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Eugene,OR

Everybody likes to talk about and show off their successful plants. A lot of us probably have a plant or two that we're not too proud of, but everyone could probably learn a thing or two NOT to do from. Let's have a bad looking plant contest consisting of a post on your grower diary and an explanation of what you did wrong to the plant to get it to look so horrible. Just make a post here that you want to be in the contest and the date of your post that you want to be considered for the title of "Worst Looking Pumpkin" for Spring 2004. 50% of the judging will be on how bad the pictured plant looks, and 50% will be based on your explanation of how you screwed it up. I have a few decent seeds I'll throw into a prize pool for the winner(s). If anyone else would like to donate any prizes just make a post here. To participate in the contest you must make a post here (with a 2004 diary post referenced) no later than Friday, June 18. Good Luck...or should I say "Bad Luck!"

6/11/2004 10:02:24 PM

Cheyenne, Wyoming

I have a photo of one of my plants that may qualify as both a poor looking plant, and poor choices made by the grower.

The photo is #57 in my diary (Beet) - Entry date was June 4th.

To get the true signficance of state this plant is in, there are two key things to remember.

1. This plant is on day 54. It is literally the size of a pop can. Most of you have four or six foot vines by day 54.

2. I was trying to get the plant to increase it's growth rate, and eliminate some small yellow spots. I applied a foliar spray of liquid calcium at the rate of 3 oz calcium to 20 ounces of water. I had never used liquid calcium before. I found out later, that is about five to ten times too strong. In addition to that, I added Epsom salt, 20-20-20 fertilizer, and to top it all off, I added Ironite. I figured that if Ironite in the soil was good, it had to be faster and better to apply it to the leaves. The Ironite wasn't fully disolved yet, so some of the pellets attached to the pumpkin plant's leaves. In my brillance, I tried to spray the pellets off the leaves, using the liquid calcium, which in retrospect, was burning the plant's leaves even more. The next morning, when I checked on the plant, it was wilted over, with all existing leaves yellow, or brown.


In retrospect, I basically killed the whole plant, with my original objective being to accelerate it's growth.

Beet

6/11/2004 11:36:49 PM

Eugene,OR

Nice post Beet. This is the kind of quality plant killing that we all can learn from and enjoy at the same time! You are brave to go first and therefore will receive at minimum a 727 Pearce '03 (1337 Houghton x 1230 Daletas), which happens to be one of my best looking plants currently! Please e-mail me with your name & address to receive your prize.

6/12/2004 12:14:51 AM

Mill Creek West by god Virginia

vineman i got one ugggly punkin!324 guness its a little over 40 days old and only has one leaf it was born this way dont know why been using the symbex program but this guy is a freak!!!!!!see pic in my diary june 1 of this ugggly duckling!burrhead

6/12/2004 4:13:50 AM

Eugene,OR

Thanks for the post Burrhead. It looks like a contender! What about the rest of you? I want to see some hail damage, insect infestation, I want to see some Neem Oil disasters. I want to see the plant that the dog peed on! Let's get this contest rolling.

6/12/2004 9:32:59 AM

Pulaski Tn [email protected]

submitted my entry..it looks like a winner to me...

6/12/2004 10:30:16 AM