Pumpkin Seedling Hawaiian Planting Chants!/Brilliant Orange Giant Pumpkins!

Good morning, Pumpkinistas!

Well, the workshop season is in full swing! Attendance has been outstanding this season. Most recently, which means last Tuesday evening at Laguna Hills Nursery, there were 26 returning and new growers! As I've mentioned before, I have the liberty of having more giant pumpkin seedlings to give away as workshop prizes this season. So, Tuesday evening, 12 seedlings were given away to good homes and gardens.

Over the next few weeks, giant pumpkin growers all over Southern California will be germinating seeds, and then planting seedlings. There is a chant that you may consider using as part of your transplanting ceremony:

He ipu nui!

O hiki ku mauna,

O hiki kua,

Nui maoli keia ipu!

English translation:

A huge pumpkin (gourd)!

Growing like a mountain

To be carried back

Really huge is this pumpkin!

This chant is from a great book titled, Hawaiian and other Polynesian Gourds, by Ernest S. Dodge, Ku Pa'a Publishing, 1995.

I've been approached to participate in a giant pumpkin research project being conducted by Paul Rys, of San Luis Obispo. Paul has been working on creating beautiful orange giant pumpkins for the last 6 years. Paul has shipped me some seeds that will produce bright, beautiful orange pumpkins 75% of the time and is looking for growers that would like to try them. We are looking for between 15-20 growers who are willing to grow one vine this season, and then return the resulting seeds back to Paul. If you go to www.flickr.com and search for beautiful pumpkins, you'll see what I mean. Paul has grown award-winning giant pumpkins for their appearances in the past, and I am happy and excited to be part of this research. Please e-mail me at: sbs33@cornell.edu for details on how you can participate too!

Have a great week-end!
Stuart