We will show you 10 practical tips on how you can easily and cheaply grow pumpkins in your own garden.
Pumpkins are a must for fall and Halloween. Whether as a jack-o'-lantern with a cheeky face, a decorative garden element or as a delicious soup: Pumpkins sweeten autumn for us. Nevertheless, the versatile vegetable is not grown in too many gardens. There are only a few simple tricks to follow and pumpkins will feel right at home in your garden.
If you've gotten the taste for pumpkin, then by all means read on. We'll show you how easy it is to grow pumpkins that will make others green with envy.
10. Choice of pumpkin variety
You are spoiled for choice when it comes to pumpkins: from unusual patterns and colors to giants in the vegetable patch: there is the right type of pumpkin for everyone. Therefore, you should think in advance what should enrich the home garden. Do you prefer something decorative or tasty and hearty for the kitchen? When buying, however, make sure whether the pumpkins are ornamental or edible. Ornamental gourds contain the bitter substance cucurbitacin, which not only makes them unbearably bitter, but above all highly toxic.
9. Location for Pumpkins
The selection of a suitable area should also be well thought out. After all, pumpkins are not one of those vegetables that find a place everywhere; on the contrary, a pumpkin plant needs a lot of space: the plant should definitely be given 1.5 to 2 square meters. The plant also likes it sunny and warm. Six hours of sunlight a day is a must for the plant to grow tall and orange. However, you should be careful with the bed neighbors: ornamental pumpkins and squash should never be close to each other - otherwise they could pollinate each other and before you know it, the delicious squash also contain the poisonous bitter substances. Other pumpkin plants such as zucchini are neither ideal pre-plants nor good bed neighbors.
8. The right oneSoil for the pumpkin
In addition to sun and space, the pumpkin also needs good soil. The plant prefers light to medium-sandy soils with a high humus content. In order to obtain such soil, it is advisable to thoroughly dig up the bed a week before planting and mix it with a good portion of compost. This not only promotes the soil structure, but also provides the pumpkin with important nutrients. A little tip: Right next to the compost heap, the pumpkins not only get an extra portion of nutrients - they also cover up the unsightly stains with their tendrils in a decorative way. Of course you can also use a pre-fertilized vegetable soil such as our peat-free Plantura organic tomato & vegetable soil for pumpkin cultivation.
7. Sowing and planting out
When everything is prepared and planned, the sowing can start. Even if the pumpkin is otherwise very robust: Unfortunately, the plant does not tolerate cold. You should therefore definitely wait for the ice saints and the last night frosts. Even temperatures above 14°C are ideal for germination. If you don't want to wait that long, you can bring the pumpkins indoors from the end of April. One seed per pot is enough; when the first leaflets appear and the ice saints are over, these plants can also make their way into the bed.
6. Watering pumpkins properly
The pumpkin has one thing above all: thirst. In order to form large fruits, the plant needs a lot of water and should be watered regularly. But be careful: fungal diseases only like to see water on the leaves and fruits. To keep the plant he althy, you should only water directly at the ground. The plant also does not tolerate waterlogging well. A little tip for a homemade “watering system”: dig a traditional clay flower pot halfway into the ground next to the pumpkin. Instead of watering the squash, put the water in the pot instead - this way it gets to the roots faster and avoids waterlogging and damp leaves.
5. Fertilize pumpkins
If you want to grow big and strong, you need enough to eat - this also applies to pumpkins. Compost should be mixed into the soil before sowing to ensure the perfect start in life. But even after that, the pumpkin won't say no to a portion of fertilizer. Especially suitable for thisprimarily organic fertilizers such as compost or our Plantura organic tomato fertilizer with a long-term effect. It is also important to pay attention to the nitrogen balance: the more nitrogen available to the plant, the larger the fruit it will ultimately produce.
4. Quality over quantity
Do you really want more flowers on your pumpkins? It may look nice, but it doesn't always serve the purpose: If a pumpkin bears too many fruits, it is quickly overwhelmed and all the pumpkins remain small and puny. Therefore, thin out early and remove all but two or three female flowers from the plant. These differ from the male flowers by short stems and a thickening below the petals. Since pumpkins are dependent on cross-pollination, the fruit set can be very sparse, especially if there is a lack of insects. If you don't feel like it, you can rely on manual work: You can easily pollinate the stigma of the female flower with the stamen of the male flower.
3. Raise the Pumpkins
This tip may sound strange at first, after all, most pumpkins grow on the ground. But if you take a closer look, you quickly realize why it can be useful to lift the pumpkins a little. Especially in rainy summers, the orange fruits otherwise lie permanently on the damp ground. The consequences range from rotten spots to fungal diseases to total failure. In the case of small pumpkin species, it is worth setting up a pumpkin trellis so that the plants can stretch up into the sky all by themselves. In the case of large and only weakly climbing varieties, it is advisable to place the fruit on a base (e.g. a flat, inverted clay bowl). This way the fruits are at least protected from the soil moisture.
2nd time of the pumpkin harvest
Pumpkins are a typical autumn vegetable. No wonder, then, that they need until autumn to fully mature. A good indication of the right time to harvest pumpkins is the condition of the leaves. Once these start to dry, it's time for the pumpkin to leave its home. With some varieties, the fruit can also be recognized by the typical hollow sound when you tap the skin with your fist. Use a sharp knife to harvest. Be sure to leave a piece of the stalk on the squash: not only does it look better, but it also makes the squash last longerstay.
1. Store pumpkins correctly
There is already an army of funny pumpkin candles in front of the door and the pumpkin soup doesn't taste as good as it did at the beginning? No problem, after all you can store the pumpkin without any problems. It is best to leave the pumpkin in the sun for a few days after harvest so that the skin can harden a little. The orange fruits can then be stored in a cool, dry room for several months. Only the bad fruit should be sorted out regularly so that the rot does not spread to other pumpkins.
You can read more about how to harvest and store your pumpkins correctly in our special article.