September 6, 2011

Pumpkin Pleasure

Who knew I'd be the recipient of so much pleasure attained simply by growing pumpkins. My blogger friend, Julie, gave me the idea of growing vegetables in 5-gallon buckets. You can find Julie and all her good ideas in Florida at A Succulent Life

There are three different kinds of pumpkins; Super Freak Goosebumps, Connecticut Field and Rockafellow. We'll be cutting them from the vine before the first frost, which will be soon. Each bucket needed a couple gallons of water a day because of the hot summer we experienced, but it was worth the effort.

My bucket garden also included Early Girl tomatoes, 3 kinds of peppers, Iznik cucumbers and Shiny Boy watermelons. Everything was delicious although the 4 watermelons haven't been harvested yet. I've been tapping and listening for a dull sound, but not hearing it. The spot where the melon touches the ground is turning white/yellow, so maybe we're getting close.

The buckets are white and printed with
these words in green & gold:
Green Bay Packers
Super Bowl
XLV
Champions

No wonder my bucket garden was a success!






 

22 comments:

  1. Wow! I've never been able to grow a pumpkin to a good size. Either a neighborhood kid or bugs have taken them prematurely. Cool!

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  2. OMG! WOWZERS! I can't believe you have grown pumpkins in buckets...how awesome is this??? I am so happy for you! They are just gorgeous!!! Congrats!!! I am so happy to have discovered bucket farming!!!
    xoxo- Julie

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  3. Oh...and thanks for the "mention" here on your blog!!! Maybe just tons of folks will discover our easy way to garden!!!
    xoxo- Julie

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  4. Last summer I was able to grow only one kind of pumpkin, Japanese pumpkin, which is also popular here. This is my first time to see Super Freaks, Goosebumps. Connecticut Field and Rockafellow pumpkins. They are so beautiful. Thank you for sharing the idea of growing pumpkin in bucket. I will try it this coming summer for I have a few empty buckets.

    Thank you for the visit and nice comment.

    Hugs from down under

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  5. It looks like your veggies were living up to their champion name!
    Such splendid pumpkins. That is a great idea...cheap and smart.
    I love your blog header.

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  6. Donna I'm sorry about your dad and can certainly understand the funk you have been in. I remember the photo you posted of your Mom holding your dads hands in hers. I loved it, I thought it was beautiful and I remember it bringing me to tears.

    I love the fact that you grew these veggies in Buckets. That's my can of gardening! Wonderful!

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  7. ha ha! laughing at the GBP reference! had to come over and say hello to WisGirl! :) i grew up in central wis and moved to dallas when i was 20. i've been a texan longer than a wisconsinite, but wis will always hold a piece of my heart. :)

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  8. oh, my...experiencing serious pumpkin envy just about now!

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  9. Wow, Donna, what a great crop! I've never had any luck growing pumpkins. Maybe I should try 5-gallon buckets, too. Of course, mine would have to be labelled CHICAGO BEARS:) Ha, ha; couldn't resist. I do root for the Packers...when they're not playing the Bears, that is.

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  10. Great looking pumpkins with the appropriate colors - green, gold and white. Go Packers!

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  11. As a Chicago Bears season ticket holder, I will forego any comments about your choice of football team!
    I sure have to admire your commitment to the punkins! I cannot imagine how much you were out there, watering things, Donna. Surely you are very determined!
    I have also seen tomatoes and punkins grown in the bags of soil, just lying on the ground...

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  12. My gosh -- those all look good enough to eat! Yummmm. A great idea -- if I were in one spot long enough to grow a garden I'd be tempted, especially for the tomatoes. We just read about the watermelon with the white spot being the best one and it's been working (for picking them out from the Farmer's Market)...

    Glad to see you back -- your post is full of joy and I am glad of that!

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  13. I'm inspired to try pumpkins next year! But probably only have room for one. I love the first pic!

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  14. This looks like such a welcome autumn sight! A little town close to here will be having their Pumpkin Days festivities in a couple of weeks.

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  15. Pumpkins in a bucket. Whoda thought. It give might be key to success for me in raising them. :)

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  16. Julie is the greatest isn't she! And that is a great idea. Your pumpkins look awesome. I really like the bumpy first one! I am so glad that things are growing great for you in those containers!

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  17. (i've seen the 'let your blog be silent' theme on a couple of blogs i follow. basically, they're asking folks to tell their 9/11 stories on 9/10 and then let their blog remain silent on 9/11. i thought it was a good thing. we can let our souls and hearts remember.)

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  18. Great pumpkins girl. I love that you planted them in Green Bay Packers buckets. Perfect.

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  19. I've not been able to grow pumpkins here because of the woodchucks, and there is not enough room for pumpkins within the fenced garden. Perhaps I should try them up on our elevated back deck in buckets, though, where those critters shouldn't be able to get them!

    Oh, and I checked out Julie's blog too. Another to add to my reading list!

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  20. Love the pumpkins in buckets! I am going to try it. Do you give out seed information for planting?

    And a PACKER fan . . .you're my kind of woman!

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  21. WEho would have thought you'd be so successful with pumpkins in a 5 gal bucket. And such success. I'll have to pass the word.

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  22. I didn't know you could grow pumpkins in a container. Cool! I have room to grow some across the street, but a borer gets into the stems and kills the plant before the pumpkins can ripen.

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