A Time to Sow, a Time to Reap

'Cuz I'm tired (y'all probably are too) of my ranting about A Time For War Against The Deer and Squash Borers. But it is time to cut off the losing pumpkin.

Anyway, Lulu2 (the big one) added a couple of pounds today. Lulu3, the small one, barely budged. So unless that changes by tomorrow evening, I'm going to eliminate the little one and keep the older sister. Which is the exact opposite of what I expected.

I'm a little worried that all the new leaf growth is well out the vine, past Lulu2, who is on a side vine no less. But this early stage pumpkin growth isn't very predicatable. As far as I can tell from my records, Lulu is behind the 215 pound Jemimah of last year, but ahead of the 500 pound Bessie at this point. Go figure!

One Week Old

It figures... the deer just decided to take a break so the squash borers could move back in. Oh well it's pumpkin growing season so there's always something for me to complain about.






Lulu has put on a few inches in the last two days. She's about to take off, with this rain and sort of coolish weather. But her big concern (other than killer grubs and killer deer) should be this weekend. Either her or her little sister aren't going to live to see Monday. I think it's going to be really tough to actually cut a healthy fruit off the vine.

The Plant is Slowly Recovering

So before I go to bed each night, I see if the deer have been chomping during the evening. And in the morning, same deal. If you haven't spent part of your life living in fear, trust me you're not missing anything.

Meanwhile, Lulu2 is oblivious to the fact she could be digested at any moment and has packed on some weight today:

Lulu, Day 3

The plant is recovering and trying to put out some new vines. Which means I'm about due for another night attack from the neighborhood deer. Anyway, here is Lulu 3 days after blooming:

I know she looks pretty small - but compare her to her little siter, who is two days younger:

Unstable

Ok, maybe I was premature with the "Farewell Friends" thing. But I'm emotionally unstable just the same. One moment I'm elated that Lulu 2.0 has survived for... let me count... 62 hours. She looks pretty good if I say so myself. The next moment, I look at the main vine that Fluffy the Deer destroyed - twice - and it takes the wind out of my sails to say the least.

One thing is for sure. There are two fruit on the vine now, in a 2 week competition, 'cause whoever turns out to be weaker is going to the Compost Pile In The Sky soon.

Scratch that, there is another thing that's certain: Over the next month I'm going to see how close you can come to killing a plant with fertilizer without quite going over the edge. Serious spraying, fish guts, calcium, you name it - starts in the morning.

Thanks Friends

Thanks Tom, Dad, Tedd, Andy - I mean it's not the end of the world, it's "just a pumpkin" but it's still good to have support through the grieving process.

I'm actually hanging around the house to pollinate LuluToo (or is it Lulu 2.0?) this morning. I don't know how a plant with only 150 square feet of vine is supposed to grow much of a pumpkin, but anything would be welcomed. I actually think there are two more candidates after this one, and one of those will be on the new main vine.

Farewell Friends

Lulu got taken out by the deer 12 hours after she was born, sometime Thursday evening. The season is probably over, and I don't think I'll get to grow at all next year.

I swear to God and all the archangels I will never grow a pumpkin again with deer in the area without adequate fencing. It's just too easy to let your guard down, and BAM! it just takes a few minutes for them to do a ton of damage.

So this is the end of the road, at least for now. It's been a blast these last few years. Those of you who like to keep up with my progress, I'll let you know when or if I ever get to give it another shot. Lee and Tedd and Dave and Doug and all you folks out there who love to grow these things: KEEP ON GROWIN' 'EM BIG!!!

Let's Give Lulu a Huge Welcome!!!

I gave birth to Lulu this morning. I named her for the half-crazy Lulu (played by Melanie Griffith) from the movie Something Wild.

Why? Because my dear baby Lulu is a freak. She was born with only 3 lobes. She will probably end up oddly shaped and will be unlikely to be big enough to crush stray children who wander too near.

I spent the morning scanning for advice on bigpumpkins.com. Opinions ranged from "so-and-so's 1342 was a 3 lober" to "cull it now" to "I have never seen a 3 lobed bloom in all my years of growing".

If I get another pumpkin to set, Lulu will probably become compost. But for now, she's all I've got and we'll try to love her just the way she is.

And since my camera is unavailable, I'll just entertain you now with shots of previous Pollination Days from years past:

An Immaculate Conception (coming soon)!

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. This will be a sign to you: soon you will find a baby. Treasure up all these things and ponder them in your heart.

And all who heard it were amazed!"

I Want to be a Father


But my mother of choice isn't cooperating.



"It's too hot."



"This dirt is odd, and it smells like coffee."



Who knows what's wrong? But I had this problem last year too and it turned out more or less ok. I'll give it a week before I panic.

This is Probably a No-No

But I'm about to say a Bad Word:

DAMNIT!!!

You let down your guard for a couple of months, and BAM here come the deer to eat your vines:

Fortunately the tip of the main vine, where the baby pumpkins are, was behind the fencing and wasn't touched.