There is a lot that goes into growing a healthy and abundant pumpkin harvest. This article will give you 10 tips for growing your pumpkins in the winter along with a lot more information to give you a successful pumpkin crop.
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10 Need-to-Know Tips for Growing Pumpkins
- Sow seeds in columns or “pumpkin slopes,” which are the size of little pitcher hills. With slopes, the dirt will warm more rapidly and the seeds will develop more quickly. This likewise assists with waste and nuisance control.
- Set up the slopes ahead of time with a bounty of old excrement incorporated into the ground (12 to 15 inches). In the off chance that you don’t have fertilizer, loosen the dirt and blend in a 2-to 4-inch layer of manure
- Sow the seeds 1 inch deep into the slopes (4 to 5 seeds for every slope). Space slopes 4 to 8 feet apart.
- Your plants ought to sprout in under seven days with the right soil temperature (70 degrees F) and emerge in 5 to 10 days.
- At the point when the plants are 2 to 3 inches tall, thin to 2 to 3 plants for each slope by cutting off undesirable plants without upsetting the foundations of the excess ones.
- When planting in lines, plant seeds 6 to 12 inches separated in columns 6 to 10 feet apart. Clip off plants too thin to one plant each 18 to 36 inches.
- Collect pumpkins on a dry day after the skins are hard.
- To slow rot, leave an inch or two of stem on pumpkins when collecting them.
- To collect the pumpkin, cut the stem off the plant cautiously with a sharp blade or pruners; don’t tear it. Be certain not to slice excessively near the pumpkin; a liberal measure of the stem (3 to 4 inches) will build the pumpkin’s keeping time.
- Handle pumpkins delicately or they might be wounded.
How Cold Can Pumpkins Tolerate?
Pumpkins can be collected when they have a uniform orange tone and the skin is hard. Pumpkins can stay in the nursery through light, plant-killing frost.
Be that as it may, all mature pumpkins ought to be harvested before temperatures drop into the mid to low 20’s. Green, juvenile pumpkins won’t become orange after a deep frost.
When collecting pumpkins, handle them cautiously to avoid cuts and injuries. Cut the pumpkins off the plant with a sharp blade or pair of cutting shears. Leave a few inches of stem attached to each fruit. A pumpkin with a 3 to 5-inch stem or handle is more appealing.
Additionally, pumpkins with stems will last longer. Try not to carry pumpkins by their stems. The stems will most likely be unable to hold the heaviness of the pumpkins and may fail.
After harvesting the pumpkins, store them at a temperature of 80 to 85 degrees F and 80% relative humidity for 10 days. These conditions assist with solidifying their skins and recuperating any cuts and scratches.
After resting, store the pumpkins in a cool, dry spot. Capacity temperatures ought to be 50 to 55 degrees F. While putting away pumpkins, place them in a solitary layer where they don’t touch each other.
Giving them space will keep dampness from forming on the surfaces of the fruit and attracting rot organisms and microorganisms. Setting the pumpkins in heaps produces undesirable hotness which might bring about spoiling. Quickly eliminate and dispose of any pumpkins that give indications of rot.
Can Pumpkins Survive Frost?
A light frost won’t harm pumpkins, yet hard frost will harm the plants and the pumpkins. Mature pumpkins will be okay to harvest immediately, however, young pumpkins won’t develop enough to endure. If you end up with early frost that compromises your pumpkin fix, there are some mitigating strategies you might use to benefit from the circumstance.
If the frost is light, your pumpkins are presumably going to endure. Ice is frozen dew, and a light frost is gone when the sun is beaming on your nursery. A light frost happens when the temperature scarcely gets into the freezing range.
Recuperation is conceivable after a light frost. If the temperatures drop too low, ice is capable of annihilating your plants that are not good enough to endure will occur. This makes the cells freeze, rupture and die. Recuperation is impossible after a hard frost.
Should You Cover Pumpkins To Protect Them From Frost?
Covering can be a way of protecting the pumpkins from frost. There are a couple of things you can use to cover your pumpkins in case of frost: ice covers, old blankets, papers, and cardboard.
These things will protect them if the temperature gets into the low 30’s. Make certain to keep away from plastic as a cover. Plastic can trap dampness. This dampness will make cold conditions worse under the plastic instead of securing the plants.
How Long Can You Leave Pumpkins Outside in the Cold?
Before you even pick your gourds, understand that their life expectancies fluctuate dependent on whether you cut into them.
Uncarved pumpkins can last a few months when kept out of the warm sun or frosty temperatures. Cut pumpkins might endure a couple of days, so consider this if you are cutting them to show them on Halloween.
Pumpkins ought to be placed in the sun for around 10 to 14 days to solidify appropriately. This is an incredible opportunity to show your pumpkin on the entryway patio! In case you’re cutting a pumpkin, cut close to three days before Halloween or the pumpkin will start to spoil.
Store pumpkins in a cool, dry room, basement, or root basement—around 55ºF.
Can Pumpkin Seedlings Survive Frost?
Planting too soon can bring about exposure to chilly temperatures that harms or spoils the seedlings. The ideal opportunity to relocate seedlings into the garden is the point at which the dirt reaches no less than 65°F.
Mature pumpkins can survive a range of weather conditions, yet young pumpkins won’t develop enough to endure. Keep them at 60 to 105°F to develop and solidify them off before relocating.