From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Canada

Ok well I finally have a few fruit set my biggest one is
only 7 days old and is already basketball sized :-)

went out to the patch this evening after work and noticed
something had decided to take a "taste" test on the corner of the fruit, its not deep just a small skin scratch with nail markings down the side,

am i best to leave it alone and let it heal over or would you lightly dust that area with garden sulphur powder?

Dave

Also can this garden sulphur powder hurt anything like burn or anything to the fruit? never used this stuff before i just used it when i cut open the main vine to pull out the borers

thanks Dave

8/4/2005 4:55:31 PM

Hilpoltstein, Bavaria, Germany

don't dust it and don't paste it, leave it alone....

PS: A 7 day old fruit already at basketball size!?!
If I remember correctly, a basketball is 75 to 78 cm (about 30") in circ.! WOW

8/4/2005 5:54:57 PM

Canada

my Bad its
actually 8 days today because sat is day 10, I just got in from measureing it and its 25.5" circ, pretty good for 8 days, maybe 30" by day 10 :-), ya i'll just leave it be as I dont want to really mess with it. I know John Vincent
also growing his last years seed his fruit is growing
at about the same rate, mind you its much older and larger
but once his took off it grew fast, Hopefully the same for me :-)

Dave

8/4/2005 6:29:35 PM

Cheyenne, Wyoming

A few weeks ago, I had a cat scratch my pumpkin at about the size you are describing. I didn't do anything to the scratches, and they healed up just fine. The interesting part is, now about 20 days later, the pumpkin has a pronounced indention in the 8" X 8" area that was damaged earlier. The damaged area hasn't kept up with the growth of the rest of the pumpkin.

8/4/2005 7:44:33 PM

I'd be worried more about preventing future damage than I would about the scratches. They'll heal. I'd try to determine what animal did it, and get some traps out there.

8/4/2005 7:56:35 PM

Canada

Brigitte, Last year I purchased 2 of those "live Release"
traps one is small and one is medium, last year I got 2 possums a few rabbits and a skunk, This year nothing so far :-(

I built a small structure and placed them over my fruits
and hung landscape material around the entire fruit
so hopefully this keeps these animals away from them

Dave

8/4/2005 8:23:07 PM

Ontario, Canada

My pumpkin this year had some chunks taken out by squirrels when it was young. I just left it and it is growing fine.

8/5/2005 9:16:55 PM