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durian_2008
Cornucopian Eating an Elephant



Registered: 04/02/08
Posts: 16,681
Loc: Raccoon City
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Giant Pumpkins
#11072382 - 09/16/09 07:39 PM (14 years, 4 months ago) |
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Quote:
Giant Pumpkins
The largest pumpkins are Cucurbita maxima. They were cultivated from the hubbard squash genotype, crossed with kabocha-pumpkin types by enthusiast farmers through intermittent effort since the early 1800s. As such germplasm is commercially provocative, a U.S. legal right was granted for the rounder phenotypes, levying them as constituting a variety, with the appellation Atlantic Giant. Eventually this phenotype graduated back into the public domain, except now it had the name Atlantic Giant on its record (see USDA PVP # 8500204).
Weigh-off competitions for giant pumpkins are a popular festival activity. 460 pounds (208.65 kilograms) held the world record for the largest pumpkin until 1981 when Howard Dill (of Nova Scotia) broke the record with a pumpkin near 500 pounds (226.80 kilograms). Dill patented the seeds used to grow this giant pumpkin, deeming them Dill’s Atlantic Giant seeds, and drawing growers from around the world. Dill is accredited for all of the giant pumpkins today, most of which are borne from crossing and re-crossing his patented seed with other varieties.[18] By 1994, the Giant Pumpkin crossed the 1,000-pound (453.59-kilogram) mark. In September 2007, Joe Jutras (of Rhode Island) obtained the title of world’s largest pumpkin with a cream-colored, 1,689-pound (766.12-kilogram) fruit.[19] He is currently said to be working on producing a giant orange pumpkin, as orange pumpkins tend to be smaller and have thinner shells but are more desirable in appearance. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumpkin
I'll buy some seeds for next Autumn, if I can't trade for any.
Dill's charging $12 for 2 seeds from a 1,000lb pumpkin.
I'm curious about what kind of breeding is involved, because Hubbards don't get so huge.
Did he cross pollinate for favorable characteristics (like color and texture), then save back the biggest offspring?
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LiquidSmoke
My title's cooler than yours DBK

Registered: 09/04/01
Posts: 25,335
Loc: S.A.G.G.Y.B.A.L.L.S.
Last seen: 6 months, 26 days
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i've always dreamt as a child to grow one of those and then live inside of it for a while.
-------------------- "Shmokin' weed, Shmokin' wizz, doin' coke, drinkin' beers. Drinkin' beers beers beers, rollin' fatties, smokin' blunts. Who smokes tha blunts? We smoke the blunts" - Jay and Silent Bob strike Back
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schonta
oil feild trash

Registered: 08/21/09
Posts: 456
Loc: podunk know where
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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or get some make shift axel's and wheels and strap a few dogs to the front for a great halloween remake of cinderela
-------------------- I hurt myself today to see if I still feel I focuse on the pain The only thing that's real
 
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