Lots of 779 seeds available

I cut the 779 open yesterday. I found lots of seeds, plenty in fact. They are white seeds, very good looking and consistent in size and shape. The mother seed was white. There were very few "empty" seeds, probably less than two percent. I will be sending some of them to the NYSGPGA, just to fill my responsibility to the club. But I'll have plenty of extras.

Seeds...

This time of year a lot of people, especially new growers, start looking for seeds. Let me say that anyone who wants seeds from my 779, which I think will be good, can have them. This is assuming that there will be seeds. Send me an email for more information.

But the best time to look for seeds is starting in November. Seed trading and exchanging goes on all winter. No rush. But right now most grower's seeds are still in the pumpkins. Sometimes there are 500 seeds, sometimes there are none, and usually the number is somewhere between the two.

Another great way to get great seeds is to join a club. For a small membership fee you'll get more seeds than you can ever plant. When you consider all of the postage and supplies that are needed to trade seeds individually, it really makes sense to just join a club that has a reasonable membership fee and a good seed distribution program.

Some post-season thoughts

Our great fall weather finally came to an end a few days ago with about four inches of snow. So far, I've made half-hearted attempts to clean up the garden. There is simply no time. Well, it's very hard to find time. Every night there is something to do with the family, Saturday is usually the same. I do want to get going with sand and organic matter. Most people I talk to that have manure can't understand why I'd want it now instead of in the spring.

We just saw a mini-fiasco over the supposed 1900 pound pumpkin back east. Turns out it was all a misunderstanding. It never measured 1900, rather it was more like mid-1500s. I think the guys involved would do it differently if they had to do it again. There is a certain amount of "fish story telling" in this sport. If the media got it wrong, the guys involved didn't correct the mistake. My only concern might be that the next time that someone really does have a pumpkin that measures as a world record, the media is going to say, "ah, fool me once....". Then again, I don't want to defend the media. Their only job is to tell a story, not necessarily a true story. So, I don't have a cut-and-dried opinion. Live and learn.

No record this year? Is this the first year in the last... what? 15 to 20 years since we've gone without a new record? That goes to show how special a 1600 pound pumpkin is. There still could be a record, but I think all of the big-time weighoffs have already happened.

This blog will continue throughout the winter. Please stop by on occasion, and you're welcome to use the "leave a comment" feature at any time.

Still no freeze.....

Here we are into October, and still no freeze! Amazing!

Actually, I'm about ready for a freeze. I need to get the garden cleaned up and start working toward next year. At this moment I have four giants on display in front of the house, and another one of mine is on display in front of the neighbor's house.

I'm still very happy about the 779. Next year the 779 is going in, followed by a host of orange seeds. I might also opt for another 964. But then again, every year there are a lot of surprises, and seeds that beckon. At this point the only sure thing is that the 779 is going in, assuming there are seeds in the fruit.