Oily Rag column - week beginning 23 May 2011

Pumpkins
By Frank and Muriel Newman

While the rest of New Zealand has been focused on government budgets and red ink, of late the staff at the Institute of Oily Rag Studies have turned to more humble matters: the pumpkin. It is fair to say that some members have become more than a little excited about pumpkins – giant pumpkins in particular! - so much so that a plot has already been organised from which an attempt will be made to grow New Zealand’s largest pumpkin! (“Today New Zealand, tomorrow the world!”, someone was heard to say.)

Our curiosity was awakened when reading about the hot competition going on to grow New Zealand’s largest pumpkin. Robbie Dorresteyn from Taupo has claimed the NZ title with a 540kg monster, smashing through the half-a-ton level and passing the previous record of the 497kg whopper taken just last month by a Nelson grower.

Robbie is reported as saying it took just 94 days to grow! Although the record is just amazing, we here in oilyragaroa have a little way to go to lead the world in pumpkin growing. The world record as recorded in the Guinness Book of Records is 821kg and was grown Wisconsin, USA. The winner said his secret is a precise mixture of sunshine, rain, cow manure, fish emulsion and seaweed.

Having been awakened to the world of giant pumpkins, we are amazed how many people grow giant pumpkins. It’s not something that you really see between crime stories on the nightly news, but there is a huge amount of enterprise going on, from school projects to A & P shows.

We have also discovered a great, everything-you-need-to-know website specifically about giant pumpkins, called www.giantpumkins.co.nz. Sam, the man behind the site, does a great job of explaining what you need to do to get started – from what seeds to buy (he recommends Atlantic Giant) and where to buy them, to how to feed the pumpkin as it grows, and so on. And he updates his site with news and photos from the many pumpkin-growing competitions around the country.

What great fun, we thought, and what a great way to get the family involved in the garden (you will need as many willing helpers as possible to lift your giant once it has grown up!). The best time to plant seeds is around October so now is the time to learn more about this fascinating pursuit and get your ground ready.

The big question, of course, is can you eat a giant pumpkin? Well, yes. Sam says they taste a little like rock melon, but are not quite as good.

Anyway, it’s probably fair to say that for the kitchen you are better off growing a regular garden variety of pumpkin, with the giant pumpkin used to feed the family pig (ie the swine variety!) - or house cow. If you grow a whopper you will be able to sell the seeds – there are heaps of giant pumpkin seeds for sale online. Imagine what the seeds from the world’s largest pumpkin would be worth? Now that’s an idea – let’s turn NZ into the world’s largest giant pumpkin patch and boost export dollars by selling the seeds to the world! We can just see it now, giant pumpkins where sheep and cattle once roamed!

There are other uses though. Sam can be seen on his website wearing a pumpkin vest, and he has plans to make a helmet. We reckon if you grew one large enough you could hollow it out and use it as a garden shed!

So there you have it. While on the subject of pumpkins, if you have a favourite pumpkin recipe send it in to us so that we can share it with others. You can contact us via the oily rag website (www.oilyrag.co.nz) or write to Living off the Smell of an Oily Rag, PO Box 984, Whangarei.

ENDS