Polson man grows big pumpkins
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POLSON — A Polson children’s book could be titled “Emmett and the Giant Pumpkin” instead of “James and the Giant Peach” since Emmett May raised over 1,700 pounds of pumpkin this year. That’s just three big Atlantic Giant pumpkins. May placed second with a 601-pounder and third with a 588 pound pumpkin in the weigh-off in Hamilton in September. He said a pumpkin from Shelby at 782 pounds beat him out.
One of May’s giant orange orbs is on display at Westland Seed in Ronan.
It was a tough year for raising pumpkins, though, May said.
“Hail in July just almost wiped me out,” he explained.
Hailstones punched holes in the pumpkin leaves and “that’s what feeds the pumpkin.”
This summer was cool, with lots of rain early on, and those are not ideal pumpkin producing conditions.
“You need those 70 degree nights,” May explained.
Also his pumpkins contracted a bacterial leaf disease called angular leaf spot. The disease runs on a two-year cycle, May said, so he has changed his gardening spot and will not compost the pumpkin vines or leaves this year. Twila Delaney from Delaney’s Landscape Center found some disinfectant for May to use on all his equipment and tools so he can thwart the leaf spot.
In the meantime, May is preparing for next year’s giant orange visitors. He’s already had his garden tilled this fall, which destroys weeds and insects. Now he’s ready to start hauling in manure to add to the soil, and then he will plant a cover crop. The cover crop, when it’s tilled into the soil in the spring, will add nitrogen to the soil.
May’s pumpkin patch is almost organic; he uses “just manure, compost, fish fertilizer and a lot of time.” The only non-organic product is a fungicide.
On Oct. 16 one of May’s gargantuan pumpkins will take a field trip to Peas Farms in Missoula so children touring the farms can wonder at the big vegetable.
After that, May plans to cut the pumpkins up and feed them to his cows. Deer also like pumpkins, May added.
For gardeners who would like to grow an Atlantic Giant next year, May said he would give seeds. Please call 883-0801 if you’re interested.
To get more information on May’s pumpkins, go to his blog at http://grizzlymontanagiantpumpkins.blogspot.com.
