Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome back here in the garden with Ron Wilson. And
it's getting tension time right now if you're a giant
pumpkin grower, because right now your pumpkins growing like crazy,
the weather's all over the board. You're not sure what's
going to happen. You know, you got a month and
a half going coming up before you start doing the
way offs. You're getting nervous. You're practically well. This guy
(00:25):
actually lives with his pumpkins, sleeps with him at nighttime,
gets all the blankets, and hangs out with him because
he is that protective of his giant pumpkins. He is
our giant pumpkin expert, Ladies and gentlemen, Mister Jerry Rose,
good morning, Hey Ron, how are you doing? I am great.
First of all, I want to thank you for this
picture that you sent me, because I'm sitting here looking
(00:45):
at it and my mouth is watering so much I
can barely talk.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
I figured I had to tease you a little bit
with that nice to nice kellogg breakfast tomato.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
There is that a Kellogg's.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yeah, that was a Kelloggs. I got them both out there,
the man Orange and the Kelloggs. That was a that
was the Kellogg's, and I've been getting quite a few
rife the wife's actually gotten into Now I grow the
celebrities too, and fuel mixed about a fifty to fifty
mixture for her spaghetti sauce with the man of Orange
Kellogg's Breakfast and celebrities, and that's her spaghetti sauce mixture.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I'll tell you what. I looked at this second and said, Okay,
would I just salt that a little bit and throw
out my mouth? Would I slice that off, put it
on a blt, throw a Friday egg on top of that.
I don't know, but seriously, my mouth is wading right now.
Just looking at that thing is beautiful. Now you you grow, you,
you you grow quite a few tomatoes, right.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
I got eighteen plants out there. This is one of
the first. A lot of times, a lot of times
I just let them grow, you know, Bisuer, I've been suckering.
I'm pretty good. So I'm getting some pretty nice size
ones and everything too.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
So you haven't been a pruner or sucker person in
the past, Now you are? And you yeah, you think
that's how.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
I think. I'm getting a few less. But I'm getting better, Okay.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
All right, so product may not increase, but you think
you're getting better overall tomatoes, Yeah, better fruit.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
The wife's that's what the wife said. And I'll tell you.
I know, I get out of the pumpkins here. But
I'm trying to teach the wife how to sucker and
telling her that the tomatoes like the trunk of the tree,
and the suckers are the branches. And I let her
go out and the suckers the tomato and I came
out and they were all popped. I'm like, I'm like,
(02:28):
I'm like, what did you do. I don't understand. I
don't undert I'm like, it's a tree in neither of
the branches. Come on, It's that. It's pretty simple.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Don't take the you don't take the leader out of
the top of the tree.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
No, don't take So then I have to turn the
next sucker into the leader. You know, it works itself out.
But yeah, it's funny.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
Remember it's all a series of trials and airs exactly exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
She was a city girl. She was a city girl
that came to the country. So I'm still trying to
teach her.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
I guess you took to the country.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
Yeah, she came out here all.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Right, So you know crucial time right now, which I
have to first ask you a question. Last week you
were camping out with it's such a crucial time for pumpkins.
How could you afford to take the time to go
to the campground and camp out?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Well, I tell you we've been doing it every year.
We go over to Cook's Forest over in Pennsylvania, which
is about three hours beautiful country over there absolutely no
phone reception and luckily i'd either get my names. There's
there's a point now where it's just basically kind of
babysit them a little bit and water them right. And
the boy Jr. Three as Dave Stelf would call him,
Jerry Rose the third, stayed home for the weekend. So
(03:36):
I had my main man out there keeping an eye
on him because I do have a couple of little issues.
You get some little sauce spots in the vines this
time of the year just because of the humidity and
this and that, and you gotta we use a zero
tall oxidate, which I'm sure you use in the greenhouse industry.
Uh mix it up at like a quarter cup to
a gallon of water and a little pump up spray,
and you go out there and kind of scrape them
(03:57):
soft spots out and spray them with that, and if
it gets bad enough, you even put little little fans
on them to keep the air circulating. And luckily, luckily
in the greenhouse, surprisingly since I've been growing in the
high tunnel, I have less issues. And I think that's
because no rain's getting on them. You know, I'm putting
my own water onto the drip irrigation.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
And of course you're collecting rainfall. You got all your
your tanks that you've been brought yep, and so do
you use that exclusively or right as.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Long as I can. And luckily, since probably Geez probably
been the last month or so, it seems like we'd
been just enough rain to be able to collect. I
got a lot of buildings here and everything, and like
the other, a couple of nights ago we got zero
point six of a tenth of an inch of rain
and they gave me almost three hundred gallons of water.
So you can imagine we get, you know, a good
(04:44):
hard rain or something. I fell all my tanks up.
In fact, we did the other night. It was like
I woke up at ten thirty to terrain, and I
wanted to make sure everything was working good. And we
got one of them day lose rains where we got
like an inch of rain and forty five minutes or something.
I'll tell you what everything was. Everything was full by
that into that ring.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
I love it talking with Jerry Rose. He is our
giant pumpkin grower, holds many records when it comes to
giant pumpkins and always keeps us updated every year where
we stand not only in his pumpkin patch, but looking
around the country as well. As we start to look
ahead to our way off time of the year, and
that typically starts what late September and into October.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, actually, you know we've been talking. There's a Canfield Fair,
which is kind of the local event that got us
saw a lot of us going, and everything is next weekend.
We usually bring some some of our smaller pumpkins or
maybe pumpkins we are giving us issues down there, and
then about three weeks after that there will be some
in West Virginia and Kentucky and southern Ohio and the
(05:43):
season just kind of goes on then. So I think
oak Oakland is our last kind of local way off.
I mean, you can still find some other ones down
in the Carolina's up until maybe even the next weekend.
But yeah, it's yeah, we're getting into the getting into
the heat of things here now.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
And the one out in California is the usually the
last one, right.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
What half Moon Bay is? Yeah, you're right, Yeah, that's
that's usual. The actually half Moon Bay is I think
it's the Monday after Oakland and then actually Circleville will
be well yeah, three days after Oakland. Yeah, there's still
a few of them, but Circleville is not. They're kind
of like you got to live within so many miles
(06:25):
of Circleville to enter down there and everything, and they're
they're their own they're their own deal down there.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Got it all? Right? So the world record holder right
now is two thousand and seven hundred and forty nine pounds.
And I remember Jerry Rose when I first met you
and at Oakland and doing their way off there. I mean,
we were looking at breaking that thousand pound pumpkin at
that time. I mean, and I look at this today
and it's just phenomenal. And I look at last year,
(06:51):
I mean the Steltz Carol Steltz. Yeah, and Dave kind
of helped out. But Carol Steltz, I mean had a
fantastic year. You kind of had an off year. You
had throwaways of what sixteen hundred, eighteen hundred.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
No, nineteen eighty, nineteen and a half and eighteen eighty
five throwaways. Yeah, yeah, I guess they should have been
bigger than by estimates, they should have been bigger. Yes,
I was a little bit disappointed.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
You know what's funny is when you were at Oakland,
you could just you can always tell you're just kind
of a little more low key, you know this kind of
you know that was okay years all right, and then
you start talking about nineteen hundred pounds pumpkins. It's like,
give me a break, you giant pumpkin grows. All right,
we're gonna take a quick break. We come back. You're
(07:38):
gonna give us an update on where you're standing right now,
what's going on, because this is a really key time
for pumpkins as they're growing like crazy right now. More
with Jerry Rose, our giant pumpkin grower. Here in the
garden with Ron.
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Speaker 1 (09:16):
Welcome back. You're You're in the garden with Ron Wilson
Special guests this morning. Our giant Pumpkin Girl or mister
Jerry Rose, is with us this morning. Kind of give
us an update on where we stand with giant pumpkins
because wayoffs are going to start here very shortly.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
And of course the goal the world record twenty seven
forty nine, two thousand, seven hundred and forty nine pounds.
That is a huge pumpkin. So weatherwise and all, has
it been a trickier for you this year? Not not necessarily.
Speaker 2 (09:45):
Yeah, it's been. You've been hot, you know in the
High Tunnel. I mean, just I ain't got to worry
about the rain. You know, started out very wet and
then we kind of went dry and now now we've
been just kind of average, you know. Rain wise, I
would say, uh, it was you know, all the ninety
gree days. They don't like to I always say, if
you could have the perfect day, the eighty two eighty
three at the daytime and sixty two or sixty three
at night, you know, which is actually what today is
(10:07):
supposed to be, so it'll be the perfect day.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
But yeah, you get in the whole week of that
coming up.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
I think I don't know their show. I have a
feeling I wouldn't and if I get it, I'll send
you a picture. I wouldn't be a bit surprised because
I'm in a valley at the bottom of a hill.
I might be in the low forties or upper thirties here.
I wouldn't be surprised by the middle of the week.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Yeah, you send me pictures.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Were in Cleveland being in the forties.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
Oh really, yeah, yeah, Jerry sends me pictures. By the way,
this snow just happened yesterday, and it's like may or whatever.
I'm like, you gotta be kidding you. So all right,
so you're looking out at your giant pumpkins right now,
you've been doing this forever, and you're looking out there
right now. How many you got? That air potential?
Speaker 2 (10:52):
One that I would say is a real, real good contender.
It's it's matching, uh you know, it's it's estimating about
two thousand right now. Now for me, that means it
probably weighs eighteen hundred, because I never go with the
chart says, but it's estimating two thousand. I got a
couple others that are doing you know, they're fifteen hundred
or so, and then one that's a little behind because
(11:14):
I had a hard time setting it on a plant
and it's only about a thousand or eleven hundred, and
I lost too. I think I sent you. I don't
know if I sent you the second picture, but the
groundhog bit one of mine when it was only about
football size, and I left it on the plant, and
I probably shouldn't have inn about two weeks ago where
that scar was from the groundhog right and I knew
better than to do this. It's split open right there.
(11:36):
And then last weekend, why I was gone, Jerry sent
me a picture. I had another, probably my second best one,
split open in the blossom. And there's lots and lots
and lots of people around the country having blossom and
splits this year. It seems like more than normal. And
if we could figure out how to do that, you know,
how to fix that, there would be a lot more
big pumpkins. But just just the way.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
It did, what any idea what causes that?
Speaker 2 (11:59):
No, you can tell me. I'll put all my prize
money with you.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
There you go. I love it so so you're looking
out there right now. So right now, isn't August like
a key month for the growth of these things.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
It is, you know, if you hit their peak. It
used to be we set these pumpkins closer to July fourth,
so August they put on, you know, their most weight.
Now most of us are trying to get them set
on the plants by the middle of June. So I
hit my peak probably three or four weeks ago, by
by estimate estimate. Last Monday, me and Jerry measure every
seven days, and I was down to twenty three pounds
(12:33):
a day. I think I put on about one hundred
and sixty pounds Monday to Monday. We'll see what this
Monday till this coming Monday does, but it is twenty
three pounds. Hopefully this week I'll get you know, fifteen
sixteen pounds, and they'll just keep going down. I'm hoping
for another three to four hundred, really three hundred pounds
on top of what I got this coming Monday, right.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
And that's per day. When he's talking about twenty pounds,
we're talking per day. And you told me at one time,
I mean you can be as much as what forty
five fifty pounds a day?
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Yeah, my biggest one out here as at it's peaked,
did I think it was by estimate, fifty one pounds
a day for seven days. But you can figure that's
a little what three hundred and sixty about thre hundred
and sixty pounds for a week, But you can figure
the mountain. Like I said, it came on the plan
on June fifteenth. I think this one was in order
to get over two thousand pounds, you know, don't you
have to have still almost like a twenty pounds average
to its entire lifespan.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Unreal? Now that the twenty seven hundred pound or was
that is that a greenhouse grown?
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Or was that the guy up in Minnesota? He was outside? Okay, Yeah,
he's outside and he's lost. He only grows two plants
and he I'm friends with him on Facebook and he
he's lost both of his So he's out of competition
for this year.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
Really. Wow, Yeah, that's that's just the way that got.
You've always been there, though, I mean, you've always had
enough to be somewhere in the wayoffs right, I'm never
you've never been.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
To out Yeah yeah, and then I got a couple
three extra I got so much stuff growing out here.
I said, if I wasn't retired now in no way
I could do over growing bushel gores. I got giant
watermelons this year, I got giant jack O Lantern's. I
got the giant tomatoes. I'm like, man, I'm I'm like,
I don't know if I'm just getting slower because I'm
(14:12):
getting older. But it seems like I'm out there all
day long, which I guess is good. And you know,
you see too many retired people just sit around and
do nothing. I said, I'm not that type of person.
At least I'm doing something right.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
So yeah, so you're involved with all this. And by
the way, if folks want to follow all the wayoffs
for all of the vegetables he just mentioned, go to
big Pumpkins dot com. That's Big Pumpkins dot com and
you'll see where to twenty twenty five all the way offs.
You can click onto that. I'll show you all the
different ones. You can go to the past and go
to last year. You can find Jerry Rose on there
(14:41):
on the on the giant pumpkins. You'll see where he
placed and everybody placed on there. So check it out.
I have fun watching it. As a matter of fact,
I was on there this morning. I was amazed the
guy that did the longest gore. That thing was like
two stories high.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Yep Y said right now. And I don't know the
fella personally, but I think because I do the giant stuff,
it must just high out of them algorithms. Go it
pops up on my Facebook, but they're the fellas. I
think it's over Iiowa. He's he's got a sunflower that
he's waiting for it to head out, and it's gonna
if it unless something happens, it's gonna break the world
record right right now, is like four foot taller than
(15:18):
the tallest sunflo It's like thirty two or thirty three
foot tall. You should see the trolls he's got holding
that thing up in there.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Take a telephone pole to hold that up.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
I mean yeah, you're talking thirty some foot that. That's
almost a tall telephone pole.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Oh my gosh, that's unbelievable. Well again, it's a lot
of fun. So check it out. It's big Pumpkins dot
com and of course you'll find Jerry on there. You
can learn more about it if you want to give
it a try. Uh go to these way offs. As
a matter of fact, Jerry, I get to see Jerry
I think it's October the twelfth at Oakland Nursery and Dublin, Ohio,
and they have a big time Way Off there and
(15:53):
that's where I met Jerry for the first time and
got involved with these and you learn more about it.
There's it's amazing. I mean people come there for the
first time growing giant pumpkins and show up with six,
seven to eight hundred pound pumpkins.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Yeah. Especially so the little kids, I'll tell you what,
they're getting pretty good. They're getting competitive.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Those a brother and sister group there and they're yeah,
they're liking the third or fourth grade something like that.
And every year the pumpkins just get a little bit
bigger and a little bit bigger. They do a great job.
It's a lot of fun. Giant tomatoes. You grow what
was your biggest one? Six six pounder?
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Yeah, I almost had a seven pounder last year. They're
doing okay out here. I mean they're just starting to
come on.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
You know.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
I didn't even start my seats for the giants till
the middle of June because if you start them too early,
they turn red and then they rock. So I they're
just starting to come on. So then for Way Off time,
which is still seven weeks. I think I was figuring
it's forty forty nine days from today or something like that.
They're just starting to come on, so they'll be getting
right for me. And I've done it before where you
put them on them, you know, stick them in the
(16:54):
refrigerator or something like that. So I'm throwing the white
stuff out of the frigerator and you know, putting the
tomatoes in the fridge. You know, got her blankets off
the bed to stuff out of the refrigerator. I don't
know what else. How did she stay with you?
Speaker 1 (17:05):
You stuck her out in the country, take her blankets away,
clean out the refrigerator, you make her work outside and
prune the tomatoes. Then you yell at her because she
doesn't do it right.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Oh Maya, yesterday I picked that we did twelve courts
of corn. We froze twelve courts of corn. So that
time of the year is coming on too. She's a good.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Wife to put up with you, Jerry Rose. She is
a saint and she will go down with Saint Hood
as well. By the way, I was up in Port
Clinton this week, and that's an interesting area up there.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Oh yeah, we did up along the lake.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
We did Geneva on the Lake last year on your
side of the lake, and then we were up at
Port Clinton this week doing the other side of the
lake in the pretty interesting area up there as well. Hey, Jerry,
always a pleasure having you on the show. Good luck
with everything. I hope that big one comes along for
you and just as a miracle worker and you never know,
maybe it'll start kicking back into gear again. But I
look forward to seeing how well you do and all
(18:00):
the guys out there, and again if you want to
stay in touch with what's happening Big Pumpkins dot com
uh and uh and just follow along as they go
through all the way offs. Always a pleasure. I appreciate
you spending time with us this morning.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Thanks Royn. I'll have some seeds for you since you're
retired now you can grow Big punkin next year and
be competitive.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
Well, you know what, our volunteer pumpkins doing a pretty
darn good job right now. That's why I sent you
a picture of it.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
You have to keep them squirrel away, right, It's just the.
Speaker 1 (18:28):
Squirrels got into any other the darn squirrels just like
your ground hog, all right, all right, Jerry, take care.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
Have a good day. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Jerry Rose Giant pumpkin grower. And again, I think it's
fun to follow this. I mean, these these folks who
really get into this and then you know it's there,
it's there, it's their passion and a big hobby. And uh,
you know, they spend a lot of time with these
that to do and it gets serious. Jerry retired and
build a high tone. We hear him talking about his
high tunnel. It's a it's a hoop house, a greenhouse
(19:00):
that the sides are high on the side so they
keep it open, but it's covered on the top, so
he protects it from frosts, from rainfall because they've got
to be careful how much rainfall it gets, et cetera,
et cetera. And they're using high tunnels a lot more
for growing produce, for growing fruits and berries. They're growing
apple trees now in high tunnels because they can control
(19:22):
the environment a little bit more and have extend the
period of time that you're growing, like strawberries can have
longer seasons and things like that. So he's experimenting now
doing his in a high tunnel. Kind of a compromise
between like in Europe, doing them in greenhouses and just
growing them right outside. But anyway, always a fun thing,
good talking with Jerry. These folks really get into it.
(19:44):
But check it out big Pumpkins dot com. And if
you have a way off in your particular area on
a Saturday or Sunday coming up late summer and fall,
go and participate. I think you will enjoy. It's always
a lot of fun to see what these folks bring
to the table, so to speak. All right, we'll take
a quick break. We come back, lots of tips to
share with you, and of course we've got phone lines
(20:06):
open for you. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
five five. Don't forget our website, it's Ron Wilson online
dot com. Plann of the week, Sweet Autumn Climatis. Got
Magnolia scale on there, which is up. We talk about
that after the break. Lots of tips sheets for you
from Buggy Joe Boggs as well, and Rita's recipe what
to do with all those tomatoes? You'll love that one
(20:26):
as well. Here in the Garden, Ron Wilson.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
Not gardening questions.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
Ron has the answer at one eight hundred eight two
three talk.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
You are in the Garden with Ron Wilson,
Welcome back here in the garden with Ron Wilson. And
it's getting tension time right now if you're a giant
pumpkin grower, because right now your pumpkins growing like crazy,
the weather's all over the board. You're not sure what's
going to happen. You know, you got a month and
a half going coming up before you start doing the
way offs. You're getting nervous. You're practically well. This guy
(00:25):
actually lives with his pumpkins, sleeps with him at nighttime,
gets all the blankets, and hangs out with him because
he is that protective of his giant pumpkins. He is
our giant pumpkin expert, Ladies and gentlemen, Mister Jerry Rose,
good morning, Hey Ron, how are you doing? I am great.
First of all, I want to thank you for this
picture that you sent me, because I'm sitting here looking
(00:45):
at it and my mouth is watering so much I
can barely talk.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
I figured I had to tease you a little bit
with that nice to nice kellogg breakfast tomato.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
There is that a Kellogg's.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yeah, that was a Kelloggs. I got them both out there,
the man Orange and the Kelloggs. That was a that
was the Kellogg's, and I've been getting quite a few
rife the wife's actually gotten into Now I grow the
celebrities too, and fuel mixed about a fifty to fifty
mixture for her spaghetti sauce with the man of Orange
Kellogg's Breakfast and celebrities, and that's her spaghetti sauce mixture.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I'll tell you what. I looked at this second and said, Okay,
would I just salt that a little bit and throw
out my mouth? Would I slice that off, put it
on a blt, throw a Friday egg on top of that.
I don't know, but seriously, my mouth is wading right now.
Just looking at that thing is beautiful. Now you you grow, you,
you you grow quite a few tomatoes, right.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
I got eighteen plants out there. This is one of
the first. A lot of times, a lot of times
I just let them grow, you know, Bisuer, I've been suckering.
I'm pretty good. So I'm getting some pretty nice size
ones and everything too.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
So you haven't been a pruner or sucker person in
the past, Now you are? And you yeah, you think
that's how.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
I think. I'm getting a few less. But I'm getting better, Okay.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
All right, so product may not increase, but you think
you're getting better overall tomatoes, Yeah, better fruit.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
The wife's that's what the wife said. And I'll tell you.
I know, I get out of the pumpkins here. But
I'm trying to teach the wife how to sucker and
telling her that the tomatoes like the trunk of the tree,
and the suckers are the branches. And I let her
go out and the suckers the tomato and I came
out and they were all popped. I'm like, I'm like,
(02:28):
I'm like, what did you do. I don't understand. I
don't undert I'm like, it's a tree in neither of
the branches. Come on, It's that. It's pretty simple.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Don't take the you don't take the leader out of
the top of the tree.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
No, don't take So then I have to turn the
next sucker into the leader. You know, it works itself out.
But yeah, it's funny.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
Remember it's all a series of trials and airs exactly exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
She was a city girl. She was a city girl
that came to the country. So I'm still trying to
teach her.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
I guess you took to the country.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
Yeah, she came out here all.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Right, So you know crucial time right now, which I
have to first ask you a question. Last week you
were camping out with it's such a crucial time for pumpkins.
How could you afford to take the time to go
to the campground and camp out?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Well, I tell you we've been doing it every year.
We go over to Cook's Forest over in Pennsylvania, which
is about three hours beautiful country over there absolutely no
phone reception and luckily i'd either get my names. There's
there's a point now where it's just basically kind of
babysit them a little bit and water them right. And
the boy Jr. Three as Dave Stelf would call him,
Jerry Rose the third, stayed home for the weekend. So
(03:36):
I had my main man out there keeping an eye
on him because I do have a couple of little issues.
You get some little sauce spots in the vines this
time of the year just because of the humidity and
this and that, and you gotta we use a zero
tall oxidate, which I'm sure you use in the greenhouse industry.
Uh mix it up at like a quarter cup to
a gallon of water and a little pump up spray,
and you go out there and kind of scrape them
(03:57):
soft spots out and spray them with that, and if
it gets bad enough, you even put little little fans
on them to keep the air circulating. And luckily, luckily
in the greenhouse, surprisingly since I've been growing in the
high tunnel, I have less issues. And I think that's
because no rain's getting on them. You know, I'm putting
my own water onto the drip irrigation.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
And of course you're collecting rainfall. You got all your
your tanks that you've been brought yep, and so do
you use that exclusively or right as.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Long as I can. And luckily, since probably Geez probably
been the last month or so, it seems like we'd
been just enough rain to be able to collect. I
got a lot of buildings here and everything, and like
the other, a couple of nights ago we got zero
point six of a tenth of an inch of rain
and they gave me almost three hundred gallons of water.
So you can imagine we get, you know, a good
(04:44):
hard rain or something. I fell all my tanks up.
In fact, we did the other night. It was like
I woke up at ten thirty to terrain, and I
wanted to make sure everything was working good. And we
got one of them day lose rains where we got
like an inch of rain and forty five minutes or something.
I'll tell you what everything was. Everything was full by
that into that ring.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
I love it talking with Jerry Rose. He is our
giant pumpkin grower, holds many records when it comes to
giant pumpkins and always keeps us updated every year where
we stand not only in his pumpkin patch, but looking
around the country as well. As we start to look
ahead to our way off time of the year, and
that typically starts what late September and into October.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, actually, you know we've been talking. There's a Canfield Fair,
which is kind of the local event that got us
saw a lot of us going, and everything is next weekend.
We usually bring some some of our smaller pumpkins or
maybe pumpkins we are giving us issues down there, and
then about three weeks after that there will be some
in West Virginia and Kentucky and southern Ohio and the
(05:43):
season just kind of goes on then. So I think
oak Oakland is our last kind of local way off.
I mean, you can still find some other ones down
in the Carolina's up until maybe even the next weekend.
But yeah, it's yeah, we're getting into the getting into
the heat of things here now.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
And the one out in California is the usually the
last one, right.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
What half Moon Bay is? Yeah, you're right, Yeah, that's
that's usual. The actually half Moon Bay is I think
it's the Monday after Oakland and then actually Circleville will
be well yeah, three days after Oakland. Yeah, there's still
a few of them, but Circleville is not. They're kind
of like you got to live within so many miles
(06:25):
of Circleville to enter down there and everything, and they're
they're their own they're their own deal down there.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Got it all? Right? So the world record holder right
now is two thousand and seven hundred and forty nine pounds.
And I remember Jerry Rose when I first met you
and at Oakland and doing their way off there. I mean,
we were looking at breaking that thousand pound pumpkin at
that time. I mean, and I look at this today
and it's just phenomenal. And I look at last year,
(06:51):
I mean the Steltz Carol Steltz. Yeah, and Dave kind
of helped out. But Carol Steltz, I mean had a
fantastic year. You kind of had an off year. You
had throwaways of what sixteen hundred, eighteen hundred.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
No, nineteen eighty, nineteen and a half and eighteen eighty
five throwaways. Yeah, yeah, I guess they should have been
bigger than by estimates, they should have been bigger. Yes,
I was a little bit disappointed.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
You know what's funny is when you were at Oakland,
you could just you can always tell you're just kind
of a little more low key, you know this kind of
you know that was okay years all right, and then
you start talking about nineteen hundred pounds pumpkins. It's like,
give me a break, you giant pumpkin grows. All right,
we're gonna take a quick break. We come back. You're
(07:38):
gonna give us an update on where you're standing right now,
what's going on, because this is a really key time
for pumpkins as they're growing like crazy right now. More
with Jerry Rose, our giant pumpkin grower. Here in the
garden with Ron.
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Speaker 1 (09:16):
Welcome back. You're You're in the garden with Ron Wilson
Special guests this morning. Our giant Pumpkin Girl or mister
Jerry Rose, is with us this morning. Kind of give
us an update on where we stand with giant pumpkins
because wayoffs are going to start here very shortly.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
And of course the goal the world record twenty seven
forty nine, two thousand, seven hundred and forty nine pounds.
That is a huge pumpkin. So weatherwise and all, has
it been a trickier for you this year? Not not necessarily.
Speaker 2 (09:45):
Yeah, it's been. You've been hot, you know in the
High Tunnel. I mean, just I ain't got to worry
about the rain. You know, started out very wet and
then we kind of went dry and now now we've
been just kind of average, you know. Rain wise, I
would say, uh, it was you know, all the ninety
gree days. They don't like to I always say, if
you could have the perfect day, the eighty two eighty
three at the daytime and sixty two or sixty three
at night, you know, which is actually what today is
(10:07):
supposed to be, so it'll be the perfect day.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
But yeah, you get in the whole week of that
coming up.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
I think I don't know their show. I have a
feeling I wouldn't and if I get it, I'll send
you a picture. I wouldn't be a bit surprised because
I'm in a valley at the bottom of a hill.
I might be in the low forties or upper thirties here.
I wouldn't be surprised by the middle of the week.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Yeah, you send me pictures.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Were in Cleveland being in the forties.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
Oh really, yeah, yeah, Jerry sends me pictures. By the way,
this snow just happened yesterday, and it's like may or whatever.
I'm like, you gotta be kidding you. So all right,
so you're looking out at your giant pumpkins right now,
you've been doing this forever, and you're looking out there
right now. How many you got? That air potential?
Speaker 2 (10:52):
One that I would say is a real, real good contender.
It's it's matching, uh you know, it's it's estimating about
two thousand right now. Now for me, that means it
probably weighs eighteen hundred, because I never go with the
chart says, but it's estimating two thousand. I got a
couple others that are doing you know, they're fifteen hundred
or so, and then one that's a little behind because
(11:14):
I had a hard time setting it on a plant
and it's only about a thousand or eleven hundred, and
I lost too. I think I sent you. I don't
know if I sent you the second picture, but the
groundhog bit one of mine when it was only about
football size, and I left it on the plant, and
I probably shouldn't have inn about two weeks ago where
that scar was from the groundhog right and I knew
better than to do this. It's split open right there.
(11:36):
And then last weekend, why I was gone, Jerry sent
me a picture. I had another, probably my second best one,
split open in the blossom. And there's lots and lots
and lots of people around the country having blossom and
splits this year. It seems like more than normal. And
if we could figure out how to do that, you know,
how to fix that, there would be a lot more
big pumpkins. But just just the way.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
It did, what any idea what causes that?
Speaker 2 (11:59):
No, you can tell me. I'll put all my prize
money with you.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
There you go. I love it so so you're looking
out there right now. So right now, isn't August like
a key month for the growth of these things.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
It is, you know, if you hit their peak. It
used to be we set these pumpkins closer to July fourth,
so August they put on, you know, their most weight.
Now most of us are trying to get them set
on the plants by the middle of June. So I
hit my peak probably three or four weeks ago, by
by estimate estimate. Last Monday, me and Jerry measure every
seven days, and I was down to twenty three pounds
(12:33):
a day. I think I put on about one hundred
and sixty pounds Monday to Monday. We'll see what this
Monday till this coming Monday does, but it is twenty
three pounds. Hopefully this week I'll get you know, fifteen
sixteen pounds, and they'll just keep going down. I'm hoping
for another three to four hundred, really three hundred pounds
on top of what I got this coming Monday, right.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
And that's per day. When he's talking about twenty pounds,
we're talking per day. And you told me at one time,
I mean you can be as much as what forty
five fifty pounds a day?
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Yeah, my biggest one out here as at it's peaked,
did I think it was by estimate, fifty one pounds
a day for seven days. But you can figure that's
a little what three hundred and sixty about thre hundred
and sixty pounds for a week, But you can figure
the mountain. Like I said, it came on the plan
on June fifteenth. I think this one was in order
to get over two thousand pounds, you know, don't you
have to have still almost like a twenty pounds average
to its entire lifespan.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Unreal? Now that the twenty seven hundred pound or was
that is that a greenhouse grown?
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Or was that the guy up in Minnesota? He was outside? Okay, Yeah,
he's outside and he's lost. He only grows two plants
and he I'm friends with him on Facebook and he
he's lost both of his So he's out of competition
for this year.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
Really. Wow, Yeah, that's that's just the way that got.
You've always been there, though, I mean, you've always had
enough to be somewhere in the wayoffs right, I'm never
you've never been.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
To out Yeah yeah, and then I got a couple
three extra I got so much stuff growing out here.
I said, if I wasn't retired now in no way
I could do over growing bushel gores. I got giant
watermelons this year, I got giant jack O Lantern's. I
got the giant tomatoes. I'm like, man, I'm I'm like,
I don't know if I'm just getting slower because I'm
(14:12):
getting older. But it seems like I'm out there all
day long, which I guess is good. And you know,
you see too many retired people just sit around and
do nothing. I said, I'm not that type of person.
At least I'm doing something right.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
So yeah, so you're involved with all this. And by
the way, if folks want to follow all the wayoffs
for all of the vegetables he just mentioned, go to
big Pumpkins dot com. That's Big Pumpkins dot com and
you'll see where to twenty twenty five all the way offs.
You can click onto that. I'll show you all the
different ones. You can go to the past and go
to last year. You can find Jerry Rose on there
(14:41):
on the on the giant pumpkins. You'll see where he
placed and everybody placed on there. So check it out.
I have fun watching it. As a matter of fact,
I was on there this morning. I was amazed the
guy that did the longest gore. That thing was like
two stories high.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Yep Y said right now. And I don't know the
fella personally, but I think because I do the giant stuff,
it must just high out of them algorithms. Go it
pops up on my Facebook, but they're the fellas. I
think it's over Iiowa. He's he's got a sunflower that
he's waiting for it to head out, and it's gonna
if it unless something happens, it's gonna break the world
record right right now, is like four foot taller than
(15:18):
the tallest sunflo It's like thirty two or thirty three
foot tall. You should see the trolls he's got holding
that thing up in there.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Take a telephone pole to hold that up.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
I mean yeah, you're talking thirty some foot that. That's
almost a tall telephone pole.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Oh my gosh, that's unbelievable. Well again, it's a lot
of fun. So check it out. It's big Pumpkins dot
com and of course you'll find Jerry on there. You
can learn more about it if you want to give
it a try. Uh go to these way offs. As
a matter of fact, Jerry, I get to see Jerry
I think it's October the twelfth at Oakland Nursery and Dublin, Ohio,
and they have a big time Way Off there and
(15:53):
that's where I met Jerry for the first time and
got involved with these and you learn more about it.
There's it's amazing. I mean people come there for the
first time growing giant pumpkins and show up with six,
seven to eight hundred pound pumpkins.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Yeah. Especially so the little kids, I'll tell you what,
they're getting pretty good. They're getting competitive.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Those a brother and sister group there and they're yeah,
they're liking the third or fourth grade something like that.
And every year the pumpkins just get a little bit
bigger and a little bit bigger. They do a great job.
It's a lot of fun. Giant tomatoes. You grow what
was your biggest one? Six six pounder?
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Yeah, I almost had a seven pounder last year. They're
doing okay out here. I mean they're just starting to
come on.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
You know.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
I didn't even start my seats for the giants till
the middle of June because if you start them too early,
they turn red and then they rock. So I they're
just starting to come on. So then for Way Off time,
which is still seven weeks. I think I was figuring
it's forty forty nine days from today or something like that.
They're just starting to come on, so they'll be getting
right for me. And I've done it before where you
put them on them, you know, stick them in the
(16:54):
refrigerator or something like that. So I'm throwing the white
stuff out of the frigerator and you know, putting the
tomatoes in the fridge. You know, got her blankets off
the bed to stuff out of the refrigerator. I don't
know what else. How did she stay with you?
Speaker 1 (17:05):
You stuck her out in the country, take her blankets away,
clean out the refrigerator, you make her work outside and
prune the tomatoes. Then you yell at her because she
doesn't do it right.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Oh Maya, yesterday I picked that we did twelve courts
of corn. We froze twelve courts of corn. So that
time of the year is coming on too. She's a good.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Wife to put up with you, Jerry Rose. She is
a saint and she will go down with Saint Hood
as well. By the way, I was up in Port
Clinton this week, and that's an interesting area up there.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Oh yeah, we did up along the lake.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
We did Geneva on the Lake last year on your
side of the lake, and then we were up at
Port Clinton this week doing the other side of the
lake in the pretty interesting area up there as well. Hey, Jerry,
always a pleasure having you on the show. Good luck
with everything. I hope that big one comes along for
you and just as a miracle worker and you never know,
maybe it'll start kicking back into gear again. But I
look forward to seeing how well you do and all
(18:00):
the guys out there, and again if you want to
stay in touch with what's happening Big Pumpkins dot com
uh and uh and just follow along as they go
through all the way offs. Always a pleasure. I appreciate
you spending time with us this morning.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Thanks Royn. I'll have some seeds for you since you're
retired now you can grow Big punkin next year and
be competitive.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
Well, you know what, our volunteer pumpkins doing a pretty
darn good job right now. That's why I sent you
a picture of it.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
You have to keep them squirrel away, right, It's just the.
Speaker 1 (18:28):
Squirrels got into any other the darn squirrels just like
your ground hog, all right, all right, Jerry, take care.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
Have a good day. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Jerry Rose Giant pumpkin grower. And again, I think it's
fun to follow this. I mean, these these folks who
really get into this and then you know it's there,
it's there, it's their passion and a big hobby. And uh,
you know, they spend a lot of time with these
that to do and it gets serious. Jerry retired and
build a high tone. We hear him talking about his
high tunnel. It's a it's a hoop house, a greenhouse
(19:00):
that the sides are high on the side so they
keep it open, but it's covered on the top, so
he protects it from frosts, from rainfall because they've got
to be careful how much rainfall it gets, et cetera,
et cetera. And they're using high tunnels a lot more
for growing produce, for growing fruits and berries. They're growing
apple trees now in high tunnels because they can control
(19:22):
the environment a little bit more and have extend the
period of time that you're growing, like strawberries can have
longer seasons and things like that. So he's experimenting now
doing his in a high tunnel. Kind of a compromise
between like in Europe, doing them in greenhouses and just
growing them right outside. But anyway, always a fun thing,
good talking with Jerry. These folks really get into it.
(19:44):
But check it out big Pumpkins dot com. And if
you have a way off in your particular area on
a Saturday or Sunday coming up late summer and fall,
go and participate. I think you will enjoy. It's always
a lot of fun to see what these folks bring
to the table, so to speak. All right, we'll take
a quick break. We come back, lots of tips to
share with you, and of course we've got phone lines
(20:06):
open for you. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
five five. Don't forget our website, it's Ron Wilson online
dot com. Plann of the week, Sweet Autumn Climatis. Got
Magnolia scale on there, which is up. We talk about
that after the break. Lots of tips sheets for you
from Buggy Joe Boggs as well, and Rita's recipe what
to do with all those tomatoes? You'll love that one
(20:26):
as well. Here in the Garden, Ron Wilson.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
Not gardening questions.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
Ron has the answer at one eight hundred eight two
three talk.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
You are in the Garden with Ron Wilson,
In The Garden with Ron Wilson News
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