How to grow Pumpkin

Where to plant

Give pumpkins full sun and rich, well-drained soil with plenty of compost. Vining pumpkins need 50 to 100 square feet per hill, so they suit the edge of the garden, where vines can run over a lawn or path. Semi-bush, bush and miniature types fit smaller spaces.

Seeds will not germinate in cold soil and frost kills seedlings, so wait until all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed thoroughly.

• Northeast, Midwest, Northern Plains, Mountain West and the Pacific Northwest: sow in late May or June. For Halloween pumpkins, sow from late May in the North; earlier plantings may soften and rot before October.
• Mid-Atlantic, Mid-South and Southern Plains: sow from May to early July.
• North and Central Florida and the Gulf South: sow in spring and again in midsummer. Seminole pumpkin handles the heat, humidity and pests far better than northern field pumpkins.
• South Florida: sow from late summer through the cooler months.
• Texas: sow in spring, and in June for a fall crop.
• Desert Southwest: sow in March and again in August, avoiding the hottest months for fruit set.
• California and Hawaii: a long sowing window from spring into summer.
• Alaska: start seeds indoors in late April and plant out in early June through plastic mulch. Choose small, early varieties.

Choosing a variety

• Jack-o'-lantern types are bred for carving, with thin walls and strong stems. Small sugar or pie pumpkins have sweeter, denser flesh for cooking.
• Seminole pumpkin, a Florida heirloom, grows well in hot, humid, disease-prone areas. Its vines are very long and can carry 20 to 30 small, tan fruit that store for months. Calabaza, a tropical pumpkin, also suits the South.
• Bush and semi-bush varieties take far less space than vining types. Giant pumpkins need the most room, water and time of all.

How to plant

1. Work compost and a balanced fertilizer into each planting spot.
2. Sow 4 or 5 seeds 1 inch deep in each hill, once the soil is warm.
3. Space hills of vining types 5 to 6 feet apart in rows 10 to 15 feet apart; semi-bush types need about 4 feet between hills and 8 feet between rows.
4. When seedlings are well established, thin each hill to the best two or three plants (two for semi-bush types).
5. Mulch around the plants to keep the soil moist and weeds down.

Watering and feeding

Water deeply once or twice a week, about 1 inch a week in total, more in hot, dry weather and as fruit swells. Water the soil rather than the leaves, ideally in the morning, to help keep powdery mildew down.

Feed lightly at planting and again when the vines begin to run. Too much nitrogen gives lush vines and few fruit.

Pruning and care through the year

• Pumpkins have separate male and female flowers. The first flowers are usually male, so early flowers dropping without fruit is normal.
• Bees are essential for fruit set. Insecticides can kill them, so if you must spray, do it late in the day when the flowers have closed.
• In cool or wet weather, when bees are scarce, hand-pollinate by brushing pollen from a male flower onto the center of a female flower, the one with a tiny pumpkin at its base.
• Pumpkins cross only with others of the same species, but that does not change this year's fruit; it only matters if you save seed.

Harvesting

Harvest when the pumpkin is a deep, solid color and the rind is hard enough that a thumbnail does not dent it, and the stem has started to dry and turn corky. In the North, pick in late September or early October, before heavy frosts. Seminole pumpkins turn a creamy tan-orange when ripe.

Cut pumpkins from the vine with pruners or a sharp knife, leaving 3 to 4 inches of stem. Never carry them by the stem; pumpkins with broken or missing stems rot sooner.

Cure the fruit in a warm, dry place, about 80°F to 85°F for a week or two if you can, then store in a dry place at about 50°F to 55°F. Well-cured pie pumpkins and Seminole pumpkins keep for months.

Using it

Roast or steam pie pumpkins for soups, curries and pie filling. Seminole and calabaza flesh is sweet and dense, much like butternut squash. Rinse and roast the seeds as a snack.