Ed in Carlsbad's First Harvest!

Good afternoon, Growers!

It always nice to share...

"Hi Stuart,

This is Bob from Aliso Viejo reporting in that Ed in Carlsbad had his first harvest of the season yesterday morning. Ed and I have been friends for quite a few years. My two boys who are seen in the pictures and I drove down to Ed’s “ranch/estate” yesterday to take part in the first harvest. Ed was generous to allow my sons to choose these Big Max giant pumpkins which probably weighed in around 80-90 pounds. That’s my best guess based on carrying them from the car to the house. Seemed like they weighed more than my boys do! They really have a beautiful rich orange color and are shaped nicely. The boys are anxious to carve them and to have Mom make some pumpkin pies! Since it is only mid September, we will probably wait several weeks until the second week of October to carve and display them. This brings up a few questions which I wanted to get your advice on. I’d like to know how and where you would suggest we should best store or keep the pumpkins until it is time to carve them. Next, the boys want to save the seeds to try and grow some of these giants themselves next season. What suggestions do you have for the care and storage of the seeds. Last but certainly not least (and probably one of the most important questions); do you have any good pumpkin pie recipes which you might want to share with us and the readers of the Pumpkinmania site? We will look forward to hearing from you and to seeing the latest pictures of Ed’s pumpkins on Pumpkinmania!

Thanks in advance for your answers,

Bob in Aliso Viejo"

Hi Bob!

Thank you very much for your message and pictures! I've been battling a series of root canal operations that have laid me low the last 10-12 days! Ouch!

In order to store the pumpkins, keep them in a cool (50-60 degrees is ideal) and dry place and they should keep for as long 4-5 months. When you're finally ready to harvest the seeds, simply take them out of the pumpkin, rinse them off, and dry them in a dark and warm place for 3-4 weeks. Then store them in a paper bag, away from heat and moisture. They should be viable for 3-5 years as long as they aren't exposed to any temperature extremes. Stay tuned for some pumpkin recipes!

Sincerely,

Stuart