pumpkins?

[Salyc]

So last Samhain we carved a dozen pumpkins. We harvesta all the “goop” and seeds and had a GLOB LOB as we heaved it into the garden between Heretic camp and the Pavilion.

My question here is, is there any more we should do to monitor these potential little guys, or help them along?

[Prairie]

Keep your eyes on them. The organic matter on the seeds probably broke down and helped the seeds winter. It will need to be about 70 degrees or more at the soil surface for germination. That will be sometime in May. If you had some goopy material that would compost well, OR compost itself, you might take a peek and cover any seeds still above the soil surface. If they dry out totally this spring, they might not germinate. Then, if we get lots of little seedlings, we might paper the area around them with newspapers or cardboard to suppress weeds. Mulch or compost would hold the paper or cardboad down against the wind until the paper gets wet a few times and conforms to the earth. The pumpkin vines that grow many feet long will be in areas under weeds or plants. But this is good for the pumpkins, which are prettier if they don't bake in full sun.

[Salyc]

ok, SO BASICALLY, IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA TO TAKE SOME COMPOST UP AND COVER EXPOSED SEEDS?

[Prairie]

yeh, sometime between now and May 10 :)