Moving Day

Hey, that was a lot of fun... considering we were just weighing a pumpkin and not wind surfing or hanging at Chuck E Cheese or anything.

It's a pretty simple process. First you get the fruit onto a tarp...




Then you drag the thing to the front yard...





You set up the scale...



And hold your breath!





Not bad! Lulu went a little bit heavy despite her concave top.



And of course the proud father has to pose for pictures.



And then after a few pumpkin ales, it's nap time!

There Ought to be a Law...

...Banning deer from existing. How can you eat all the leaves, and leave the baby cucumber???




The good news is they appear to have no interest in eating a full-grown Atlantic Giant pumpkin.

Time for a new Hood Ornament

Estimated weight - nearly final now - is 375 pounds.

350 Pounds

Lulu won't quit, even if she can only pack on a couple of pounds a day. It's a pity I didn't keep the plant in better shape. The kids are already asking when we can start carving!

Are You Smarter than a Deer?

I didn't think there could be a dumber creature alive, but maybe there is. I spent WAY too much time last winter creating great soil. Dirt the worms would *love*. And they did - I had night crawlers out there the size of small snakes.

And then, it rained. So, what were the worms thinking? "Let's snuggle down here in the dirt on a cool rainy night and watch a movie and maybe make some new baby worms!"???

No. It was more like, "Let's take a trip to the pavement and dry up and die when the sun comes out!"

330 Pounds but Almost Done

These pictures are a couple of weeks old, seeing as how I'm getting old and lazy besides. Too lazy to aggressively fight the powdery mildew, too lazy to administer a late season near-fatal dose of 0-0-60 fertilizer... what's the matter with me? Am I losing that fanatical edge???

There Isn't a Law

Hey Lulu, there's no law that says you have to quit the moment you reach a goal! The girl was motoring right along, in a pumpkin sort of way, and then the moment she crossed 300 pounds she nearly stopped growing.

It may have been her time anyway. But then again the vines have suffered a lot of damage from deer, bugs, and old age.



Here's a closeup:

I thought I had a linebacker in my backyard

She’s short – only 22” or so, so she can’t be a middle LB. She'll have to play outside LB I guess.

But at 237 pounds, she can certainly plug a gap.

Her time in the 40 is a sore spot… it varies depending on how steep the hill is.

But then she gained 40 pounds in three days, so I’m going to have to move her to the defensive line!

Lulu's a Big Girl Now!

She can't wear her Daddy's shirts anymore. I keep her covered with a couple of old t-shirts to protect her from the sun. Sunlight and the heat make fruit ripen. And I don't want a ripe pumpkin - I want a growing pumpkin. But old t-shirts can't do the trick any longer - I switched to an old sheet today.

She really has had a great week, just plugging right along!

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Hey Alicia - thanks for the note the other day! Decorator by day, AG grower by night, huh? I have a buddy in Ga. near the Florida line who grew somewhere around 900 pounds last spring. Amazing! Anyway let me know how your patch is doing sometime.

Mid-Life Crisis

Sometimes I toss and turn in the early hours of the morning, unable to sleep.

"Eight pounds a day... is that all there is? Isn't there something more out there somewhere?"

Then I sigh a big sigh and remind myself, "It'll be ok John. After all, that means Lulu is gaining over 50 pounds a week."

My family tries to be supportive. "Honey, it's a very pretty pumpkin!"

Well family, this isn't a beauty contest, she isn't an 'it', and you might try calling her by her real name, you know.

But I'm just being grumpy because of my mid-life crisis. I think I'll go gulp down my meds and then go spray some fertilizer.