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gingerkitty_gw

Can I train pumpkin vines up a trellis or fence?

gingerkitty
9 years ago

Hi! Newbie here, so I apologize in advance for any posting mistakes I might make. It's fall here in Iowa, and I miss having pumpkins. Last year there were plenty from grandma's garden, but none got planted this time around. Recently moved from an apartment to a townhome, so I have a little bit of planting space that I can work with. Sadly, it would be on the north side of the place. And I would need to train these vines up a trellis or fence of some sort, since I can't let them grow all over the lawn. Thing is...I'm not sure how I would go about doing this. Can I even make this work? I don't want anything enormous, but a few pie pumpkins would be nice. Thanks for any and all help! :)

Comments (4)

  • springtogarden
    9 years ago

    Yes you can! Your fence needs to be sturdy and you will need to help train the plant. I used plant ties that people here recommended on Amazon.com. There are velcro ones and tape. I used the velcro and it worked great in 3 HUGE wind storms. Since you are growing the small pie pumpkins, it is up to you whether to use a hammock under the fruit. I didn't and nothing snapped. Supposedly, the stems become stronger when grown in the air so you don't need a hammock. But some people feel that they will snap off so you might want to use nylon or something else to support your pumpkin. Someone here had an unsupported one snap off. My fruit wasn't very heavy so I am not sure at what point they can snap off. If you google trellis, you can find crazy things that people train up a a fence, trellis etc. and not all of them are small sizes :).

  • gingerkitty
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Yay! It got too late this year by the time all the moving was done, but I can probably move all the rock/gravel that's covering the dirt and dig things up a bit so everything is nice and workable next spring. Then comes the fetching of posts and steel wire panel to make said trellis.
    Now I'm wondering...can I buy the clearance seed packets and keep them over the winter so I have a jump on things? Would I need to put them in the freezer or somesuch thing?

  • springtogarden
    9 years ago

    That's a yes too :). I have done this for years. You are right about the freezer. Technically, you could probably get away with keeping them out for the year in a cool, dry place and still getting seedlings. Just to be safe, I'd store them in the freezer in a ziploc bag. I have some in there from 5 years that still sprout. Heard of some people that still get some to sprout decades later after being in the freezer, fridge etc. Happy shopping :)

    This post was edited by gardengal13 on Sun, Sep 14, 14 at 23:59

  • Macmex
    9 years ago

    Squash and pumpkin seeds are normally good at room temperature for about 10 years. We live in a hot climate and often refrain from running AC, for economic reasons. Yet I have germinated squash seeds as old as 15 years. At that point I see a notable drop in germination percentage. But those clearance sale pumpkin seeds are practically as good as what will cost a lot more, come next spring. As gardengal13 mentioned, if you store them in an airtight container in the freezer you can pass them on to your grandkids to grow!

    Here's a true story. In 1984 I was given a ripe squash by a customer at the store where I worked, It was really really good, so I saved seed, passing some on to a friend in Tulsa, OK. I grew it in 1985. In 1985 I named it Warsaw Buff Pie Pumpkin and hand pollinated for pure seed, passing on some seed to a friend of mine. I also started, probably in 1986, to distribute it through the Seed Savers Exchange.

    In 2004 I was going through some old correspondence and came across my Tulsa friend's address. I wrote him, asking if he still had tomato seed, of a variety I had shared with him. He responded that he did, and that he also believed he had seed of Warsaw Buff Pie Pumpkin in his deep freeze. He found it and sent me some. It was from his 1985 grow out. I planted this seed in 2006 and had nearly 100% germination!

    Now, growing on a Northern exposure, that might be a problem. Squash and pumpkins require a minimum of 6 hours direct sunlight. You might try checking on that before next spring. The days are shortening now. But you could get a good idea of whether or not you receive enough sunlight in that location.

    George
    Tahlequah, OK

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