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Sioux Falls, SD [email protected]

Wind half cracked off the main vine at about 4-5feet. Should I lop it off? Should I then let plant decide where to grow. Back vine has started and is about a foot long. . .keep it orwhack it? Also I have a nearby backup plant that is way behind with only a 1 foot vine. . .what's my best bet

6/15/2004 12:26:13 AM

Arizona

first thing I would say, is try to save it. if you can save it it's worth it. if not then we will go from there. you can always train a new vine to be a main. I'm not sure how bad it is, or how the crack looks. take a few photos if you can.

There seems to be a lot of growers with broken vines around this time... maybe one can help you better then I could :)

Best of luck and grow a Big'gun!

Jeff

6/15/2004 1:51:01 AM

Rhode Island

gary
believe it or not over the years my son ron and i have had many main vines snap half way thru ( mostly from stifness in the main and or trying to work the main down )

it may sound crazy but we have duck taped them together , then buried the vine and off you go --- try it,
you could also cut the main back to the next good secondary and let that become the main ( as a last resort )

6/15/2004 9:09:14 PM

Joliet, IL

i too suffered a hit on my main today of one of my plants.
it was at 15' with no female blossums on the main yet.
it grew straight up after being cloudy all day yesterday
and then cloudy this morning too. then we got bright
sunshine from noon on and somewhere in this time it
went straight up and either the wind or the weight of
it cracked it in half. it was too bad to save, so
i will train the secondary closest to the crack to be the
main continuing on. i will most likely pollinate all
sidevine females that are present and go with one of
those as my prime pumpkin and pollinate a female on
the secondary that will be the new main when a female
shows on it. when you see the break, it breaks your
heart and leaves you with a sick feeling deep in the
pit of your belly. but that is all part of the game
and it is what it is and all you can do is alter your
plans and carry on. the irony of it all was after i removed
the broken tip off, i looked deep in the tip cluster and
found a pretty little yellow female blossum that would have
been at about 18'. murphy's law strikes again.

6/16/2004 9:48:58 PM