we have harvested one large orange pumpkin and there is another smaller one that is still at the same stage as yours. Hoping it will turn orange soon cos we've got recipes waiting!

Will plant a few more next year and also hope for better weather - we were hoping for more than 2 and a bit pumpkins!!

[squashman]

well, I found this site most useful.

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/vege...s-are-ripe.htm

That's an interesting site, spent a while on there reading stuff.

I'm going to take some convincing that wiping the pumpkin with bleach is a good idea though

[Lavenderblue]

I just washed mine with washing up liquid and dried them carefully. Some have been in storage for over a month now and so far so good.

[Pieman]

I've got a Ghost Rider ripening very nicely - sitting in the window of the garage and outside when possible - need it to finish ripening within the next two weeks....

[Flump]

ok stupid question from me time......

If I pick a pumpkin thats still green will it go orange eventually???

[Pumpkin Becki]

ok stupid question from me time......

If I pick a pumpkin thats still green will it go orange eventually???

Yep, I picked mine four weeks ago (for a show), they were green with small areas of orange, I put them in our garage in one of those cardboard fruit box/trays that you can pick up at supermarket checkouts. Now they are orange and the skin is nice and firm (just wish they were a month bigger thats all ).

[HayleyB]

Lavender Lou, Are you sure that's a pumpkin? It looks more like a great big courgette to me

Actually I thought it looked like a watermelon, ya sure it's a pump loulou