Anybody ever try this with pumpkins?

[badgerpup]

Found this article in book 1001 Old-Time Gardening Tips* on pg 71 about milk-fed pumpkins...
You cut a slit in the stem, put in a wick and every night you give the gourd a bowl of milk..about a quart's worth.

Thinking of trying this, just for shitzngiggles...and I bought some GIANT PUMPKIN seeds...they gots big damn pumpkins in they blood...well...saplines.

If this works out, I may need to borrow a backhoe to move the finished product...:wow:

* ISBN 08596-766-3 (hardcover)

[Vinca]

1. I wonder if the author has cats.

:rofl:

[WolverineDG]

2. I first heard about that when I read "Farmer Boy"

about Laura Ingalls Wilder's husband. :) BTW, he grew a huge pumpkin & won a ribbon for it. Waaay back in the 1850s.

:)

dg

[badgerpup]

5. I remember reading this too...

The article to which I was referring (the book in the OP) was from a gardening column in the Portland Oregonian way back in...
are you ready for this?
1899!
:wow:

Think I will try it. I like entering stuff at the fair, and (coughs modestly) I've taken ribbons in quite a few divisions; winemaking, baking, sewing, crochet, dehydrated (veg and jerky), and roses.

It's time to start learning how to grow vegetables properly.

[K8-EEE]

3. But....why?

I never heard of that, how interesting!! What is the milk supposed to do for the pumpkin? I dunno.....I picture all the neighborhood cats invading my pumpkin patch!

[badgerpup]

6. Looks like fun...

Curiosity?
I want to see if this for real.

Who knows...there might be a market in my local health-food store for milk-fed pumpkins.
Pumpkin is good for you anyway...NOW WITH EXTRA CALCIUM! :crazy: <----- joke

[MagickMuffin]

4. Here's some more Tips:

Step 1

Decide on the method you would like to use to grow a milk-fed pumpkin. You can also select several plants and use different techniques to see what works best. Who knows, maybe you'll find your pumpkin sporting a blue ribbon at the state fair.

Step 2

Use the classic method to grow a milk-fed pumpkin. Choose a healthy-looking pumpkin about the size of a softball and trim all other flowers from the vine. You want the all of plant's energy and nutrition directed towards the one pumpkin.

Step 3

Make a small slit in the stem approximately 3 inches from the pumpkin. Do not cut too deeply since you only need to insert the wick or string 1/4 of an inch into the stem. Insert one end of the wick into the slit and the other into a covered pan placed in a small hole next to the pumpkin.

Step 4

Fill a bowl with milk and one tablespoon of sugar. Check the bowl every day to make sure the milk has not soured or been soaked up by the pumpkin. Two percent milk is recommended, but you can dilute whole milk if you choose. Check the wick to make sure it hasn't come loose from the vine.

Step 5

Use milk as fertilizer if you choose not to use the bowl and wick method. This works best if mixed with manure and ground-up fish. Another approach is to pour a cup of milk around the roots of the pumpkin every day. It's believed that bacteria grow in the enzymes because the milk is warm.

Step 6

Spray the leaves of the plant with milk. This method is used in New Zealand and is believed to strengthen the leaves of the plant and enhance fruit production. Scientists claim the phosphates in the milk are responsible for the positive effects. Another way to grow a milk-fed pumpkin is to inject milk into the stem with a syringe.

[undergroundnomore]

7. I never heard of

such a thing. If you decide to do it can you keep us updated on the final product?