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A ton of giant pumpkin takes home prize

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED OCT 7, 2020

Madison Thomson of Newcastle shows off his 2020 champion -- weighing in at 2,089 pounds -- at the Elk Grove Giant Pumpkin Festival. (Photo courtesy
Elk Grove Giant Pumpkin Festival)

First-time entrant wins Elk Grove Giant Pumpkin Festival weigh-off

Will 2020 be a big year for pumpkins? Judging by the results of the Elk Grove Giant Pumpkin Festival, it could be.

Held Saturday without public attendance, the pumpkin weigh-off was one of the few parts of the popular festival offered this year; the pumpkin boat races, pie eating contest and other festivities were all canceled due to COVID-19 health guidelines. More than 70,000 patrons packed the 2019 pumpkin fest.

But the pandemic didn’t stop pumpkins from growing. The 2020 winner: 2,089 pounds. That’s 151 pounds more than the 2019 champion pumpkin.

The new king of Sacramento-area pumpkin growers was a first-time entrant. Madison Thomson of Newcastle took home the $2,000 first prize. Thomson told The Sacramento Bee that he had been growing giants for 15 years, but this was his first time to enter Elk Grove’s contest.

“I was not expecting to win at all,” he said. “I was not expecting it to get as heavy as it did. This pumpkin is over double the size of my next largest pumpkin that I’ve ever grown.”

The victory also was Thomson’s first in a weigh-off sanctioned for official records.

“Madison began growing giant pumpkins in high school and has been growing them on and off ever since,” the festival posted on Facebook. “(Saturday) was his first visit to the Elk Grove Weigh-Off and his first-ever win at a Great Pumpkin Commonwealth sanctioned contest.”

Thomson’s pumpkin won by a whole lot of gourd. The runner-up weighed “only” 1,731.5 pounds. About 30 contestants competed in the “heftiest” category.

Known for its over-sized pumpkins, the festival shared the weigh-off and awards via a broadcast on Facebook Live. The 2018 winner, grown in Napa, set a California record at 2,138 pounds.

Started in 1994, the Elk Grove Giant Pumpkin Festival also held virtual contests with online voting for prettiest giant pumpkin and “Hometown Scarecrow.”

Next up for pumpkin fans is the granddaddy of gourd weigh-offs, the Half Moon Bay Pumpkin and Art Festival. Like Elk Grove, the festival itself was canceled. But not to be denied, the pumpkins will roll into the spotlight.

From 7 to 11 a.m. Monday, Oct. 12, pumpkin fans around the globe can watch that festival’s weigh-off via Facebook, which will include coverage via drone.

“Our camera crews will be going back and forth from the ground to the sky to bring you this year’s Weigh-Off Livestream on Facebook,” the organizers posted on Facebook. “The rockstars at HMB Media and Mallermedia blend the engineering geek technical expertise with the ability to tell a story through visuals like no one else. Livestream the action on our weigh-off Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/halfmoonbaypumpkinweighoff/

and catch Half Moon Bay’s 47th Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off, Monday, October 12, 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., Long Branch Farms! Godzilla gourds abound, sadly no spectators this year.”

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fall vegetables pumpkin contest gardening pumpkins Elk Grove fall events gourds squash Sacramento County Half Moon Bay fall festival

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Garden Checklist for week of May 19

Temperatures will be a bit higher than normal in the afternoons this week. Take care of chores early in the day – then enjoy the afternoon. It’s time to smell the roses.

* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. If you haven’t already, it’s time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.

* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.

* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.

* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.

* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.

* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.

* Don’t forget to water. Seedlings need moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants.

* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.

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