Growing Pumpkin

Cucurbita sp. : Cucurbitaceae / the gourd family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
                  P P P

(Best months for growing Pumpkin in New Zealand - cool/mountain regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 68°F and 90°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 35 - 47 inches apart
  • Harvest in 15-20 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Sweet Corn
  • Avoid growing close to: Potatoes

Your comments and tips

07 Feb 18, Rose (New Zealand - temperate climate)
My pumpkin snapped off the vine. It is very large but the vine is still healthy. What do i do with the pumpkin to ripen it
14 Sep 18, Mike (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)
Support the vine next time. If the vine had started to die back etc the pumpkin would have been ripe/mature - 5-6 mths old. If the plant had only been growing 3 mths then the pumpkin would be immature.
08 May 18, Peter (New Zealand - temperate climate)
had the same problem early in last season I put the pumpkin in a warm dry place in the garden shed and was left for 3 months decided to cut it and was surprised to see a fresh not fully ripe but very edible pumpkin, warm shed and dry seems to work
31 Jan 18, Karen hoye (Australia - temperate climate)
When to plant gourd seeds in Newcastle NSW first attempts Cheers Karen
02 Feb 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
It says it grows like pumpkin, so plant it now.
28 Jan 18, Shelley O'Brien (Australia - arid climate)
What are the best varieties of butternuts, and pumpkins to plant in dry areas of western NSW?
30 Jan 18, Mike (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Go to a seed company like Boondie Seeds and read about different pumpkins. Doesn't matter what kind of pumpkin you grow it will need a fair amount of watering.
27 Jan 18, Cat (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I have a pumpkin vine just pop up in my compost heap (just a hole in the ground i dig the compost into away from the house & pets). It's starting to grow pretty prolific, no flowers yet though. I have no real idea of the variety as I've used probably (at least) 3 different varieties of pumpkin and all of the seeds have been mixed in the compost heap. a) can i transplant it to a garden bed in full sun? b) does the one vine/plant grow flowers of both genders or do i need two plants? How do you know what's going to grow? This is the first time I've ever heard you needed or that there were genders to the flowers. My grandpa grew pumpkins when I was a kid & never said. TIA, Cat
02 Feb 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
If you read the last 20-30 posts here about pumpkin, we talk about hand pollination. Each female flower is only open one day and quite often shut by lunch - so check each morning. If it has grown quite a bit I would not transplant it.
01 Feb 18, Katie (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Cat, Yes you can transplant your pumpkin plant! There will be no way to tell what kind of pumpkin you have until your fruit are growing and it may actually end up being a hybrid mixed variety. It should still be good to eat though! Pumpkins produce both male and female flowers. If you do not have many bees or wish to be guaranteed pumpkins it doesn't hurt to hand pollinate particularly if you only have the one plant. Plenty of info online about how to do that but it is easy with pumpkins. Just google
Showing 351 - 360 of 833 comments

Let it grow and see what happens - keep it well watered in the hot weather.

- Anonymous

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. GardenGrow is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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