How to Grow Massive Pumpkins

Select a planting site with soil that drains well and gets full sunlight, Spread a 2- to 3-inch layer of compost over the area and then till it into the top 6 inches of the soil, using a tiller.

Rake the soil up into a mound that is 12 inches tall and 10 feet long. Slope the sides of the mound down gently to allow water to drain away from the pumpkins.

Plant the pumpkin seeds in the top of the mound, spacing them 1 inch apart and 1 inch deep.

Water the mound until the top 2 to 3 inches are damp. After planting, keep the soil damp at all times but not soggy. During the peak of summer, the pumpkins may require daily watering.

Fertilize the vines as soon as they form horizontal runners. Spread ammonium sulfate fertilizer on the soil beside each plant, and rake it into the soil with a bow rake. Use the amount of fertilizer specified on the package for the planting area. Water the soil well after fertilizing, and reapply the fertilizer every two weeks.

Wait until the pumpkin vines develop flowers. Locate a flower that does not have a round bulb below it, which is a male flower. Cut the flower off from the vine and pull off the petals. Walk along the vine and rub the male flower into the center of all female flowers, which have a round bulb at the base. This process pollinates the flowers and ensures that pumpkins will grow.

Prune back the vines once you have three pumpkins on each one. Simply cut the end off with hand pruners, making the cut straight across the stem.

Construct a shade tent over the giant pumpkins once they develop to prevent the skins from splitting and cracking. Insert 5- to 6-foot-tall wooden stakes into the ground around the pumpkin to form a square. Place a tarp over the stakes and staple it to the tops of the stakes with a staple gun.

Harvest the massive pumpkin when it reaches the desired size, but before the first frost.