Veldpompoenen en Marrows
Veldpompoenen worden ook Halloween Pumpkins genoemd in Amerika. Normaal wegen zij zo'n 20 kg, maar zij kunnen 100 kg worden. Zij zijn makkelijker en goedkoper te kweken dan Atlantic Giants en zijn inmiddels helemaal hip in de wereld van reuze groenten. De rankende Engelse courgette ("marrow" genaamd) wordt op dezelfde wijze geteeld.
Je begint met het juiste zaad (in onze webshop te koop) en plant ze binnen in potjes eind mei, begin juni. Als ze een week boven zijn kunnen zij buiten worden gezet met bescherming tegen kou en wind. Zij groeien het beste in de openlucht.
De meeste kwekers kweken planten van 3x3 tot 5x5 meter. Bij de kleinere planten laat je maar 1 pompoen groeien, bij de grotere kunnen dat er 2 zijn.
Snoeien is hetzelfde als bij de grote pompoenen. Alleen een hoofdrank en zijranken. Alle andere ranken moeten gediefd worden.
Zorg voor voldoende water. De plant mag nooit uitdrogen of te nat worden. Regelmatig bijmesten is ook nodig. Doe eerst rustig aan met kalium, tot de pompoen zo'n 10 dagen oud is.
Afhankelijk van de groei omstandigheden, groeien veldpompoenen en marrows zo'n 40 dagen.
Growing Field Pumpkins
In 2014, the Dutch grower, Iwan Horde broke the European record for field pumpkin at 164.7 lbs, though the record only held for a short time. A year later he did finish first in Europe.
To be honest, I’m not an expert on growing field pumpkins, even if I did grow the Dutch record. Of course it begins with the right seeds. In 2014 I grew the 103 MacKinnon, 181 MacKinnon and 128 Lyons.
Soil preparation
In 2014 I offered up a piece of grassland to make room for a number of field pumpkins. The grass was dug in with a backhoe and disappeared about 50cm under the ground. After that I added a bit of magnesium (because my plants always seem to have a deficiency) and bone meal to stimulate root growth. After the soil was tilled, I planted out the plants I had germinated in the greenhouse.
Plant size
The plants were slow to start (possibly because of the new soil, or just too cold?) but later on they picked up speed. Each plant was given a space of 15 feet long by 10 feet wide.
Growth
A field pumpkin produces fruit quite easily. My plants had nice big fruit already early on. What I did notice is that not all fruit have the same shape. It is best to select the right fruit according to shape. This means letting the pumpkin grow for a while before deciding which one to keep. In contrast to Atlantic Giants, it is possible to have more than one fruit per plant.
During the growth period I shaded the fruit from the sun to even out temperatures and prevent splitting. During the growing season I was only able to water little and infrequently.
At the end of the season the 103 MacKinnon weighed in at 164.7 lbs, which was almost a doubling of the Dutch record and for a short time was the new European record. The 181 MacKinnon weighed in at 124.8 lbs, which placed second. The rest of the field pumpkins were in the 60-80 lb range.
Changes
It might be better to grow larger plants (15x15 ft). In any case, the largest pumpkins seem to grow far out on the main vine and should be selected according to shape with the preference for elongated ones.
Fertilizer
Apart from magnesium and bone meal I used dried manure which is a lot easier to use than the real stuff and is free from diseases and weed seeds.
Water
Like with all giant vegetables, pumpkins need a constant and even supply of water. Use walking boards to prevent soil compaction.
