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Fraser Valley, BC, Canada

I have not been able to find my answer for this so thought I’d ask. I hear people talk of their female buds not being mature enough to “take” or grow. What do people mean by that? Does it have to do with the size of the baby fruit when the flower open? Or the flower itself?

Trying to learn more so I can improve my success rate and less aborts.

8/15/2020 10:19:53 PM

Grittyville, WA

If the plant is stressed the females can abort before they open. Or the pumpkin can abort after the flower opens. Which scenario you are talking about? Sounds like gibberish to me lots of pics of pumpkin flowers in the diaries... but... I guess no one posts pics of the flowers that dont have what it takes... Please try to clarify?

8/16/2020 12:22:22 AM

Grittyville, WA

Are we talking yellowish, or pale buds, that wither before they open... ? Plant is stressed and the stress needs to be remedied before the females will be viable... (mature?).

8/16/2020 12:32:38 AM

Syracuse, NY

pretty much any female flower is gonna exhibit the same characteristics just before becoming viable by minus one day and then the night before - just a noticeably larger flower that is still green but about 2-3 times the size of the large gumball of a fruit, which is school bus yellow; the night before (or even late afternoon the day before) the flower elongates and becomes a pinkish-orange color and gets to 4-5 times the size of the pumpkin-to-be; problems can include a properly-colored, deformed flower, usually pointed in any direction because one side is SHORTER than the other (i just nylon mesh baggied one a half an hour ago); a yellow, bland-looking flower that never enlarges nor opens; a properly-colored flower that only swells at the top of the fruit and the tips never open (i just broke one off my 2003 Haist since i don't allow open pollinations if possible);
IMHO, if you have a fruit that is doing well already, the plant can decide whether or not to support any further pumpkins(!); just like anything else in life, don't overload the circuit. you should be done with pollinating anymore on that same plant. just twist and toss, to let the best become the biggest---eg

8/16/2020 1:36:03 AM

Colorado

Mature is the day it opens. The baby pumpkin is only fertile for a few hours after opening.The male flowers same thing,there pollen is only viable for hrs the morning they open.Theres been some talk of pumpkin flowers that yellow and die before opening, thats a different situation.

8/16/2020 11:57:57 AM

Fraser Valley, BC, Canada

Sorry if my post confused anyone. what made me ask was i heard several say (over my readings) “the fruit flowered and opened, but wasnt mature enough so didn’t stand a chance”. I always thought if the flower opened and you pollinated it, that would mean its mature enough, but ive been learning that not to be true. That is what my question was about, determining a proper mature fruit vs one that should be pruned off etc.

Thank you pumpkin pal, your answer was what i was looking for. And yes that plant is done, the vines were terminated. The chain link plant has a good one growing on it now finally which i will terminate the vines this up coming weekend if it lasts till then. i think i got a virus of some sort sadly... pics were submitted. Ill hold off as long as the plant lets me.

I did post pics of flowers in my diary yes, so i can go back and look at some that maybe didnt take vs ones that did and learn from it. I also learned last night that if your baby fruit is green (when should be yellow) its a sign of mosaic.

8/16/2020 6:04:34 PM

Central NY

Didn’t read that here.

8/16/2020 6:43:08 PM

Syracuse, NY

nnnyyyeah, echoing Porkchop, for a field pumpkin or a squash can be green or greenish and turn to its interim color after who knows how long - f'rinstance, i have a new dream seed i made when i crossed my #20 (for '20 pounds' - a Prizewinner that i pollinated with the 689.5 Sandercock in '10, i think) with the 2145 McMullen - gave it a chance this year with superb results - there are three fruits on the plant, each is a 180-220-pound ribless, roundish BLOB of a fruit with muchos potential for growth here-on-in, and the flowers are of a darker orange interior that would make you think they are on a field pumpkin plant...and they were greenish as babies! if nothing else, i plan(t) to have beautiful pumpkins from that seed for years -we'll see your pix soon, i hope, and i'll try to Google the Mosaics soon as well---eg---sounds like a folk rock band, lol!

8/17/2020 2:53:20 AM

Fraser Valley, BC, Canada

Pork chop which part the green fruit or the “not mature enough to have a chance”? I’m going to assume the green fruit part as the latter I did read in diaries, tho no clue which it is no more. I know diaries are personal and not always factual :)

8/17/2020 3:05:22 AM

Fraser Valley, BC, Canada

Oh ok well maybe the green fruit thing isn’t right tho it was on several disease written articles etc... sigh... confusing for a beginner... and yeah I know the internet is always right, ha!

As for my leaves I think it’s either mosaic or downy mildew - but I’ve sprayed for mildew twice since end of July and didn’t have crazy rainfall so didn't see the the need for more. Overnight it seemed to damage leaves, but for a good two weeks already I’ve slowly been losing leaves that go blotchy or yellowish and of bad enough I’ve cut them off. Seems worse lately. Neighbor tomato plant has blotchy brown/dead patches in random leaves too. Pics r up for it. If it is downy what I’m using isn’t working I guess tho it works for powdery just fine.

8/17/2020 3:18:18 AM

Syracuse, NY

so, yer up late even 3 hours behind me, lol!

have a look here, if you wanna go nuts - i vote for Ozone damage but i have not seen the 'cupping' of the leaves' edges like what you have:

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Attachments/Leaf_Problems_Summer_2011.pdf

you can Google 'Pumpkin Leaf Problems' as well - see you in the Asylum! 't's OK, they'll lettuce have a garden - aww, crap, i said GARDEN! I'm dooooomed...lol---eg

8/17/2020 3:28:22 AM

Fraser Valley, BC, Canada

It’s the spotted leaf that I put on the ground that is spreading like rapid fire. Woke up today to have a brown crisp curled leaf that wasn’t like that yesterday, and three more leafs yellowish with dark green blotches. By tomorrow they’ll be dead too. So that’s not ozone. The other leaf might be ozone but mosaic presents similar too... so I’m already going nuts lol. The dying leaf issue concerns me the most atm as it happens overnight and my plant will have no leaves If I can’t stop it.

8/17/2020 5:06:04 PM