Get your Pumpkin Growers membership in by July 1 to compete this year for prizes

 Are you and your family ready for a real challenge when it comes to gardening? Do you consider yourself a great "green thumber"? We have the right contest for you right here in Clearwater County. 

The Pumpkin Growers of Gonvick (and the surrounding area) have issued a challenge to both young and old to try their talents at growing pumpkins. The great Pumpkin Weigh-off is scheduled for the last Saturday in September This will be the 24th year of this contest. Last year's winner was Bobby Edevold of Gonvick whose pumpkin weighed in at over 1,000 lbs. It is not too late to get those pumpkin seeds planted, but the seeds should be planted by Memorial Day.

The experienced pumpkin growers offer the following suggestions for growing a HUGE pumpkin. Here are some of their tips:

- You can get a free packet of  pumpkin seeds at The Trap, which is the Pumpkin Growers' headquarters in Gonvick. To qualify in the adult division, you must be a paid up  member ($5) before July 1, 2017.

 -You need an outdoor site that has some good DIR

 -Plant seed in dirt before Memorial Day.

 -Help plant along with fertilizer or Miracle Grow

 -Try to get the main vine and some secondary vines, but no tertiary vines. One pumpkin per plant is best for growth.

-Be sure to water plant as needed.

 -Spray for cucumber beetles and other insects. You also may need fencing if you have deer living nearby.

The Pumpkin Growers Association offers great prize monies for both the children and adults. Top prize for the biggest pumpkin is $1000; down to $100 for 10th place. In the kids' division, the top ten winners receive $10, a medal, and a plaque. The Gonvick Diamond Jubilee Committee supplies the prize monies, individuals and businesses underwrite several of the day-long events, the Gonvick Fire Department serves food and a raffle, there is a craft show at the Clearwater Life Center (old school), and an amazing car show. For the children, there are games, bicycles and other prize drawings. It is usually a fun day for everyone.

Pumpkin Growers 'historian' Bobby Edevold of Gonvick gave us a little history of their Pumpkin Growers Association. He wrote, "This time of year Pumpkin Growers are germinating seeds and preparing their soil for the upcoming pumpkin season. Methods vary; growers like Al Danielson or Bob Edevold use a more natural approach.  When the moon phase is correct, Al germinates his seeds in a south-facing window and uses well-aged horse manure to improve his soil. Since retirement, Al has spent many hours in research. He has concluded that Diatomaceous earth is the missing super soil additive for his pumpkin patch on which he and his grandson Reese have grown many nice pumpkins. Many gardeners wait for natural signs like the popple trees budding, or asparagus or rhubard activity, etc. Bob watches for the first run of suckers out of Pine Lake (this year it was April 20th) to put his seeds in red Solo cups; he constantly mulches with yard clippings, fruit and veggie waste to keep his soil healthy and alive. His grandsons Emmit and Porter transplanted their first pumpkin on May 13th, 2017."

Bob continued, " Tucker and Margie Johnson's germination techniques include seed filing and soaking . They have rich farmyard soil and use a lot of fertilizer. For years, it's been rumored amongst pumpkin growers that they use an electric floor-like heat system to get a head start on the competition. It seems that this electric heat cable can make quite a mess when it gets tangled up in your roto-vator. Tucker's newly-installed underground hot water heat for all eight of his pumpkin plants will probably make him unbeatable. Boiler, pumps, hot water pipe (trenched 24 inches deep), labor, etc. costs $7086.42.  Neighbors were quite concerned when they noticed steam coming off Tucker's pumpkin patch in mid-February. Talk of possible geysers, hot springs, even volcanoes, went on for a few days until he 'fessed up'.

Marvin Marty has a smart set up with a greenhouse on the south side of his barn (reflective and retained heat), Dave Marty is growing this year, also. Remember Marty Brothers Feed and Seed Company??(These guys already know what the rest of us are trying to learn).

Pumpkin Growers JJ and Kim Solberg have been chosen to represent Minnesota as Finalists in the Better Homes and Gardens' 2017 Finest Yard and Garden. The contest ends June 30th with a $25,000 Grand prize. Anybody seeing the Solbergs' yard and gardens is impressed and all members wish them luck on June 30th, 2017. JJ started this year by drying seeds from his 1000 lb. pumpkin which won him a prize last fall. He used a technique perfected by his grandmother (everybody who has planted his seeds has reported 100% germination and aggressive growth), Both JJ and Kim come from a long line of gardening and farm families. They grew a 1008 lb. pumpkin for their second year of competition. Sons Trevor(winner of the 2016 kids' contest) and Gavin also have gardening in their blood.

Long-time caretakers of our pumpkin patch David and Linda Quern and their sons Brandon and Dawson have a lot of pumpkin-growing experience and should do well this year. Linda is a spokeswoman for the club and winner of the 2017 spelling contest.  

John Johnson combines a lifetime of gardening experience with new and innovative techniques. A phone app tells him when to start his seeds, which he soaks in solution for three hours and then microwaves on low for 15 minutes (not all of the seeds survive the minrowave, but the ones that do are up in less than six hours).John has hauled in truckloads of rich soil, bought pallets of water soluble fertilizer, fenced to keep the critters out, has an apprentice program and croons Elvis Presley songs to his pumpkins in the evening. If John can continue his pumpkin-growing progress at its present rate, he will grow a 3,552 lb. world record pumpkin in 2019.

Top ten pumpkin growers including Tanner Petterson (Pumpkin Growers Hall of Fame and rumoured to be  grown in the Grand Forks Red River Valley area this year), Dylan Owens and Nathan Watne with daughters Harper and McKinley are also certain to bring in big pumpkins to the Sept. 30th Big Pumpkin Weigh Off."

So grab a pumpkin seed packet and see what you can grow and enter it into the Pumpkin contest at Gonvick this fall. Anyone wanting to be a member of the Pumpkin Growers Association can contact Bobby Edevold or visit their official headquarters at The Trap in downtown Gonvick.