Yet another ripening query - Pumpkin

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

So, I've got this big Atlantic Giant pumpkin that I can barely lift. It's very green. The plant decided to trail miles from it's sunny spot and ditch it out in a partially shaded spot by the shed.

The root end of the vine looks to be dying back a bit and I am fretting about my son having a nice orange pumpkin for Halloween.

I know the weather is due to improve the next few days or so, but, I expect it will rapidly go cold and miserable again. Would cutting it (with a long bit of vine) and moving it under glass be a viable option?

I really don't want to have to resort to orange paint

[Florence Fennel]

Can you move it out of the shade without cutting the vine david? You could move it into the light and remember to put it on a piece of card or board (mine are on ceiling tiles) to prevent rotting. Failing that, do as you've said and cut as much vine as you can with it and move it somewhere light and dry (I have one in my shed perched on a flower bucket). If you can leave it a little longer on the vine it may grow even bigger

[Florence Fennel]

BTW - my Atlantic Giants have never been green! They started out yellow and then turned orange. You sure it's a pumpkin?

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

Thank you FF.

I can barely lift it so it might be a bit difficult, also the vine is all trailed and tangled through other things!

Weather and time permitting I might try and shift it to a sunnier spot tomorrow. Could do with an assistant really. No chance of that around here though. :/

It's on an old roof tile at the moment, though I suspect that is in pieces now. I am sure I can find something to put it on, but I think it will end up in the greenhouse sooner rather than later.

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

BTW - my Atlantic Giants have never been green! They started out yellow and then turned orange. You sure it's a pumpkin?

I can't think what else it could be, I started off 2 AG seeds. I just found this on google:

Great Pumpkins | October 2011 eNewsletter

'This 280 lb 'Atlantic Giant' pumpkin has green skin due to a recessive gene carried by some pumpkins. '

Perhaps that explains it?

[Bill HH]

Rather than man handle it could you devise a sling with handles to carry it? if all else fails and time runs out, cut it off and hide it, go and buy one and drop it into the same place then tell your son "Its a miracle, it turned orange overnight"

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

Some Pumkin Genetics:

In pumpkins, orange color is a dominant allele, and green color is a recessive allele. If the egg contains the orange allele and the sperm contains the green allele, the orange color will be expressed, because it has dominance over the recessive green allele. The only way to produce a green pumpkin is if both the egg and sperm contain the recessive green allele.

From here: Pumpkin Genetics | GiantPumpkins.co.za

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

This is all falling into place now. The other AG plant has all yellow fruit, though none came to anything (sadly). It was a bit stunted. All the fruits on this plant were a very light green, this one was the only fruit to grow on and it has steadily gotten darker.

I think we have a mutant pumpkin! Woohoooo.

[jonohanson]

Sorry to hijack the thread.

I had also grown some giant pumpkins this year, at one point I had 1 per plant (5 plants) but then they started to develop soft spots and rot, I am now left with 1 giant pumpkin, which i'm not sure if its ready or not, its yellowish/orange, what is the best way to tell when they are ready?

Regards

[chris]

Knock it and see if it sounds hollow

[Florence Fennel]

Then run like hell if somebody shouts "Come in" I usually just harvest when I think it's not swelling any more. It will continue to ripen off the vine as above ^^^

[Florence Fennel]

I think that green pumpkin looks great david, happy carving!

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

Yes, the picture with the smaller one in it's mouth is ace

*If* it stops raining I'll take a picture of mine. Not as impressive in scale as that one though.

With regards to testing for ripeness; I'll do what I did with my butternuts - knock for hollow sound and check if stem is woody. That's about all I can do with it being green.

[Feral007]

I had Big Green Things that I wasn't sure of in the first permaculture garden. When I picked them they were dark green, but over a period of time after cut they turned yellow and I realised they were those carving punkins. So yours might go yellow if you have enough time.

Here's mine - I carved it then put tea lights in it.



Psycho Garden! - feral007

This link is to my blog because I can't find the sd card with the photos of these Big Green Things that were growing in the garden.

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

I don't know feral, it seems to be ripe now. It is hollow sounding when knocked and the stem is woody.

Only time will tell.