Edible Gardening

Planting Pumpkins: Timing and Variety Suggestions

By Sarah Marcheschi

When to plant pumpkins

Regardless of which type you choose, pumpkins are a warm season crop, and can be grown with much success throughout most of the United States. In addition to their role dressing up doorsteps and front porches in autumn, they are wonderful in treats both sweet and savory like soups, pies, breads, custards, and pumpkin butter. Pumpkins are a tender crop. Their seeds won’t germinate in cold soil, and seedlings are easily damaged by frost. Be sure to plant once soil is warm and all danger of frost has passed.

How to harvest pumpkins

If you want your pumpkins to reach maturity in time for Halloween — and of course you do – plant in late May to allow plenty of time for growth. Be sure to plant in a sunny spot, and keep the surrounding area free of weeds. Your pumpkins should be harvested before any heavy frost occurs in the fall. They will likely be ready in late September or early October. You can tell when the rind is hard and the fruit becomes a deep orange color.

Take care when cutting pumpkins from the vine to leave 3 – 4 inches of stem attached. Pumpkins without this “handle” tend to fare poorly in storage. Make the task easier by wearing gloves to avoid prickly stems and using a sharp knife or set of pruning shears. And, remember to invite friends, kids, or grandkids to help out in the pumpkin patch! Everyone will love to be rewarded with his or her very own pumpkin.

Related Featured Articles

Vegetable Recipes for this Autumn's Harvest
Vegetable Recipes for this Autumn’s Harvest
By Sarah Marcheschi
Read article
Summer Squash: Growing Advice and Recipes
Summer Squash: Growing Advice and Recipes
By Nina Koziol
Read article

Related Videos

Fall Lily Cleanup
Runtime: 4:54
Watch Video
Planting Zucchini in Fall for Last-Minute Summer Squash
Planting Zucchini in Fall for Last-Minute Summer Squash
Runtime: 2:16
Watch Video

Related Blogs

Grow Butternut Squash Instead of Pumpkins
By Ellen Wells
Read this post
Fun Fall Container Ideas
By Abbi Hayes
Read this post

Here’s more information about gardening that you’re going to want

Membership has its perks!

Become a PlantersPlace member! Registered users can ask Marianne Binetti questions, create personal photo gallery and post product reviews.