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Salem, OR

I haven't heard any definitive answers/theories on breeding the orange trait. What approach would work best to create seed stock that will produce HEAVY orange pumpkins. Is it:

1) Grow something very orange (even if it's light--the 1016 Daletas, say) and then cross it with something heavy and hope that the mother will pass on the color and shape and that the father (pollinator) will add some weight

or 2) Grow something moderately orange and heavy (the 1370 Rose is what I tried) and cross it with something very orange and hope that the orange will be accentuated

or 3) Cross two heavy and orange pumpkins. That's what I'll do with my 606 Clark and 983.5 Isom plants this year (and the 955 Brinkley will be pollinated with the 606, too)

Any theories out there, guys?

I see the 1302 Zulke and wonder if maybe we're heading in a new direction with some growers now who appear to be following method 2 above. The 1302 Zulke has real potential, I think, as an orange and heavy pumpkin (1370 was) pollinated with a very orange pumpkin. What other pumpkins out there confirm that this approach might work? The 1180 Daletas seems to be one

4/24/2007 8:18:28 PM

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Steve,

I am trying that this year with the 1048 Companion and crossing it with the 1233 Reiss. I was going to go with a squash plant, but have decided to go with two orange and heavy fruits, trying to accentuate both heavy and orange fruits. Time will tell. I have never tried orange in my patches over 10 years of growing, always going with the heavy salmon colored fruits, so this will be a new thing for me.

4/24/2007 9:42:32 PM

Berlin,mi.([email protected])

I think it is still all a crap shoot in the long run. I am doing exactly what you mention as far as trying to combine heavy with orange to end up with a seed that will produce great color and go heavy to the charts. The 1370 has a good track record of good color and heavy to the chart and the 810 Dill is in the background of many orange producing seeds.Unfortunately my 1302 Zuhlke went light to the charts but I do not believe that there is a direct connection to a pumpkin that went light to produce light offspring. My 621 Zuhlke was 12.51% light and I grew a 757 on it that went 4.73% heavy in 2006. I also like the looks of the 1180 Daletas. I made the same cross with it. 1180 x 810. unfortunately my 830 Zuhlke only had a few seeds in it. I hope to get one to germinate to grow this year. I will cross it with the 670 Daigle to reinforce the orange again.

A couple of pumpkins that catch my eye from 2006 are the 694.5 Simpson 2006 (846 Calai x 670 Daigle) 8.84% heavy and the pollinator grew the 553 Simpson 2006 (670 Daigle x self) 23.38% heavy.Also the 602 Simpson 2006 (1260 weir x 670 Daigle) 15.13% heavy. I am thinking of starting one of these seeds to use as a pollinator this year.

4/25/2007 6:40:00 AM

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I have started as backups to the two above mentioned seeds (1233 and 1048) the 671 Tanner and the 883 Blalock. Lots of color and good backups if these do not take. If the first two are good, I will give the backups to my friend to grow in his patch.

4/26/2007 9:21:34 PM

Nashville, TN

One trait to look for (for deep brilliant Orange) - is ovaries that are green until pollinated. These tend to be from plants carrying the RS gene for 'mature red fruit color'. Even when carried in conjunction with the B-gene 'precocious yellow' (which causes stems to be yellow and ovaries to be yellow prior to pollination, and light yellow-orange mature fruits) The RS gene seems to give a deeper orange color.

Both the B and RS gene are dominant - but recessive green can be carried in plants showing the two dominant genes.

4/30/2007 8:48:59 AM