atlantic giant pumpkin seeds

[niki]

i am drying some out at the moment can i use them again this year..thinking of starting at xmas again thanks june

[jackie j]

Yes you can just wash them off and dry on kitchen roll before storing them in a paper ( not plastc ) bag / envelope. I am keeping some of my Jack o Lantern.

[zazen999]

As this isn't a swap - I'm moving it to vegging out.

[stella]

I think only if they are F1 hybrids you might have a problem with them otherwise they should be fine

[zazen999]

Can I just point out that Squashes are very very promiscuous so you might not get what you think you are getting - so still sow a couple of seeds from the original packet just in case....but if it turns out ok then you've hedged your bets....

[Snadger]

I've tried Atlantic Giants for the last couple of years. Mine invariably turn out to be North Sea Dwarfs!

[SMT]

Hi June,

I got a little confused as to what you were asking.

...thinking of starting at xmas again.

Do you mean your starting the drying process or starting the plants?

If you left the pumpkin flower to be pollinated by the bees then who knows what you will have next year. If you want to keep the seed in future it is advised to hand pollinate the pumpkin yourself so you know it will be a pumpkin. A short string tied around the flower will prevent bees entering to pollinate it. Then pollinate it with a few male flowers and tie it back up for a few more days.

This year I was able to pollinate a marrow with a pumpkin flower so it shows you what could potentially happen. Especially, if it's grown on an allotment where there may be many different varieties of cucurbits in a small area.

[Florence Fennel]

SMT is quite right - I got an assortment of shapes, one in particular couldn't decide if it was a pumpkin or a courgette, but it was a lovely unusual shape for carving and the flesh was still delicious!