It was a beautiful day at Grammy’s Pumpkin Patch! Thank you to everyone who came out for the “pick of the patch”. Here are just a few…
We loved having Sundance Farm bring out their ponies again. Rye and Andy are so sweet! Scotty was out pulling his wagon in style too!
I visited the patch today for the first time since the cows visited it yesterday. Man, I am so disappointed. This was a patch where we planted our giants and minis. Before the cows frolicked in it, it was our best looking patch as we had babied it along during the tough conditions this summer. Some plants survived and are looking great. I guess I need to concentrate on them!
The first plant was a Dill’s Atlantic Giant that the cows topped off. These are supposed to be grass-fed cattle, not pumpkin-fed! The second picture is some of the “carnage”. Number three are some survivors, and the last picture is of a Jack-Be-Little that Flicka, the cow, picked. Sigh!
Grammy’s Pumpkin Patch 2012 in McPherson, KSIf you are on our mailing list, or if you live in the Johnstown area, you are aware of the 2nd annual Johnstown Giant Pumpkin contest. Last year we hosted the event for the first time. We invited neighbors from the Johnstown area to try their hand at growing a giant pumpkin. On the evening of the contest, we weighed and measured all the entries. There were prizes for everyone (thanks to Kola Johnson). My favorite part came over supper when stories were shared of relatives and friends “back in the day” Johnstown. Leland brought his guitar and closed out our night with some singing. What a great time to enjoy neighbors and reflect on my heritage and the work, tears, and yes, laughter that went into building up a homestead and small country community.
Well, as a sneak peek, here is our plant that is growing this year’s Johnstown Giant. I admit with this year’s season, our giant could have been planted earlier, but we are still holding out hope for a GREAT BIG entry!
This year’s Johnstown Giant hopeful!
Grammy’s Pumpkin Patch 2012, McPherson, KS
How did it get to be June again??? June, of course, to pumpkin farmers means planting time. We planted three different patches this year. The method to our madness is to better manage watering, weeding, and bugs. I hope our experimenting pays off. Our fields are separated into conventionally-tilled, strip-tilled, and no-till patches.
We used a cover crop of radishes (with some volunteer triticale) this year for our no-till and strip-till patches. The idea with no-till farming is conservation of the soil and its nutrients, bug and weed control. We chose radishes as a cover crop because they have been somewhat effective in squash bug control. Our timing in planting the radishes was a bit of an experiment as well. Normally, they would have been planted in September and died off already, but pumpkins are still in the field in September, so our cover crop was planted late. It had not died off when we planted the pumpkins. Half of the main patch is planted no-till and half of it is planted as a strip-till patch. I am a believer in no-till farming, but I have to admit that it makes me nervous not to see a freshly plowed and tilled field with neat furrows!
We planted another patch with mainly minis, giants, and gourds. This is our school and train patch. We did plant this patch with conventional tilling. We plan to use weed block and irrigation in this patch as it is smaller.
Around the house, we have experimented with some straw bale planting as well. The popcorn is also planted. We are looking forward to some great popped corn on the cob!
So with almost everything planted, we now have to pray that our experimenting will pay off and that the rains will come! This waiting part is not my specialty, but it is always a great reminder to me that God is the ultimate gardener, and He will provide all our needs.
After much sorting, cleaning, and packing, the pumpkin patch is put to bed for the season. This is always a bittersweet time for us. We are ready to catch our breath, but the season is so fun for us- believe it or not- we miss the constant hustle and bustle. However, I can tell you the chickens are GLAD the season is over!
Our chickens normally free range the farm during the days, returning to the coop for protection at night. But after several “pumpkin pecking” instances, the chickens were banned to the coop and fenced in area during pumpkin patch time. These days, the chickens are loving their freedom. By the way, they are laying now, so if anyone is interested in purchasing farm fresh eggs, give us a call!
The other day, I was the one turned into a “chicken”! I was running some errands between the outbuildings at the farm when, out of the blue, I was attacked by Bossy Rossy, the rooster (some of you might remember him). He has always been very docile before. All of a sudden, he was kicking, flapping, and scratching my legs. Of course, I did what any good farm girl does- I YELLED and RAN!!! I ended up taking refuge in the Lil’ Store. After the adrenaline wore off, I peeked out, and guess what? Bossy Rossy was strutting back and forth in front of the door like a sentinel! Every time I opened the door, he would stop and stare at me. I was kept hostage by this crazed rooster for about twenty minutes before he got bored and went off in search of bugs. I’m not going to lie, I carried a broom around for the next couple of hours – just in case!
Johnstown Farm 