A Field Trip to The California Cactus Center

Good evening, Pumpkinistas!

Next time you're in Pasadena, I highly suggest you visit the California Cactus Center, at 216 South Rosemead Boulevard, at the corner of Del Mar and South Rosemead Boulevard. Their website is: http://www.cactuscenter.com/ I've heard about this store for years, and decided that a field trip to the mecca of Southern California cacti and succulent collectors and fanciers was in order. The array of cacti and succulents, and everything related to them, including an encyclopedic array of top dressings, containers, and books was amazing. In fact, Debra Lee Baldwin, THE author of all things succulent happened to drop by to sign some of copies of her new book, Succulent Container Gardens. It was great running into her! You can read more about Debra and her love of succulents at www.debraleebaldwin.com.

Naturally, I made a few purchases and then it was time to head back home.

Epoch Times Helps Kick Off 2010 Season!

Good afternoon, Pumpkinistas!

I received a couple of copies of the April 1-April edition of The Epoch Times that contained the great article by Linda Slupsky in today's mail and wanted to share it with you: http://epoch-archive.com/a1/en/us/lax/2010/04-Apr/01/B8_EET.pdf

Thank you very much, Linda!

Giant Pumpkins at The Great Park!

Greetings, Pumpkinistas!

I have some excellent news for giant pumpkin growers and enthusiasts everywhere but particularly those in Southern California. There will be a couple of giant pumpkin vines planted at The Great Park's Farm and Food Lab this season. The Farm and Food Lab is next to the balloon ride, off of Marine Way and Sand Canyon and the 5 freeway, in Irvine. Follow the very large orange circles that are painted on the road. Please note, however, Farm and Food Lab is open to the public only on a limited basis at this time.

The area that's been selected is ideal for giant pumpkin cultivation: open, plenty of sunshine, good air circulation, close to water, and perhaps most intriguing of all, never planted with pumpkins. There is a general belief that new areas that are planted with pumpkins do particularly well since giant pumpkins are normally very heavy feeders. Just to make extra sure, however, a soil sample is on its way to A & L Western Agricultural Labs, 1311 Woodland Avenue, Suite 1, Modesto, CA 95351, (209) 529-4080, http://www.al-labs-west.com/ I am very curious to see what the soil test from Farm and Food Lab reveals. From the sample, it appears that the soil has a very high clay content.

We shall see!

I hope that this new growing area will help me advance to the 700-900 pound+ level! Also, this year's giant pumpkin growing efforts will be part of my activities as a University of California Cooperative Extension Certified Master Gardener, in Orange County. For even further clarification, this blog is authored by Stuart Shim.

2010 Lunar Planting Dates

Good morning, Pumpkinistas!

A quick consultation of my 2010 The Old Farmer's Almanac by Robert B. Thomas, http://www.almanac.com/moon/full reveals the following planting dates for pumpkins by the Moon's phase(s):

Favorable planting dates:

April 23-28, 2010

May 13-27, 2010

June 12-26, 2010

The Old Farmer's Almanac also recommends planting vegetables that bear crops above ground, like pumpkins, from the waxing of the Moon, to the day it is full.

The full moons for April-June 2010 and their names, follow:

Wednesday, April 28, 2010, 8:18 a.m., Pink Moon

Thursday, May 27, 2010, 7:07 p.m., Flower Moon

Saturday, June 26, 2010, 7:31 a.m., Strawberry Moon

So, it's time to start thinking about your planting preparations!

Good afternoon, Pumpkinistas!

Two of the things that I have recently learned from Linda Slupsky of The Epoch Times are:

1) The 2009 Pumpkinmania! Giant Pumpkin Weigh-off & Contest also received press coverage in Indonesia, the link is: http://erabaru.net/internasional/35-internasional/6448-labumania-lomba-labu-raksasa-terberat

2) The Indonesian word for 'pumpkin' is labu.

So no matter if it's pumpkin or labu, giant pumpkin cultivation is going global!

Have a great afternoon!

A Visit to The American Military Museum

Hello, Pumpkinistas!

One of the more interesting aspects of giving giant pumpkin workshops is the interesting and sometimes very unique opportunities to visit out-of-the-way, local and little known attractions that I would otherwise completely miss. This was definitely the case on the way to Mae Powell's home in Pasadena, CA, on Sunday morning, March 21, 2010. My Google maps' route had me heading north on Rosemead Boulevard from the West 60 freeway. After exiting the freeway, just past the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area, I saw a sign for the American Military Museum. I made a quick mental note to stop in on the way back home.

So I did. The museum is located at 1918 Rosemead Boulevard, El Monte, CA 91733, at the corner of Rosemead and Rush and their website is: http://www.tankland.com/ . Visitors can take a self-guided tour, Friday-Sunday, 10:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.. Adult admission is $5.00, and a bargain considering the sheer fun and unique historical experience.

From their website: The American Military Museum has been collecting, preserving, restoring, and sharing the largest inter-service collection of military equipment in the Western United States for over 57 years. The museum is all outdoors and therefore will be closed on rainy days.

Fortunately, the weather was perfect for a stroll around the grounds of the museum. The museum exhibits are marked by concrete blocks with numbers on them that correspond with a written description organized inside of a binder that's provided with your paid admission. It's a simple and effective way to organize such a large number of vehicles, armament, and other military-related objects. Plus, greater detailed descriptions are possible using this method as opposed to having signs in front of each exhibit. It also allows the collection to be better appreciated since there is less visual clutter without having signs in front of each tank or landing craft. Walking around the museum is very much like being on a battlefield. It's not surprising that the museum has been involved in many movie and television productions.

If you're a military buff or have ever wondered exactly what a Huey helicopter or Sherman tank look like up close, I highly recommend visiting the American Military Museum next time you're in El Monte.

Be sure to wear comfortable shoes and go on a sunny day!

First Workshop of the 2010 Season:

Off to a Great Start in Pasadena!

Good evening, Pumpkinistas!

Mae Powell, veteran giant pumpkin grower and gardener extraordinaire and her dog Checkers, graciously hosted the first giant pumpkin growing workshop of 2010 at her home in Pasadena this morning. The intimate gathering was treated to a tour of Mae's garden and perhaps even more important as giant pumpkin cultivation is concerned, her compost bin! Because of a lemon tree that was removed and not replaced, Mae has a new spot in her front yard for her 2010 efforts. In fact, she has already prepared her mound and can be seen above, chanting for a monster this season. Workshop attendees were treated to ice tea and an assortment of cookies, and even had an opportunity to be interviewed by Linda Slupsky, the reporter from the Epoch Times who covered the 2007 Pumpkinmania! Giant Pumpkin Weigh-off & Contest and was present to begin her coverage of the 2010 season.